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BIBLIOGRAPHY

Click on a name below to learn about each explorer. To nominate another great explorer for our Hall of Fame, click here! Our criteria for Hall of Fame selections

ROALD AMUNDSEN Polar explorer; led first expedition to South Pole	NEIL ARMSTRONG First man to walk on Moon	DANIEL BOONE Explored American wilderness	RICHARD BYRD Antarctic explorer and aviator
JOHN CABOT Explored east coast of Canada	SAMUEL de CHAMPLAIN Explored Canada and future site of Quebec	CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS First major European explorer of Caribbean and North America	JAMES COOK Explored Australia and South Pacific regions
HERNÁN CORTÉS Explored Mexico, Baja California, conquered Aztecs	VASCO daGAMA First European to sail around Africa to India and back.	FRANCIS DRAKE Explored North and South America	LEIF ERIKSSON First European to reach North America; explored Greenland
JOHN GLENN First American to orbit Earth; oldest astronaut to fly	HENRY HUDSON Explored upper Canada and America looking for Northwest passage	RENE-ROBERT CAVALIER,SIEUR DE LaSALLE Claimed Louisiana Territory for France	LEWIS & CLARK Explored Loiusiana Territory and Oregon Territory
CHARLES LINDBERGH Aviation pioneer; first solo flight across Atlantic Ocean	DAVID LIVINGSTONE Explored Africa's rivers, first European to cross Africa	FERDINAND MAGELLAN First to lead around-the-world expedition	JACQUES MARQUETTE LOUIS JOLIET First Europeans to explore Mississippi River
ROBERT PEARY MATTHEW HENSON Arctic explorers, co-discoverers of North Pole	MARCO POLO Explored Asia and the territory of Kublai Khan	SALLY RIDE First American woman astronaut	SACAGAWEA Native American woman guided Lewis & Clark's expedition
VALENTINA TERESHKOVA First woman in space	AMERIGO VESPUCCI Explored Americas; North, South America named for him	Reserved for future Hall of Fame Explorer	Reserved for future Hall of Fame Explorer

Our Selection Criteria

We used a variety of criteria to choose the explorers in our Hall of Fame. Our criteria included the most interesting explorers in a time period and explorers recommended by adults. (Since we are American, we probably found American explorers a little more interesting than others!).

We included explorers whose explorations helped people gain new information about the world. Explorers that have made a big impact on the world, for better or worse, were also chosen to be part of the Hall of Fame. We believe that these are the most important explorers of the Millennium.

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