The Voyage of H.M.S. Challenger and the Birth of Modern Oceanography

from the Preface:
Just over a century and a half ago, six scientists with an overwhelming curiosity about the natural world set off from Portsmouth, England, on an adventure that would occupy them for the next three and half years. They did not depart on their own, however; they were embedded with more than 250 sailors and officers of the British Royal Navy ona ship called H.M.S. Challenger. The story of their voyage is one of discovery and adventure, hardship and humor. The expedition they embarked on was, uniquely, a product of its place and time. In hindsight it is easy to take a historical enterprise like this for granted, as something that was bound to happen. But in its day it was revolutionary.

"An epic Victorian-age expedition made relevant to the world today by Macdougall’s masterful prose. The excitement of discovery is infectiously brought to life in this delightful read. A landmark book about a landmark voyage.”—Nick Fraser, National Museums Scotland

From late 1872 to 1876, H.M.S. Challenger explored the world’s oceans. Conducting deep sea soundings, dredging the ocean floor, recording temperatures, observing weather, and collecting biological samples, the expedition laid the foundations for modern oceanography. Following the ship’s naturalists and their discoveries, earth scientist Doug Macdougall engagingly tells a story of Victorian-era adventure and ties these early explorations to the growth of modern scientific fields.

by Doug Macdougal
Hardcover, 288 pp., 5.5 x 1 x 8.25"

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