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Quiz about The End of the Explorers
Quiz about The End of the Explorers

The End of the Explorers Trivia Quiz


For centuries, many have explored our world and discovered new regions, but this was a very dangerous occupation. These intrepid explorers all had their adventurous activities come to an abrupt and untimely end.

A multiple-choice quiz by pshelton. Estimated time: 5 mins.
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Author
pshelton
Time
5 mins
Type
Multiple Choice
Quiz #
291,678
Updated
Apr 19 23
# Qns
15
Difficulty
Average
Avg Score
9 / 15
Plays
2128
Awards
Top 5% quiz!
Last 3 plays: mazza47 (9/15), jeremygilbert (10/15), Guest 115 (9/15).
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Question 1 of 15
1. This man was the first to map Newfoundland, the first to record the transit of Venus across the sun, the first European to set foot in eastern Australia, the first to go south of the Antarctic Circle and the European who discovered the Hawaiian Islands. Who is this man who met an untimely demise in Hawaii in 1779? Hint


Question 2 of 15
2. Which Spaniard was the first to cross the Isthmus of Panama and reach the Pacific Ocean only to later run afoul of Francisco Pizarro? Hint


Question 3 of 15
3. Which conquistador discovered Chile and also fell victim to Pizarro? Hint


Question 4 of 15
4. This Scotsman discovered the Niger River in Africa in July 1796 and mysteriously disappeared there on his second journey in 1806. Who was he? Hint


Question 5 of 15
5. Which European discoverer of the Mississippi River had to be buried in secret when he died so that the natives of the region would not realize that he was not immortal? Hint


Question 6 of 15
6. Which Spanish explorer completed the first documented navigation of the length of the Amazon River? Hint


Question 7 of 15
7. Which Norwegian explorer was the first to explore both the North and South Poles and died during a rescue mission? Hint


Question 8 of 15
8. This English sea dog, privateer and courtier sailed further south than any other person in 1578, and ten years later was a hero of the battle with the Spanish Armada. Who was this explorer who died in Panama in 1596? Hint


Question 9 of 15
9. This famed Dutch explorer published an atlas of the Mediterranean and was the discoverer of many of the planet's most northerly islands. Who was this explorer of the Arctic which ultimately claimed his life and has an area that bears his name? Hint


Question 10 of 15
10. This British naval surgeon was a passionate botanist and extensively explored Australia, being the first to describe a wombat. Who was this man who died en route to Tahiti? Hint


Question 11 of 15
11. Who was the U.S. Naval officer and explorer of the Amazon who went down with his ship in 1857 which had 15 tons of gold on board? Hint


Question 12 of 15
12. One of the most famous of the Antarctic explorers, this man journeyed in an open boat in the Southern Ocean to bring help to his stranded crew from the ship "Endurance". Who was this outstanding explorer who died during his last expedition in 1922? Hint


Question 13 of 15
13. This Danish explorer of the Arctic discovered some of the Aleutian islands as well as exploring much of the northern Pacific and Kamchatka Peninsula. Who was this man who has a geographic location named after him? Hint


Question 14 of 15
14. This famed English explorer of the eastern United States has many sites in North America named for him. Who was this man who died after he was set adrift by his mutinous crew? Hint


Question 15 of 15
15. Some explorers looked farther than the planet Earth. Which U.S. astronaut was the first American to walk in space and died in a fire in 1967? Hint



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Most Recent Scores
Mar 26 2024 : mazza47: 9/15
Mar 25 2024 : jeremygilbert: 10/15
Mar 22 2024 : Guest 115: 9/15
Mar 16 2024 : japh: 11/15
Feb 29 2024 : IM_Stupid: 7/15
Feb 11 2024 : Guest 205: 9/15
Feb 11 2024 : jwwells: 8/15

Score Distribution

quiz
Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. This man was the first to map Newfoundland, the first to record the transit of Venus across the sun, the first European to set foot in eastern Australia, the first to go south of the Antarctic Circle and the European who discovered the Hawaiian Islands. Who is this man who met an untimely demise in Hawaii in 1779?

Answer: James Cook

James Cook was born near Middlesbrough on 27 October 1728 and joined the Royal Navy at the age of 16. He journeyed both the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. In February 1779 after some native Hawaiians took a small boat from him, he and his men tried to take a hostage until the stolen item was returned.

Unfortunately, the hostage was Kalaniopu'u, a chief, and in the ensuing struggle, Cook was killed.
2. Which Spaniard was the first to cross the Isthmus of Panama and reach the Pacific Ocean only to later run afoul of Francisco Pizarro?

Answer: Vasco Nunez de Balboa

Balboa was born in 1475 in Spain and is credited as the first European to sight the Pacific Ocean, in 1513. In 1510 he established Santa Maria la Antigua del Darien in the area of Panama, one of the first European settlements in the New World and for a time served as its mayor.

He came into conflict with other conquistadors and in 1518 he was captured by Pizarro in Acla, Panama and beheaded there in 1519.
3. Which conquistador discovered Chile and also fell victim to Pizarro?

Answer: Diego de Almagro

Almagro was a Spanish conquistador and one time ally of Pizarro, accompanying him on the bloody conquest of Peru. After a conflict over the governorship of Cuzco, Almagro continued his search for gold south where he is credited with discovering Chile in 1535. Disappointed by the lack of treasure there, he returned to Cuzco where he encountered Pizarro who defeated him in battle and had him beheaded 8 July 1538.
4. This Scotsman discovered the Niger River in Africa in July 1796 and mysteriously disappeared there on his second journey in 1806. Who was he?

Answer: Mungo Park

Born in 1771 and given a curious name, Mungo Park graduated from the College of Surgeons in London in 1793. After an arduous journey which included a brief imprisonment, Park was the first European to find the elusive Niger River. He returned in 1805 for a second expedition which included his brother-in-law Alexander Anderson. By October, most of the party including Anderson had died, but early in 1806 Mungo Park wrote to his wife that he intended to continue.

He was never heard from again. In 1827, his eldest son Thomas Park went to Africa in search of his father and tragically died there of fever.
5. Which European discoverer of the Mississippi River had to be buried in secret when he died so that the natives of the region would not realize that he was not immortal?

Answer: Hernando de Soto

De Soto explored many areas of the southern United States in addition to being the first European to view the Mississippi River. Prior to this discovery, he had been a companion of Pizarro in his conquest of Central America and Peru. De Soto had convinced many of the native tribes near the Mississippi, in what would become Arkansas, that he was an immortal and a god so when he died of fever on 21 May 1542, his men decided to bury him secretly and leave the area.
6. Which Spanish explorer completed the first documented navigation of the length of the Amazon River?

Answer: Francisco de Orellana

De Orellana was related to Francisco Pizarro and in his early years in the New World served with his conquistador cousin. In 1541, he set off to explore new lands for the King of Spain and reached the Amazon around June 1542. He and his crew completed navigation of the full length of the river on 24 August 1542.

He set out with four ships for a second expedition to the Amazon in 1545 but died in November 1546 somewhere on the Amazon. Out of the 300 men who started this journey, only 44 survived.
7. Which Norwegian explorer was the first to explore both the North and South Poles and died during a rescue mission?

Answer: Roald Amundsen

I could have added that he was the first to reach the South Pole in 1911, but that would certainly have made this question too easy. Amundsen also sailed the Northern Route in 1918 and crossed the Arctic in an airship in 1926. On 18 June 1928 Amundsen was in an airplane attempting to rescue the French crew of an airship which had crashed in the Arctic, when his plane disappeared.

It is believed that Amundsen and pilot Leif Dietrichson crashed in the Barents Sea.
8. This English sea dog, privateer and courtier sailed further south than any other person in 1578, and ten years later was a hero of the battle with the Spanish Armada. Who was this explorer who died in Panama in 1596?

Answer: Sir Francis Drake

Sir Francis Drake, renowned as an Elizabethan explorer and courtier, circumnavigated the globe and survived the journey, doing so in the "Golden Hind" in 1577-1579. During this journey, he came very close to Antarctica and was the first person documented to have sailed so far south.

It was nearly 200 years before James Cook sailed further south, in 1773. Drake set sail for the Americas in 1596 but died of dysentery off Portobelo, Panama, and was buried at sea.
9. This famed Dutch explorer published an atlas of the Mediterranean and was the discoverer of many of the planet's most northerly islands. Who was this explorer of the Arctic which ultimately claimed his life and has an area that bears his name?

Answer: Willem Barents

After publishing his atlas of the Mediterranean, cartographer Willem Barents of the Netherlands, was obsessed with finding the Northwest Passage. This passion led him to be one of the very early explorers to brave the harsh Arctic and in his three expeditions to the region, he discovered many new islands. Barents died on board his ship near the island of Novaya Zemlya on 20 June 1597, shortly after commencing his third voyage.

The Barents Sea is named in his honor.
10. This British naval surgeon was a passionate botanist and extensively explored Australia, being the first to describe a wombat. Who was this man who died en route to Tahiti?

Answer: George Bass

George Bass was born in Lincolnshire, England on 30 January 1771 and during his career in the Royal Navy became the main surgeon on the colony on Norfolk Island near Australia. He circumnavigated Tasmania and explored much of the coast of Australia, keeping detailed notes of his observations and collecting many botanical specimens. During a voyage in 1801, he named the strait separating Tasmania and Australia the Bass Strait. On 5 February 1803, he set sail for Tahiti with the supposed intent of continuing to Chile in order to trade, but he was never heard from again.
11. Who was the U.S. Naval officer and explorer of the Amazon who went down with his ship in 1857 which had 15 tons of gold on board?

Answer: William Lewis Herndon

William Lewis Herndon was born 25 October 1813 and during his career explored previously unknown areas of the Amazon region. He was captain of the "SS Central America" in September 1857 which was carrying 15 tons of gold, 474 passengers and 101 crew when it was mortally damaged off the coast of Cape Hatteras during a hurricane. Captain Herndon made sure as many of the passengers and crew as possible were safe before he sank with the ship. His daughter Ellen was married to Chester Arthur who became the 21st President of the United States.
12. One of the most famous of the Antarctic explorers, this man journeyed in an open boat in the Southern Ocean to bring help to his stranded crew from the ship "Endurance". Who was this outstanding explorer who died during his last expedition in 1922?

Answer: Ernest Shackleton

Ernest Henry Shackleton was born in Ireland 15 February 1874 and went to sea with the merchant marines at the age of 16. He made four expeditions to Antarctica including his first with Robert Scott and one with the ill-fated "Endurance" in 1914-16. Despite his age, he attempted several times to enlist in the British Army during World War I but was unsuccessful.

In 1922 set off on his final Antarctic adventure when he died of a heart attack 4 January 1922 at the age of 47.
13. This Danish explorer of the Arctic discovered some of the Aleutian islands as well as exploring much of the northern Pacific and Kamchatka Peninsula. Who was this man who has a geographic location named after him?

Answer: Vitus Bering

Vitus Bering was born in Denmark in 1681 but found a career in the Russian Navy. He explored many areas in the northern Pacific before dying of scurvy on 19 December 1741 on an island in the Komandorskiye Ostrova chain. That island now bears his name as do the Bering Sea and Bering Strait.
14. This famed English explorer of the eastern United States has many sites in North America named for him. Who was this man who died after he was set adrift by his mutinous crew?

Answer: Henry Hudson

Henry Hudson was born in England around 1565 and like so many others, spent much of his career searching for the Northwest Passage. He worked for the Muscovy Company of England, the Dutch East India Company, the Virginia Company and the English East India Company while exploring the waterways of the eastern U.S.

He traveled much of the Chesapeake Bay, Delaware Bay, New York Harbor and of course, the Hudson River. In 1611 after he and his crew spent the winter in what would become Hudson Bay, his crew revolted when he refused to return home.

Henry Hudson, his young son and 8 crewmen were set adrift in a small open boat. None of the mutineers were punished for the deed.
15. Some explorers looked farther than the planet Earth. Which U.S. astronaut was the first American to walk in space and died in a fire in 1967?

Answer: Edward Higgins White

All of these astronauts lost their lives in the pursuit of space exploration, but Edward White was a personal hero of mine when I was very young. White was born 14 November 1930 and made his famous spacewalk 3 June 1965 on Gemini 4. He was selected for the 1st Apollo mission but tragically was killed in a fire on the capsule during a test on 27 January 1967.

This fire also claimed the lives of fellow astronauts Gus Grissom and Roger Chaffee. Charlie Bassett was a U.S astronaut and was killed during a training flight in 1966.
Source: Author pshelton

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