Final Stages of the Challenger Expedition (April–May…

Final Stages of the Challenger Expedition (April–May 1876)

In late April and early May 1876, the HMS Challenger, nearing the end of its historic scientific expedition, sailed westward from the Cape Verde Islands, making a loop northward into the mid-Atlantic before eventually turning eastward toward Europe.

By late May, the vessel made landfall in Vigo, Spain, marking its first contact with continental Europe after years of global exploration. From Vigo, the final leg of the voyage took the Challenger northeastward, skirting the Bay of Biscay before making landfall in England, completing one of the most ambitious oceanographic expeditions of the 19th century.