The Explorers Journal

As of February 1, according to NASA, we know of 5,307 confirmed exoplanets—both gaseous and rocky—and there are surely many billions more across our galaxy, and ours is but one of many billions of galaxies in the visible universe. It is an exciting time to be looking up into space! In our quest to find life beyond the Earth, gathering data about the atmospheres of rocky exoplanets located in in the socalled “Goldilocks zone” of their host stars, where liquid water might exist, could be very revealing. Just in the past decade or so, we have begun to tease out data from the light of a star that passes through an exoplanet’s atmosphere, which has allowed us to observe polarization and photon emission from chemicals in exoplanet atmospheres. Now that we have…

It has been 75 years since Thor Heyerdahl and five of his fellow adventurers reached Raroia in the Tuamotu Archipelago of French Polynesia, having set off 101 days earlier from Callao, Peru, in the balsa raft Kon-Tiki—Explorers Club Flag Nº123 flying from her rigging. Heyerdahl had embarked on that harrowing, 6,900-kilometer journey to prove a point—that the early peoples of South America, Peru in particular, were capable of reaching Polynesia in the watercraft of their time. So, could they? The answer, from a technological perspective, is quite possibly. Did they? The answer, from an archaeological and genetic point of view, has been a resounding no. While Heyerdahl’s theory of the colonization of Polynesia has proven to be false and earned him a host of detractors over the years, what that visionary…

As of February 1, according to NASA, we know of 5,307 confirmed exoplanets—both gaseous and rocky—and there are surely many billions more across our galaxy, and ours is but one of many billions of galaxies in the visible universe. It is an exciting time to be looking up into space! In our quest to find life beyond the Earth, gathering data about the atmospheres of rocky exoplanets located in in the socalled “Goldilocks zone” of their host stars, where liquid water might exist, could be very revealing. Just in the past decade or so, we have begun to tease out data from the light of a star that passes through an exoplanet’s atmosphere, which has allowed us to observe polarization and photon emission from chemicals in exoplanet atmospheres. Now that…

JOIN THE “EXPLORERS IMMORTALS” AND ENGRAVE YOUR NAME OR DEDICATION IN STONE ON NEW PAVERS FOR THE LEFRAK TERRACE AT EXPLORERS CLUB HEADQUARTERS. ADORN OUR LANDMARK OUTDOOR SPACE AND HELP PAY FOR URGENT WORK FOR PHASE II RENOVATIONS BY MAKING A TAX-DEDUCTIBLE DONATION OF $3,750 PER DEDICATED PAVER TO OUR LOWELL THOMAS BUILDING FUND. THE EXPLORERS CLUB WOULD LIKE TO THANK THE FOLLOWING WHO HAVE PURCHASED A PAVER: Mark Allio, Joanna Allman, James H. Alexander, John G. Alexander, Darlene T. Anderson, Jeanne D. Andlinger, Barbara Annan, Robert J. Aresty, Robert Ashton, Atlanta Chapter, Robert J. Atwater, Robin Wheeler Azqueta, Norman L. Baker, George Basch, Andreas Bender, Josh Bernstein, John Bierley, Bruce Blanchard, John R. Bockstoce, Brian M. Boom, John R. Boreske, Jr., Jill Botway, Gary W. Bowersox, Lawson W. Brigham, Rosalie…

Cycling some 3,060 kilometers over 41 days, Erick Cedeño, an adventurer from Santa Monica, California, and EC50 honoree, has retraced the route taken by the 25th Infantry “Buffalo Soldier” Bicycle Corps from Missoula, Montana, to St. Louis, Missouri, in 1897. Called “The Great Experiment” in national newspapers, the original journey also took 41 days to complete and was undertaken at the direction of the United States Army to determine the effectiveness of moving troops by bicycle. The route closely followed the Northern Pacific and Burlington railroads through Montana, Wyoming, South Dakota, Nebraska, and Missouri, and was chosen to challenge the riders with as many different climate and field conditions as possible. Upon completion of his retrace, Cedeño, 48, said, “This had been a dream of mine for years, and to finish in…

It has been 75 years since Thor Heyerdahl and five of his fellow adventurers reached Raroia in the Tuamotu Archipelago of French Polynesia, having set off 101 days earlier from Callao, Peru, in the balsa raft Kon-Tiki—Explorers Club Flag Nº123 flying from her rigging. Heyerdahl had embarked on that harrowing, 6,900-kilometer journey to prove a point—that the early peoples of South America, Peru in particular, were capable of reaching Polynesia in the watercraft of their time. So, could they? The answer, from a technological perspective, is quite possibly. Did they? The answer, from an archaeological and genetic point of view, has been a resounding no. While Heyerdahl’s theory of the colonization of Polynesia has proven to be false and earned him a host of detractors over the years, what that…