Modern travelers and their discoveries

It seems that the times of the discoverers have already passed, there are no white spots left on the map. But it turns out, and nowadays it is possible to travel, to study the unknown corners of the planet. Let all the continents and islands are already open, let the most remote and inaccessible areas be seen from outer space, and the inquisitive human mind sets new tasks and solves them, organizes expeditions. Who are they, modern travelers of the 21st century?

Names of modern travelers

When we recall the famous pioneers, along with the great Columbus, Magellan, Cook, Bellingshausen, Lazarev and others, we speak about our contemporaries. The names of Cousteau, Heyerdahl, Senkevich, Konyukhov and other researchers also sound like a hymn to the study of our planet. Modern travelers and their discoveries are a great example for imitation.

Jacques Yves Cousteau

Cousteau is the greatest oceanologist, a French scientist-researcher. This is the man who discovered the underwater world for mankind. It was his hands that made glasses for diving, the first scuba gear, equipped with the first scientific vessel that studies the depths of the sea. He owns the first films shot under the water.

For the first time man was able to move freely in the water column and sink to a depth of 90 m. Under the leadership of Cousteau, the first underwater expeditions were organized. At first it was archaeological research on the ocean floor and photography at depths of several kilometers.

When Cousteau created the "underwater saucer" - a mini-submarine, the possibilities for studying the water column increased dramatically. The continuation was the establishment of temporary underwater scientific stations, where modern travelers lived for several months and could conduct observations directly at sea.

The result of years of work Kusto on the study of the underwater world were books and films that were very popular: "In a world of silence," "World without a sun," a documentary series "Underwater Odyssey Cousteau." Since 1957, he headed the Oceanographic Museum in Monaco. In 1973 the "Cousteau Society for the Protection of Marine Nature" was founded.

Among his honorable awards, he considered the Order of the Legion of Honor. Cousteau died in 1997 in Paris.

Tour Heyerdahl

This name is also familiar to anyone who is even a little interested in travel. Tour Heyerdahl became famous for naval campaigns undertaken to prove his point of view on the settlement of different regions of the world.

Heyerdahl was the first to put forward the idea that the islands of Polynesia could be inhabited by people from South America. To prove this theory, modern travelers under his leadership made an unprecedented voyage on a balsa raft of "Kon-Tiki" across the Pacific Ocean. Having defeated about 8 thousand km in 101 days, the expedition reached the islands of Tuamotu. At the same time, the raft retained its buoyancy, and if it were not for the storm, it could certainly have reached the coast of Asia.

Then followed expeditions on reed boats "Ra" and "Ra-2", in which our compatriot Yuri Sienkevich took part. The boat "Tigris", the voyage at which was supposed to show the possibility of links between Mesopotamia and the Indian subcontinent, was burned by the team in protest against the military operations off the coast of Djibouti, and the expedition was not completed.

Heyerdahl disagreed with the academic world on many issues and put forward his own theories. For many years he studied the mysteries of Easter Island, especially the origin of the famous stone idols. The tour claimed that these gigantic statues could be made and brought to the place by the aborigines of the island, which did not have modern tools for processing stone and vehicles. And the results of his research were sensational, although not recognized by most scientists.

From the controversial Heyerdahl theories, we also note a version about the connections between the Vikings and the inhabitants of the Caucasus and Azov. He believed that the Vikings were from the North Caucasus. But to prove this theory he was prevented by death in 2002.

Heyerdahl's many books on his views on the exploration of the world and travel, documentary films about them, are still very fascinating and interesting for any person.

Yuri Senkevich

A modern Russian traveler and the most popular television program in Russia, the "Travel Club", a polar explorer, he participated in the 12th Soviet Antarctic Expedition.

In 1969, at the organization of the expedition to the Ra, Heyerdahl wrote a letter to the Academy of Sciences of the USSR inviting him to participate in a doctor with a good command of English, with experience in expeditions and a sense of humor. The choice fell on Senkevich. Cheerful and cheerful, with an optimistic outlook on life and the skills of the practitioner, Yuri quickly became friends with Heyerdahl and the other members of the team.

Subsequently, they have more than once participated in the expeditions of the famous Norwegian. Many researches Heyerdahl became known to the Soviet TV viewer immediately thanks to the telecast, which was conducted by Yuri Sienkiewicz. "Club Kinoputeshestviy" became for many a window into the world, allowing to get acquainted with interesting places of the globe. Guests of the transfer were modern travelers: Heyerdahl, Cousteau, Jacek Palkiewicz, Carlo Mauri and many others.

Sienkiewicz participated in the medical support of expeditions to the North Pole and Mount Everest. Yuri Alexandrovich died in 2006 on the set of the next telecast.

Tim Severin

Many modern travelers repeat the routes of seafarers and pioneers of the past. One of the most famous - the British Tim Severin.

The first journey he made in the footsteps of Marco Polo on motorcycles. After leaving Venice, Severin and his comrades crossed almost all of Asia and reached the borders of China. Here the trip had to be completed, as the permission to visit the country was not received. Then followed the study of the Mississippi River (while sailing on it by canoe and motor boat). The next expedition is along St. Brendan's route across the Atlantic Ocean.

Inspired by the adventures of Sinbad the seaman, Severin made the transition from Oman to China on a sailing ship, focusing only on the stars. In 1984, Severin with a team of 20 oarsmen repeated the route of the Argonauts to Colchis (Western Georgia). And the next year he traveled in the footsteps of Odysseus from the imperishable homonymous poem of Homer.

These are only some of Severin's routes. On his adventures, he wrote fascinating books, and for the "Sinbad Journey" was awarded the prestigious Thomas Cook Award.

Modern travelers of the 21st century

Despite the fact that the 21st century is in the yard, the spirit of love for adventure and travel has not died away. And now there are people who do not sit at home in comfort, they are attracted to the unknown, unknown.

Among them there are modern travelers of Russia. Perhaps the most famous of them is Fedor Konyukhov.

Fedor Konyukhov

To his name is often added "first". He was the first of the Russians to visit the three poles of the Earth: North, South and Everest. The first on Earth conquered five poles - to the previous ones were added the Pole of Inaccessibility in Antarctica and Cape Horn, considered such for yachtsmen. The first of the Russians overcame the "Big Seven" - climbed the highest peaks of all continents, considering Europe and Asia separately.

On his account, many expeditions, mostly extreme. Konyukhov made four trips around the world on a yacht. Member of the ski transition "USSR - North Pole - Canada."

His books are read in one breath. And in the plans for the future - a round-the-world journey in a balloon.

Dmitry Shparo

Immediately make a reservation: it is a polar explorer and explorer. Back in 1970 he headed a ski expedition to the islands of Komsomolskaya Pravda. Three years later I made a trip to Taimyr in search of the warehouse of the famous polar explorer Edward Toll. In 1979, under his leadership, the world's first expedition on skis to the North Pole was made.

One of the most famous campaigns is to Canada through the Arctic Ocean as part of a joint Soviet-Canadian expedition.

In 1998 he crossed the Bering Strait with his son . In 2008 he organized two expeditions to the North Pole. One of them is known for the world's first achievement of the pole on skis at night. And in the second, young people aged 16-18 took part.

Dmitry Shparo is the organizer of the Adventure Club. The institution conducts marathons on the territory of the country with the participation of people chained to wheelchairs. The most famous was the international ascent to Kazbek wheelchair invalids from Transcaucasia, Norway and Russia.

Modern travelers

The geography of modern travel is very extensive. Basically, these are poorly researched and hard-to-reach areas of the Earth. These campaigns often take place in extreme conditions, requiring the strain of all forces.

Of course, in one article it is difficult to cover all the names. Anatoly Khizhnyak, investigating poorly studied tribes in the jungles of the Amazon and Papua New Guinea ... Naomi Uemura, who alone made the trek to the North Pole, sailed across the Amazon, conquered Mont Blanc, Matterhorn, Kilimanjaro, Aconcugua, Everest ... Reinhold Messner, the first man , Who ascended to all 14 eight-thousandths of the world ... Each of them can write a separate book. Their adventures inspire a young generation of travelers.