Magellan was the first European explorer to reach the Pacific Ocean from the Atlantic. This was an enormous accomplishment at the time. Magellan was looking for a way in which this could be accomplished, but after looking through the coast of Brazil, Rio de la Plata and Patagonia, this seemed increasingly difficult. However, Magellan finally discovered the strait he had been seeking in Tierra del Fuego. It took 38 days for him to navigate the strait, arriving at an extremely calm ocean that was thus named the "Pacific."
