从塞维利亚的都市阳伞俯瞰城市，西班牙 View of the city from the Setas de Sevilla (Metropol Parasol) in Seville, Spain (© LucVi/Shutterstock)

从塞维利亚的都市阳伞俯瞰城市，西班牙 View of the city from the Setas de Sevilla (Metropol Parasol) in Seville, Spain (© LucVi/Shutterstock)

500年前，是谁回到了这座城市？ What returned to this city 500 years ago?

Seville, Spain

The first recorded expedition to circumnavigate the Earth set sail from Seville, Spain—seen in our homepage image—500 years ago on this day. 'Yes!' you cry, 'Ferdinand Magellan!' Well, you're partly right.

While Magellan gets the glory as leader of the Spanish expedition, he didn't actually complete the marathon voyage—he was killed in a fight in the Philippines in March 1521. His place as leader of the five-ship voyage was filled by Juan Sebastián de Elcano, whose command ship the 'Vittoria' was the only one in the convoy that survived the trip, reaching Seville in 1522. Harsh conditions and poor-quality vessels had taken their toll: Of the 239 crew members who set out, only 18 returned with the expedition.

Although he only made half of this globe-circling journey, Magellan is rightly honored as an outstanding navigator, especially given the rudimentary knowledge and tools of the time. He discovered and crossed the strait that now bears his name near the tip of South America, trailblazing the first known passage between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. Magellan's and de Elcano's combined effort was also the first practical proof of a notion many 16th century people were still skeptical about: The Earth is round.

西班牙塞维利亚

500年前的今天，第一次有记录的环绕地球的远征从西班牙塞维利亚启航是的你哭了，“费迪南德·麦哲伦！”嗯，你说得有点对。

虽然麦哲伦获得了西班牙远征队队长的荣誉，但他实际上并没有完成马拉松之旅。他于1521年3月在菲律宾的一场战斗中丧生。他的五艘船航行的领导者由胡安·塞巴斯蒂安·德·埃尔卡诺（Juan Sebastián de Elcano）担任，他的指挥船“维托利亚号”是车队中唯一一艘幸存下来的船，于1522年抵达塞维利亚。恶劣的条件和劣质的船只造成了他们的损失：在出发的239名船员中，只有18人随探险队返回。

尽管麦哲伦只完成了这次环球航行的一半，但他被誉为杰出的航海家，特别是考虑到当时的基本知识和工具。他发现并穿越了现在以他的名字命名的海峡，在南美洲的尖端附近，开辟了已知的第一条大西洋和太平洋之间的通道。麦哲伦和德·埃尔卡诺的共同努力也是16世纪许多人仍然怀疑的一个概念的第一个实际证明：地球是圆的。