On 21 December 1872, HMS Challenger set sail from Portsmouth, England, to begin a global voyage of deep-sea exploration, unique for the scale of its ambition and scope. Made possible by technological and scientific developments, extensive international cooperation and supported by a team of researchers and naval officers, the expedition was part of a concerted nineteenth-century drive to map the ocean floors and search for life in the abyss. By the time the ship returned to Britain in 1876, the scientific team on board had amassed what was then the largest collection of examples of life from the deep sea. But their work was not finished and over the next two decades a global network of researchers prepared the results for publication, culminating in a 50-volume series that is considered the intellectual foundation of modern oceanography.

About the Author
Dr Erika Jones is Curator of Navigation and Oceanography at Royal Museums Greenwich. She received her MSc in Environment, Science and Society from UCL and a BA in Environmental Science from Boston University. She was the recipient of a UK Arts and Humanities Research Council collaborative doctoral award with the National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, and UCL, during which time she undertook original research into the Challenger Expedition. Jones is co-editor of Women in the History of Science: A Sourcebook (UCL Press, 2022).


Book Information
ISBN 9781906367978
Author Erika Jones
Format Paperback
Page Count 256
Imprint National Maritime Museum
Publisher National Maritime Museum