Endless Novelties of Extraordinary Interest: The Voyage of H.M.S. Challenger and the Birth of Modern Oceanography

Written by Doug Macdougall

Narrated by Sean Runnette

A gripping tale of exploration aboard H.M.S. Challenger, an expedition that laid the foundations for modern oceanography.

From late 1872 to 1876, H.M.S. Challenger explored the world's oceans. Conducting deep sea soundings, dredging the ocean floor, recording temperatures, observing weather, and collecting biological samples, the expedition laid the foundations for modern oceanography. Following the ship's naturalists and their discoveries, earth scientist Doug Macdougall engagingly tells a story of Victorian-era adventure and ties these early explorations to the growth of modern scientific fields.

In this lively story of adventure, hardship, and humor, Macdougall examines the work of the expedition's scientists, especially the naturalist Henry Moseley, who rigorously categorized the flora and fauna of the islands the ship visited, and the legacy of John Murray, considered the father of modern oceanography. Macdougall explores not just the expedition itself but also the iconic place that H.M.S. Challenger has achieved in the annals of ocean exploration and science.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Tantor Media, Inc
• Release date: Aug 20, 2019
• ISBN: 9781630157159

Doug Macdougall

Doug Macdougall is Professor Emeritus of Earth Sciences at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, San Diego, and currently resides in Edinburgh, Scotland. He is the author of Frozen Earth: The Once and Future Story of Ice Ages (UC Press, 2004) and A Short History of Planet Earth.

Reviews for Endless Novelties of Extraordinary Interest

[Dave Radlauer · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Written in an easy to read but authoritative style, it both tells the story and provides a explanation of the startling discoveries which shook and reshaped perceptions of the floors of the world’s oceans.

The survey accomplished an epic traversal and measurement of the world’s oceans.
Fascinating and intriguing.