circumnavigation

Circumnavigation is the act of traveling completely around an object, most famously the Earth. This journey involves a continuous voyage that returns to the starting point.12

The first documented circumnavigation of the Earth was completed by Ferdinand Magellan's expedition, though Magellan himself died en route in the Philippines. His ship, the Victoria, under the command of Juan Sebastián del Cano, successfully returned to Spain in 1522, proving the Earth was a globe.3

While modern aircraft can circumnavigate the globe in approximately 42 hours of flight time, practical nonstop flights are rare. Historically, voyages like those of Zheng He and Vasco da Gama explored vast regions, contributing to the understanding of global geography and trade routes.45