Which European explorer crossed the Isthmus of Panama and sighted the Pacific Ocean in 1513?

Fact

Did you know?

In 1513, Vasco Núñez de Balboa crossed the Isthmus of Panama with a Spanish expedition and reached a vantage point from which he saw the ocean which he called the "South Sea". He is generally considered the first known European to have seen the Pacific from the American continent. Balboa then took possession of this sea in the name of the Spanish Crown. However, he did not lead the first European exploration of the entire Pacific coast of America. The indigenous peoples of the isthmus were naturally familiar with the ocean and contributed, in various ways, to the expedition's passage.