Thor Heyerdahl, a Norwegian explorer, led an epic 101-day journey across 4,300 miles of the Pacific Ocean in 1947. He and his crew of five men set out to prove that South Americans could have settled Polynesian islands in pre-Columbian times.

Kon-Tiki
Thor Heyerdahl's 1947 expedition saw him chart a 4,300-mile Pacific course on a balsawood raft, challenging the notion that South Americans settled in Polynesia prior to Columbus' arrival.