Andrés de Urdaneta

Timeline

1. 1525–1536Moluccas Islands · Maluku IslandsAt about seventeen he joined García Jofre de Loaísa's expedition to the Spice Islands, remaining in the Moluccas for over eight years and learning the monsoons, currents, and the Iberian–Portuguese rivalry; he later returned to Europe via Portuguese India, becoming one of the few Spanish navigators versed in both Pacific and Southeast Asian waters.
2. 1553–1564Mexico City · Mexico CityHe settled in New Spain around the 1540s and joined the Augustinian order in Mexico City in 1553. Philip II personally named him to pilot the expedition from Mexico to the Philippines and charged him with finding a reusable eastward return route; all five previous Spanish attempts had failed.
3. 1564–1565Acapulco · GuerreroIn spring 1565 he arrived in Cebu with Legazpi and helped establish a mission outpost. On June 1 he sailed north aboard the San Pedro, crossing the North Pacific using the Kuroshio and the westerlies, reaching Acapulco on October 8 and first verifying a reliable route east from the Philippines to New Spain, known as the tornaviaje.
4. 1565–1568Mexico City · Mexico CityAfter the successful return he reported in New Spain on the route and the situation in the Philippines; his course soon became the standard path for the annual Manila galleon voyages. He died in Mexico City on June 3, 1568, never again residing long in the Philippines.