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Discovery of the Río de la Plata
In 1527 a Spanish expedition led by Sebastián Cabot conducted systematic hydrographic surveys of the Río de la Plata estuary and the upper Paraná, br…
Timeline
- 1527Río de la Plata estuary · Río de la PlataCabot's fleet reached the broad Río de la Plata estuary, charting channel widths, tides, and coastal terrain, confirming the name Río de la Plata (River of Silver) and recording it in the ship's log, adding key hydrographic information to official Spanish maps.
- 1527Paraná River · Paraná RiverThe expedition ascended the Paraná from the estuary, mapping the inland extent of the Río de la Plata–Paraná–Paraguay river system and discovering a navigable network of waterways thousands of kilometers long, greatly changing European understanding of southeastern South America's geography.
Sources
- Parry, J. H. The Discovery of South America — John Horace Parry (1979)
- Encyclopaedia Britannica: Río de la Plata https://www.britannica.com/place/Rio-de-la-Plata