1596day.year
Willem Barents and Jacob van Heemskerk discover Bear Island.
Dutch explorers Willem Barents and Jacob van Heemskerk discovered Bear Island in the Arctic during their 1596 voyage seeking a Northeast Passage.
On this day in 1596, the Dutch expedition led by navigator Willem Barents and captain Jacob van Heemskerk sighted the barren, wind-swept Bear Island (Bjørnøya) in the Barents Sea. The voyage aimed to discover a shorter trade route to Asia by sailing north of Norway. Despite harsh Arctic conditions, the crew charted the island’s rocky coastline and observed polar bears and seabird colonies. While they failed to find the passage, the expedition expanded European knowledge of the Arctic and paved the way for future polar exploration. Bear Island later became an important site for whaling, meteorological stations, and wildlife research.
1596
Willem Barents
Jacob van Heemskerk
Bear Island