Battle in the Pacific

Author: Ma Jun
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-01-01
Features: The world has four oceans, and the largest is the Pacific Ocean. In ancient times, due to the limitations of knowledge, people were aware only of seas and not oceans. Therefore, ancient China referred to the Pacific Ocean as the "East Sea" or simply called it the "Sea." On September 26, 1513, Spanish explorer Vasco Nú?ez de Balboa saw this ocean from the coast of Panama and exclaimed with joy. To contrast it with the Atlantic Ocean, which was then called the "North Sea," he named it the "South Sea." The name "Pacific Ocean" came later, thanks to Magellan. In the 16th century, Portuguese navigator Ferdinand Magellan was commissioned by the Spanish king to lead a fleet in search of a westward route to the East. After a difficult four-month journey, he reached Brazil. This navigator lingered there for some time, rested, and then set sail from Tierra del Fuego to complete his mission. When he entered a new ocean from the southern tip of South America, the weather was clear, the climate mild, and the sea calm as a mirror. For dozens of days of such sailing, the crew naturally celebrated, calling this ocean "El Mar Pacifico," meaning "Peaceful Sea," which translates to "Pacific Ocean" in Chinese. However, ever since the Pacific Ocean received this name, it has bid farewell to its long-standing tranquility and natural state, becoming somewhat turbulent. At one point, it even became a graveyard of steel and flesh. This small book tells the story of this period—the Pacific War of 1941.