| 1480 | Ferdinand is born | Ferdinand was born near Portugal. |
| 1490 | Ferdinand's parents die | Ferdinand became an orphan when he was 10 years old. |
| 1492 | A job as the queen's messenger | Ferdinand was given the job of messenger in the queen's court. He learned about ships while there. |
| 1505 | A sailing expedition on the ocean | Ferdinand sailed with Portugal's first admiral, Francisco de Almedia. |
| 1511 | Ferdinand makes a second voyage | Ferdinand went on another expedition to Melaka. The Portugese conquered Melaka. |
| 1512 | Ferdinand begins planning his own voyage | Ferdinand decided to try sailing around the world. Portugal wouldn't finance his trip, so he asked the Spanish to help. |
| 1519 | Ferdinand sets sail | Ferdinand left Spain with a ship full of prisoners and other sailors who joined up. It was a hard journey that took many months. |
| 1520 | Ferdinand makes new discoveries | While on their journey, Magellan saw many new sights. He was the first European to spot a "Magellan" penguin, and he saw and named a dwarf galaxy in the sky. |
| 1520 | The Magellan Strait | Ferdinand sailed down the coast of South America to find a path across. He finally found one that he named the Magellan Strait, and he sailed through it. |
| 1521 | Ferdinand's ships land in Guam | Ferdinand's fleet sailed across the Pacific Ocean. They landed in Guam outside of Asia. |
| 1521 | Ferdinand dies | Ferdinand found enemies in the Philippine Islands. He was shot with an arrow and pierced with a spear, and he died in the Philippines. |
| 1522 | Ferdinand's ships continue without him | Magellan's fleet of ships continued to the Spice Islands without him, and then they set sail for Spain. |
| 1522 | The ships return home | At the beginning of the voyage there were five ships and 250 men. When they returned to Spain there was only 1 ship and 18 men. |
| 1800 | The Magellan Clouds | One of the galaxies that Ferdinand discovered was later named the Magellan Clouds in his honor. |
| 2019 | The 500 year mark | Historians are planning the 5th Centenary of the first navigation of the globe. Celebrations are being planned around the world. |
