Journeys of Discovery: Joaquim Alves Gaspar, the navigator who made history with the nautical charts of the past

Joaquim Alves Gaspar has built a singular trajectory that brings together decades of experience as a Navy officer, navigator, ship commander and hydrographic engineer with a scientific career of reference in the history of cartography and navigation. He is today one of the leading international authorities in the study of the evolution and use of nautical charts, having published books, chapters and scientific articles that have contributed to deepening knowledge about the history of navigation.

At the age when one can be anything and the years fit in the palm of one’s hand, Joaquim Alves Gaspar decided to become a sailor, so that he would “never have to think about it again” — until the day he entered the Escola Naval (Naval School). As an officer of the Marinha Portuguesa (Portuguese Navy), he turned the Atlantic into a vast operational stage, much like the Portuguese navigators of old. From Norway to Brazil, missions as navigator, watch officer, executive officer or ship commander were never lacking during the 40 years in which he served the Navy. The mission of becoming a sailor was fulfilled — and at an age when many are content with what they have become, the Navy Captain sought to be something more. This led him to pursue a PhD in Information Management – Geographic Information Systems at NOVA University Lisbon, which he completed at the age of 61 and which would later open the doors of the Institute of Studies in History and Philosophy of Sciences - IEHFC (former Department of History and Philosophy of Science - DHFC) at the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Lisbon (Ciências ULisboa).

“Between 2005 and 2006, I decided to pursue a PhD. Traditional historians generally showed some lack of knowledge of the technical aspects of navigation and cartography, but I was a Navy officer and navigator, and a specialist in nautical cartography, and I saw this gap in knowledge as an opportunity,” he explains. “Most people do a PhD to advance their career, but in my case, it was all done out of passion.”

Returning to academic study is now a personal milestone, but the metamorphosis from sailor to historian was already evident before the PhD. In both roles, one element
stands out: a deep‑rooted interest in the study of nautical charts. During the reserve period that usually precedes military retirement, he immersed himself “in scientific activity” and began the work that led to the publication of the books Cartas e Projeções Cartográficas (2000) and Dicionário de Ciências Cartográficas (2004), which have clear pedagogical aims and draw on material used in classes taught at the Naval School.

Today, at 77 years of age and from a privileged lookout point from which to glimpse the course of life, he confirms that he has sailed along some of the routes marked on the nautical charts of the past, but also notes that such comparisons risk losing their meaning, since “on a motor ship, going from point A to point B only requires a straight course”, whereas on a sailing vessel “one sometimes has to choose the best time of year and change the heading whenever necessary” to ensure a favourable wind. “In the Navy, I went through some fierce storms. There was no time to be afraid… but if on a modern ship we already suffered, imagine what it would be like on a much
smaller vessel that moves only with sails,” he says.

All things considered, the school of the sea is not something one simply throws overboard.
“Some people may have a specific talent, but leadership is also taught and learned. The people (under one’s command) must always be the main focus of a
leader’s attention; otherwise, no project or mission will succeed,” he comments.

Today, his “gratitude” to the Navy is the size of an ocean, not only because it fulfilled a childhood dream and enabled a successful military career, but also because it helped pave the way to science. “Having leadership skills is just as important on a ship as it is in a scientific project,” he affirms.

During the Age of Discoveries, the Portuguese began using astronomy for nautical purposes and came to regard the ship’s latitude as an essential piece of information. It was at that time that instruments such as the quadrant and the astrolabe, then used by astronomers and astrologers, proved to be transformative, thanks to simplified instructions that allowed pilots with limited technical training, or even illiterate ones, to take measurements at sea. “It was a revolution because it made navigation far more precise and safer,” the historian emphasises.

In the 20th and 21st centuries, the training of sailors, navigators and ship commanders is very different from the days when Portuguese explorers travelled new maritime routes. Today, it is rare to find an unprepared navigator - not least because all modern technologies and concepts require knowledge acquired in institutions such as the Naval School… where Joaquim Alves Gaspar trained as an officer and later returned as an instructor, teaching future officers across several disciplines.

“I specialised in navigation, hydrography and physical oceanography,” summarises the retired Navy Captain, referring to the master’s degree that took him, in the 1980s, to the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, United States of America. “I also spent several years performing technical‑scientific duties in the fields of navigation and physical oceanography at the Hydrographic Institute,” he notes.

The 1990s found him commanding the group of vessels assigned to the Hydrographic Institute, such as Andrómeda, Almirante Gago Coutinho, Auriga and D. Carlos I, which carried out various hydrographic and oceanographic missions for the Navy. Although science was always close at hand, he remained a military officer - and that characteristic, together with the fact that he completed his doctoral thesis at the age of 61, did not go unnoticed by his peers: “Perhaps some people were surprised or downplayed this path because of my age and previous training, but that was not the case for those who awarded me the European Research Council (ERC) grant,” he says.

“I went to Brussels for an interview with the historians who were part of the panel evaluating my research project proposal. One could tell there was great curiosity. They asked several difficult questions, but in the end they applauded!” recalls Alves Gaspar.

After being awarded the ERC grant in 2017, Joaquim Alves Gaspar moved directly into the top ranks of global historiography by contributing to a deeper understanding of how nautical charts were produced and used between the 13th and 18th centuries. In addition to confirming that these early nautical charts were created using the magnetic compass and distances estimated from the experience of pilots of the time, the DHFC researcher has been investigating how these charts were used on board, through the identification of marks left by navigation compasses and, later, by graphite and attempts at erasure.

The objectives set for the ERC grant would lead the project team to build the Medea‑Chart system, consisting of a database containing information and images of more than 6,000 historical nautical charts. “This information system is now available online to the entire world and brings together digital copies and complementary information on the vast majority of handwritten nautical charts known to us,” he explains.

The ERC grant brought him safely to harbour, but his personal journey also shows that the change in course had begun years earlier, when he presented his doctoral work to Henrique Leitão, who is also a DHFC researcher and likewise holds an ERC grant. Today, the former Navy officer does not hesitate to say that this encounter changed his life. “Henrique invited me to come here (to the DHFC), and I never left,” he emphasises.

All things considered, the curriculum built after his supposed retirement now includes an ERC grant with unprecedented findings on a global scale; around 25 published scientific articles; the publication of a third book (A Cartografia de Magalhães / The Cartography of Magellan, 2024, co‑authored with his then doctoral student Šima Krtalić); and contributions to several co‑authored book chapters “scattered around out there”. A fourth book will follow, already in preparation, with the possible title The nautical chart (1300–1700) as an
instrument for navigation.

“Throughout my life I have had one or two Eureka moments. One of them came when I managed to unravel how Gerard Mercator calculated and drew, in 1569, the cartographic projection that bears his name. Henrique and I published three scientific articles on the subject, in which the fundamental role of Pedro Nunes is highlighted,” he notes.

As an experienced sailor, Joaquim Alves Gaspar also knows how one overcomes an Adamastor, keeping good hope alive. The support he received during the ERC grant from several renowned specialists. such as Tony Campbell, regarded as one of the world’s leading authorities in these fields, is not forgotten. But his words also confirm that some victories only become possible when they take shape within the spirit of those who pursue them.

“It is never too late to become a scientist, but there are advantages in having background and experience. In my case, my scientific experience, as a navigator and as a leader, counted for a great deal,” he says. For this man of the sea, the metaphor about the last chance to catch a moving train simply does not apply. After all, in a way, that train of nautical‑chart historiography was “to a large extent” created by Alves Gaspar himself, “with research that is entirely original” and has had remarkable international impact.

“I am always writing. I do not clearly distinguish work from leisure, since it is one of the things that gives me the greatest pleasure in life,” adds the researcher, not forgetting amateur photography as another personal passion that has accompanied him over the years. “People immerse themselves in things out of enjoyment and also because they seek recognition from their peers,” he comments.

With his name firmly established in the international field of nautical‑chart studies, Joaquim Alves Gaspar remains determined to continue for as long as he can — and even notes that “there are still several loose ends” to be resolved in current historiography. “I am not a neuroscientist, but I would say that age may take away sharpness, memory or creativity, yet many of those losses can be compensated with knowledge and experience,” he assures. There is an ocean of new stories still to be discovered and told.

Journeys of Discovery is a new feature showcasing researchers from the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Lisbon whose work has been distinguished with European Research Council (ERC) grants. Beyond the projects and scientific results, it aims to explore the paths, ideas and ways of thinking that shape excellence in research. Over the coming months, we will delve not only into what they investigate, but how they arrived there - the choices, the challenges and the vision that guides their work.