The Explorers Club
The Explorers Club is a New York-based professional society of explorers, first mentioned in 1904 and incorporated in 1905, dedicated to field research, scientific exploration and resource conservation. Its members include those behind famous firsts such as reaching the South Pole, summiting Everest and landing on the Moon.
Contents7 sections
Key facts
1904–1905First Mention and Incorporation
The club’s timeline records the first written mention of The Explorers Club in April 1904 and its incorporation in 1905.[1]
1911–1969Members’ Famous Firsts
Famous firsts in the timeline include Roald Amundsen’s team at the South Pole in 1911, Tenzing Norgay and Edmund Hillary on Everest in 1953, and Neil Armstrong and Buzz AldrinBuzz AldrinBuzz Aldrin is a retired U.S. Air Force colonel and former NASA astronaut who performed three extravehicular activities on Gemini XII in 1966 and, as Apollo 11 lunar module pilot in 1969, became the second person to walk on the Moon.Open the full entry on the Moon with Apollo 11 in 1969.[1]
1981Women Admitted as Members
In 1981 women were admitted as members of the club, following an impassioned letter from Carl Sagan.[1]
March 15, 2014Honoring Bezos’s F-1 Engine Recovery Team
On March 15, 2014, the club presented its Citation of Merit in New York to the Apollo F-1 Engine Search and Recovery Team led by Jeff BezosJeff BezosJeff Bezos is an American entrepreneur and investor who founded Amazon in 1994, led it as chief executive for many years, and became its executive chair in 2021. He also founded the spaceflight company Blue Origin, bought The Washington Post in 2013, and set up philanthropic funds including the Bezos Earth Fund.Open the full entry; club president Alan Nichols and Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin presented it to Bezos. Space.com described the club as a professional society that promotes scientific exploration of the land, sea, air and space.[2]
As of October 2026: Mission and Flags
As of October 2026, the club is headquartered at 46 East 70th Street, New York, and its website says it is dedicated to the advancement of field research, scientific exploration and resource conservation; as an example of its flags, it notes that the relatively new Flag 213 first went into the field in 2015, carried by Carlton Ward Jr. on his Florida Wildlife Corridor Expedition.[3]
Related Organizations, Websites, and Public Accounts
The Explorers Club: Official website: https://www.explorers.org/ (opens in a new window)[3]