History of US participation in explorations of the late 18th and 19th Centuries, exploring Japan, Pacific Islands, the polar regions, etc.

Book One: The book of the continent -- The cosmic voyagers -- The North American adventure -- A continental consciousness -- The fur trader as explorer -- Humboldt's children -- Portfolio: New lands -- Book Two: The book of the oceans -- "The whole world is an America, a new world" -- Exploration and empires for science -- Two roads to discovery: An intellectual drama -- From manifest destiny to survival of the fittest -- Book Three: The book of time -- Portfolio: New men -- Time and the heroic age of geological exploration -- On, beyond "Greenland's icy mountains".