Scientists usually prove things in a lab. Thor Heyerdahl proved things on the ocean. Born on October 6, 1914, in Norway, Heyerdahl studied ancient civilizations. He noticed that statues on Easter Island in the Pacific looked like statues in South America. Could people from South America have sailed to the Pacific Islands thousands of years ago? Most experts said no. Ancient rafts could not survive ocean waves. Heyerdahl decided to test the idea himself. In 1947, he built a raft from balsa wood logs, just like ancient people would have. He named it Kon-Tiki. He and five crew members set sail from Peru. They had no engine. They used a primitive sail and navigated by the stars. Ocean currents helped push the raft westward. After 101 days and 4,300 miles, the Kon-Tiki reached the Tuamotu Islands in the Pacific. The raft had survived storms, sharks, and enormous waves. Heyerdahl did not prove that South Americans definitely sailed to the Pacific. But he proved it was possible. Sometimes the best experiment is just trying it yourself.