Álvaro Fernandes, (flourished 15th century), Portuguese sea captain, one of Prince Henry the Navigator’s explorers of West Africa.
In 1445 Fernandes’ uncle, João Gonçalves Zarco, also an explorer, furnished him with a caravel on condition that he devote himself to exploration. Fernandes joined the prince’s fleet bound for Arguin Island (now in Mauritania) but sailed farther to the mouth of the Sénégal River. After rounding Cape Verde, he traveled about a hundred miles farther to the “Cape of Masts,” named for its numerous bare palm trees. In 1447 he returned to West Africa and reached the site of present-day Conakry, Guinea.