Which best explains why the spanish and portuguese wanted to explore?
a. they hoped to find gold, spices, and other valuable goods.
b. they were hired to find a way across russia.
c. their kings wanted to learn about non-christian religions.
d. they were eager to discover the americas.

The statement which best explains why the Spanish and Portuguese wanted to explore was that a) they hoped to find gold, spices, and other valuable goods. The spice trade had previously been booming during the Silk Road and Spain and Portugal were eager to enhance their economies with whatever they could find. This included gold and silver which they believed lay in the Indias, which is where they intended to explore, although the Spaniards landed in the Americas.