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At what point did explorers realize the new world was not, in fact, Asia?

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Greetings Historians,

We all have heard about how Columbus was looking for a sea shortcut to India and Asia and went west instead of east hoping to find it. He thought he was in India and so called the natives Indians, etc.

We also know that the Vikings had discovered the Americas long before.

So a few questions:

Did the Vikings have any idea where the New World was (did they realize it was a new continent)? Did they care? Did they have any idea what Asia or India was to mistake the new world for it?

Did Columbus or his contemporaries know about the Viking expeditions? Did it impact them at all?

And lastly, at what point did the consensus about the New World become sure that it was a new world and not India or Asia or something else?

Thanks!

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