James Cook
English navigator and cartographer James Cook (1728—79) served in North American waters during the Seven Years' War (1758—1762) and subsequently charted waters around Newfoundland before making three voyages to the Pacific.
The first, in the Endeavour, observed the Transit of Venus in Tahiti before circumnavigating New Zealand and tracing the outline of Australia's east coast (1768—71).
The second, in the Resolution, accompanied by the Adventure, skirted the Antarctic ice cap and proved no significant undiscovered land mass existed in southern temperate waters. The two ships also visited Tahiti and the New Hebrides and discovered New Caledonia and other island groups.
On the third voyage (1776—80), searching for the Northwest Passage from the Pacific side, he discovered the Hawaiian Islands. Cook then investigated the Bering Strait before returning to Hawaii. He died there at the hands of angry islanders on 14 February 1779.
Over a decade, Cook's accounts of his discoveries, accurate charts and detailed surveys added more to our knowledge of the Pacific than his predecessors or anyone who followed him.
Links to add:
Tahiti
Bering Strait
Hawaiian Islands
