Captain Cook's Voyages

James Cook commanded three Pacific voyages between 1768 and 1779 for the Royal Navy and the Royal Society. The first, in HMB Endeavour, observed the 1769 transit of Venus from Tahiti and charted New Zealand and the east coast of Australia. The second, in Resolution and Adventure, crossed the Antarctic Circle and disproved a large southern continent. The third sought the Northwest Passage and ended with Cook’s death in Hawaii in 1779. His running surveys and use of antiscorbutics set new standards for exploration.