James Cook (Cook James)

(1728-1779)
Born October 27, 1728 in Marton-in-Cleveland (Yorkshire). He proved himself as an able seaman, enlisted in the Navy, where he soon was promoted to warrant officer. In 1759-1767 explored the coast r.Sv.Lavrentiya, Newfoundland and Nova Scotia. The accuracy of their cards have attracted the attention of the Royal Geographical Society and the Admiralty, who have chosen him to perform a special task. However C. Green, an astronomer of the Geographical Society, he had to observe the passage of the planet Venus across the disk of the Sun June 3, 1769 with o.Taiti. Then he had to go to the south-west to find a hypothetical southern continent and explore New Zealand, the east coast which was opened in 1642 by the Dutch seafarer Abel Tasman. Spacious pram Cook 'Whitby' capacity of 368 tons, renamed 'Endeavor', 26 August 1768 set sail to Cape Horn.
After observations at Tahiti, and surveying the neighboring Society Islands, Cook sailed south to 40 б° S, then west, until October 7, 1769 did not reach New Zealand. For six months, he skirted the coast of the archipelago, Mistaking Banks Peninsula for the island and passing the Strait Fovo. However, in general, the first survey of the coast of New Zealand proved to be quite accurate, able to prove the absence of its connection with the Southern mainland.

Cook decided to return to their homeland along the east coast of Australia, which he named New South Wales. Cook reached the Australian shores April 19, 1770, after passing the Bass Strait, separating it from the Tasmanian. 'Endeavor' passed to the north of the shallow water of the Great Barrier Reef, which borders the north-east coast of Australia. June 10 the ship ran aground, but he managed to remove, on shore and repaired. August 16 when looking out into the open sea ship almost ran into the main reef. Swim across the Strait between Australia and New Guinea, Cook allowed long-standing question of its existence.

To repair the ship on Oct. 11, Cook arrived in Batavia (now Jakarta), where many members of the crew died from malaria and dysentery. Cook returned to England in July 1771. July 13, 1772, Cook went to the second voyage in search of the southern continent in a converted coal miners 'The Resolution', accompanied by the ship 'Adventure' under the command of T. Fernie. Initially, Cook explored the waters south of Africa, while at 67 б° S, in the modern Enderby Land, it does not obstruct the path of continuous ice cover. Cook crossed the Indian Ocean along 60 б° S and Fernie swam directly to the north. After spending approximately two months in New Zealand, Cook joined the 'Adventure'. In June, two ships set off on a journey across the Pacific, after swimming half-way along 45 б° S, and then turned north and, moving counterclockwise, visited the islands of Tahiti, Tonga and New Zealand again. During the storm, the ships parted, and Fernie, losing part of a team in an encounter with cannibals-Maori, he returned to England.

In November 1773, Cook went to the South Pacific, drifted first to the south to 67 б° S, then north to 48 б° yu.sh. and then south to 71 б° 10 'S, 160 б° 54' W, where he was stopped by ice. On the way to New Zealand spent shooting o.Pashi, the Marquesas Islands and New Hebrides, discovered New Caledonia, the island of Palmerston, Niue and Norfolk. In November 1774 crossed the Pacific Ocean along 55 б° yu.sh. and for the Cape Horn discovered the ice-covered the South Sandwich Islands and South Georgia. In July 1775 he returned to England.

During the next expedition, Cook set out to find the Northwest Passage from Europe to the countries of the East. The expedition set sail in July 1776 on the ships 'The Resolution' and 'Discovery'. Cook visited the central Pacific Ocean, discovered certain islands and archipelagos of Hawaii and the Cook reached the North American coast of modern Oregon in March 1778. From there headed north to the Bering Strait, where 70 б° 44 's.sh. came across the ice.

After that, Cook went to Hawaii to you and in January 1779 stood at anchor off o.Gavayi. A week later, Cook was forced to land in order to fix the broken foremast, where he was killed by natives. He was buried Feb. 14, 1779 in Kealakekua Bay (o.Gavayi).