Astronomy on Cook’s First Voyage: Mercury Bay and Queen Charlotte Sound, 1769–1770 (2016)
Cook’s First Voyage to the South Seas primarily was undertaken in order to observe the 3 June 1769 transit of Venus from Tahiti. For this purpose, two official astronomers were assigned to the Endeavour, an ex-Whitby collier. One was Charles Green and the other was none other than the commander of the vessel, Lieutenant James Cook, who therefore wore two ‘hats’ during the voyage. Following a successful transit campaign Cook sailed southwest in search of the Great Southern Continent, and eventually came upon New Zealand. As they sailed along the coast Cook and Green used astronomical observations to determine the latitude and longitude of the Endeavour, and they carefully mapped the coastline. They also anchored in what is now known as Mercury Bay in order to observe the 9 November 1769 transit of Mercury. This was the first time that scientific astronomical observations were made from New Zealand soil. By the time the Endeavour completed its circumnavigation of New Zealand Cook and Green had established that although this landmass consisted of two large mountainous islands it was not a viable candidate for the missing continent.
...MoreBook Wayne Orchiston (2016) Exploring the History of New Zealand Astronomy: Trials, Tribulations, Telescopes and Transits.
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