Cook, James (1728-1779)

English naval explorer. After surveying the St Lawrence River in North America in 1759, he made three voyages: 1768-71 to Tahiti, New Zealand, and Australia; 1772-75 to the South Pacific; and 1776-79 to the South and North Pacific, attempting to find the Northwest Passage and charting the Siberian coast. He was largely responsible for Britain's initial interest in acquiring colonies in Australasia. He was killed in Hawaii early in 1779 in a scuffle with islanders.

In 1768 Cook was given command of an expedition to the South Pacific to witness the transit of Venus across the Sun. He sailed in the Endeavour with Joseph Banks and other scientists, reaching Tahiti in April 1769. He then sailed around New Zealand and made a detailed survey of the east coast of Australia, naming New South Wales and Botany Bay. He returned to England on 12 June 1771.

Now a commander, Cook set out in 1772 with the Resolution and Adventure to search for the southern continent. The location of Easter Island was determined, and the Marquesas and Tonga Islands plotted. He also went to New Caledonia and Norfolk Island. Cook returned on 25 July 1775, having sailed 100,000 km/60,000 mi in three years.

On 25 June 1776, he began his third and last voyage with the Resolution and Discovery. On the way to New Zealand, he visited several of the Cook or Hervey Islands and revisited the Hawaiian or Sandwich Islands. The ships sighted the North American coast at latitude 45° N and sailed north hoping to discover the Northwest Passage. He made a continuous survey as far as the Bering Strait, where the way was blocked by ice. Cook then surveyed the opposite coast of the strait (Siberia), and returned to Hawaii early in 1779, where he was killed when his expedition clashed with islanders.

Cook was born in Marton, Yorkshire, and joined the Navy in 1755. His expeditions set new standards of survey work, cartography, hydrography, and other scientific research.