1769 transit of Venus observed from Tahiti

<p>On 3 June 1769, navigator Captain <a href="/facts/James_Cook/wy3cXCXp">James Cook</a>, <a href="/facts/Naturalist/pSlAvbTX">naturalist</a> <a href="/facts/Joseph_Banks/uRz3eJAE">Joseph Banks</a>, <a href="/facts/Astronomer/ronF8j4a">astronomer</a> <a href="/facts/Charles_Green_(astronomer)/2bXFbe8W">Charles Green</a> and <a href="/facts/Naturalist/pSlAvbTX">naturalist</a> <a href="/facts/Daniel_Solander/5AAg8sA6">Daniel Solander</a> recorded the <a href="/facts/Transit_of_Venus/Ygk5w0WC">transit of Venus</a> from the island of <a href="/facts/Tahiti/uymjlbIb">Tahiti</a> during <a href="/facts/First_voyage_of_James_Cook/BznW7oSK">Cook's first voyage</a> around the world. During a transit, Venus appears as a small black disc travelling across the Sun. Transits of Venus occur in a pattern that repeats itself every 243 years, with two transits that are eight years apart, separated by breaks of 121.5 and 105.5 years. These men, along with a crew of scientists, were commissioned by the <a href="/facts/Royal_Society_of_London/KI5yXCuV">Royal Society of London</a> for the primary purpose of viewing the transit of Venus. Not only would their findings help expand scientific knowledge, it would help with <a href="/facts/Navigation/sGGAJ0AQ">navigation</a> by accurately calculating the observer's longitude. At this time, <a href="/facts/Longitude/HsC61ML9">longitude</a> was difficult to determine and not always precise. A "secret" mission that followed the transit included the exploration of the <a href="/facts/South_Pacific_Ocean/bdxgXRVM">South Pacific</a> to find the legendary <a href="/facts/Terra_Australis_Incognita/Y2vacCD1">Terra Australis Incognita</a> or "unknown land of the South."
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1769 transit of Venus observed from Tahiti open-in-new

1769 transit of Venus observed from Tahiti