What was supposed to open the James Cook in the South Seas?

In 1768 the ship Endeavour (desire), James Cook with a group of investigators was sent to the southern seas to just open it the idyllic island of Tahiti to measure the orbit of the planet Venus in its motion around the Sun. This information is needed to clarify the scattering calculations the distance between Earth and Sun. However, the main purpose of this trip was the elucidation of the mysteries of the legendary southern continent, and a survey of some islands, shortly before the public by other explorers Cook quickly established friendly relations with the inhabitants of Tahiti. Leaving the island, he took with him as a translator and a local pilot, a priest named Tupia, which drew on the memory card for him with seventy (!) Nearby islands. Cook sailed in a southerly direction as long as six weeks, but have not found any continent Terra Australis is definitely not there. He headed west to New Zealand, opened the Dutchman Tasman, carefully measured its North and South Islands and reached the east coast of Australia near a large bay, which is due to the abundance of previously unknown species called a "botanical" bay - Botha nor the Bay. There, the English soon made a colony for prisoners. And here today boasts excellent capital of Australia - the city of Sydney. Cook walked along the coast, and passing the coral reefs, reached the Torres Strait between Australia and New Guinea. Here, "Indus-thief" had to go with great caution. Despite all efforts, the ship still ran on the reef, which is to withdraw from a lot of sweat. Nevertheless, Cook, walking along the coast, reached Cape York. Since the ship required a thorough repair, he took a course on the Dutch port of Batavia (now Jakarta). Here there was a big trouble. Until now, thanks to the care of Cook was killed, no member of the crew, and now he has lost 18 people who died of dysentery at the time an incurable disease caused by intestinal bacteria. Among the victims were scientists and Tahitian Tupia. Nevertheless, "Endeavour" continued his journey and on his return was greeted in England with honors. The British Admiralty were surprised that Cook had not died no one from scurvy, which was a disaster in the long voyages: from her swollen feet and hands, bleeding gums, teeth falling out. Years passed, until doctors determine the cause of disease: lack of fresh vegetables, specifically vitamin C. Cook took the sail a lot of sauerkraut, and during the flight tried to bartering as much meat and fruit, followed the diet of seamen. In those days, leaving a long voyage, stocked mainly bread, corned beef and boiled beans. Fresh water was stored in wooden casks and spent very sparingly - even in the tropics! Impressionable nature to make such a flight would not be able to: a few days so the water turned into a smelly greenish liquid, and in bread and meat was got worms. Cans and refrigerators were not in sight, so the vegetables, fruits and fresh water, it made sense to buy only the path. A year after his return, Cook went to sea again, this time on two courts. "Resolution YUSH E H '(Decision) and ADVENCHE" (Adventure) - while the question of the southern continent was not yet completely clarified. They headed straight to the south and went round the Earth along the border of the drifting ice. But the search was in vain: the inhabited southern continent existed. For several months, they furrow the south Pacific Ocean and discovered several islands Cook noted that both the language and looks strikingly similar to the locals. This allowed him to draw a conclusion: all Polynesians have a common origin. In 1775, the expedition returned to England, and Cook, for his services was finally elevated to the rank of captain. He's already thinking about how to retire, but was sent to the Admiralty in a new flight - to check whether there is a passage from the north Noah Pacific to the Atlantic. First, he examined several groups of islands in the south, then moved north, and in 1778 opened the Hawaiian Islands, which he called Sandwich. Cook for several months unsuccessfully searching for the strait at the north-western coast of America, went to Alaska and not finding him, he turned back to the Sandwich Islands. It decided the fate of his great discoverer Captain James Cook was killed during a clash with the natives. Particularly unfortunate that such a death had overtaken it Cook, a man who, unlike many other travelers with warmth and understanding attitude toward alien to Europeans lifestyle of the islanders and respected their beliefs and customs. James Cook's discovery is hard to overestimate, even today: the southern sea, before totally unknown and unexplored, as a result of three expeditions were almost completely unexplored. Cook's followers had only to complete the picture in some detail.