1126th General Monthly Meeting
Transit of Venus: the Voyage of the Endeavour
Antonia Macarthur; researcher, historian and author with the HM Bark Endeavour Foundation
Date: Saturday, 5th June, 2004
Time: 3:30 pm;
The lecture will be from 4:00 to 5:00 pm followed by 3D Space
Theatre and telescope viewing until 9:00 pm
Venue: Sydney Observatory, Observatory Hill
The Transit of Venus has not been observed by anyone alive today. It last occurred in 1882. In 1769, James Cook was sent by the Royal Society and the British Admiralty to the newly discovered Tahiti to observe the Transit of Venus. These observations were to revolutionise the world of science as the great astronomer Edmund Halley had proposed it was possible to calculate the distance between the earth and the sun from this event. The speaker will discuss some little known aspects of the Endeavour voyage of 1769.
Report on the General Monthly Meeting
Antonia Macarthur gave a fascinating talk about James Cook's first voyage to the Southern Oceans. Cook's observation of the Transit of Venus from `Fort Venus' on the Island of Tahiti and his subsequent quest for the `Great South Land' and finally his mapping of the east coast of Australia. It was the British Royal Society which planned the voyage and convinced King George III to bankroll the venture. The talk which was supported by many interesting pictures was a co-operation of the Maritime Museum, Sydney Observatory and the HM Bark Endeavour Foundation. We thank Dr Nick Lomb and Toner Stephenson of the Powerhouse's Sydney Observatory for also extending a warm welcome to Royal Society of NSW Members.