James Cook

The British Royal Navy captain made three voyages of Pacific exploration between 1768 and 1779, mapping New Zealand, the eastern coast of Australia, Hawaii, and much of the Pacific in unprecedented detail. Cook's charts were so accurate that they remained in use by navigators for over a century. He was the first European to make contact with the eastern coast of Australia and the Hawaiian Islands, and his meticulous scientific approach — carrying naturalists, astronomers, and artists — transformed exploration into a systematic empirical discipline. He was killed in Hawaii in 1779 during a confrontation with local people over a stolen boat.