... The suggestion that a Transit of Venus, observed from different parts of the world, could be used to measure the actual distance of the Earth from the Sun, was first made by James Gregory and Edmund Halley, (Astronomer Royal 1720-1742). ... Captain Cook was sent on his first voyage to the Pacific by the Royal Society to observe the Transit from the island of Tahiti. ... Cook, the explorer, was sent by the Royal Society to observe the Transit of Venus of 1769 from Tahiti. ... Fort Venus, Tahiti. ...