Captain James Cook: First European Below the Antarctic Circle
On his second voyage of discovery, Captain James Cook (with his crew) became the first European to cross below the Antarctic Circle. Cook was in command of the HMS Resolution, which was accompanied by the HMS Adventure at the time of the crossing.
During this second voyage, Cook never reached the Antarctic mainland. The purpose of this voyage was to find the supposed great southern land mass known as the Terra Australis. He had already discovered what was to become known as Australia during his first voyage, but a greater land mass was thought to lie further to the south.