On Dec. 29, 1777, Captain James Cook observed an annular solar eclipse. [‘On This Day in Space’ Video Series on Space.com](https://www.space.com/39251-on-this-day-in-space.html)

Captain Cook was a British explorer who sailed through uncharted areas and mapped much of the South Pacific. During his third and final voyage through the Pacific Ocean, he got to see the moon block out a part of the sun. Captain Cook and his crew set sail from England in 1776 to find the Northwest Passage leading to Asia. They sailed around the southern tip of Africa and were making their way around Australia when it happened. On the morning of Dec. 29, the moon passed in front of the sun. This created what looked like a "ring of fire" in the sky, or an annular solar eclipse.