Captain John Byron passed through the islands of Tuvalu in 1764 during his circumnavigation of the globe as captain of the Dolphin (1751). Byron charted the atolls as Lagoon Islands. Keith S. Chambers and Doug Munro (1980) identified Niutao as the island that Francisco Mourelle de la Rúa sailed past on 5 May 1781, thus solving what Europeans had called The Mystery of Gran Cocal. Mourelle's map and journal named the island El Gran Cocal ('The Great Coconut Plantation'); however, the latitude and longitude was uncertain. Longitude could only be reckoned crudely as accurate chronometers were unavailable until the late 18th century. COUNT 5
QSN1 What explorer traveled through the Tuvalu islands in 1764? ANS1 Captain John Byron QSN2 What was Captain Byron doing when he visited Tuvalu? ANS2 circumnavigation of the globe QSN3 Which island of Tuvalu was identified as the one that Mourelle sailed past in 1781? ANS3 Niutao QSN4 How did Byron name the Tuvalu islands? ANS4 Lagoon Islands QSN5 When were chronometers available for accurate location charting?  ANS5 late 18th