louis-antoine de bougainville was an admiral and navigator from france. in 1766 he was sent by his government to make a trip around the world, called "circumnavigation", which took from 1766 to 1769. he rediscovered (found again) the solomon islands in 1768 (the largest island is named for him). he also collected plants and made a trustworthy chart of some parts of the center of the pacific ocean. bougainville saw a part of the great barier reef, but could not find australia.