Introduction
The widely scattered Coral Sea Islands were first charted in 1803, but they were too small to host permanent human habitation. The 1870s and 1880s saw attempts at guano mining, but these were soon abandoned. The islands became an Australian territory in 1969, and the boundaries were extended in 1997. A small meteorological staff has operated on the Willis Islets since 1921, and several other islands host unmanned weather stations, beacons, and lighthouses. Much of the territory lies within national marine nature reserves.
Geography
- Land
- 3 sq km less than
- Note
- <strong>note:</strong> includes numerous small islands and reefs scattered over a sea area of about 780,000 sq km (300,000 sq mi), with the Willis Islets the most important
- Total
- 3 sq km less than
- Water
- 0 sq km
about four times the size of the National Mall in Washington, D.C.
tropical
3,095 km
- Highest point
- unnamed location on Cato Island 9 m
- Lowest point
- Pacific Ocean 0 m
18 00 S, 152 00 E
important nesting area for birds and turtles
- Total
- 0 km
- Agricultural land
- 0% (2018 est.)
- Other
- 100% (2018 est.)
Oceania, islands in the Coral Sea, northeast of Australia
Oceania
- Exclusive fishing zone
- 200 nm
- Territorial sea
- 3 nm
occasional tropical cyclones
fish
sand and coral reefs and islands (cays)
People and Society
- Note
- <strong>note:</strong> Willis Island is inhabited by meteorological staff
- Total
- no permanent inhabitants
Government
see Australia
- Conventional long form
- Coral Sea Islands Territory
- Conventional short form
- Coral Sea Islands
- Etymology
- self-descriptive name to reflect the islands' position in the Coral Sea off the northeastern coast of Australia
territory of Australia; administered from Canberra by the Department of Regional Australia, Local Government, Arts and Sport
- Embassy
- none (territory of Australia)
none (territory of Australia)
the flag of Australia is used
the common law system of Australia applies
Military and Security
defense is the responsibility of Australia
Environment
no permanent freshwater resources; damaging activities include coral mining, fishing practices (overfishing, blast fishing)