Great Barrier Reef

Satellite image of a part of the Great Barrier Reef. Photo courtesy of NASA.

The Great Barrier Reef is the world's largest coral reef. The reef is located in the Coral Sea off the coast of Queensland in north-east Australia. It stretches over 2000 kilometres in length and can be seen from space.

The reef was first discovered by European explorer Captain James Cook on 11 June 1770 when he ran aground on it.

Due to its vast biodiversity, warm clear waters and its accessibility from the floating guest facilities called 'live aboards', the Reef is a very popular destination for scuba divers. Many cities along the Queensland coast offer boat trips to the reef on a daily basis. Several continental islands have been turned into resorts.

The Great Barrier Reef is sometimes referred to as the single largest living animal being in the world. In reality it is made up of many millions of tiny organisms, as are all coral formations. (The world's largest living organism is actually a giant underground mushroom covering 23 square kilometers.)

A large part of the reef is protected by the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park.