Heard Island and McDonald Islands

The Territory of Heard Island and McDonald Islands is an Australian external territory in the southern Indian Ocean. Discovered in the mid-19th century, the territory is a group of sub-Antarctic volcanic islands that lie on the Kerguelen Plateau. It is about 4000 kilometres (2500 mi) south-west of the Australian mainland and 1700 kilometres (1100 mi) north of Antarctica. The territory contains Australia's only active volcanoes and is home to its highest point outside the Australian Antarctic Territory, Mawson Peak. The territory is uninhabited and has been described as one of the most remote places on Earth. The first confirmed sightings of Heard Island and the McDonald Islands took place in the 1850s. Heard Island was occupied by sealers until 1882 and saw occasional scientific visits in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The territory was claimed by the United Kingdom and was then transferred to Australia in 1947. Between 1947 and 1955, the Australian National Antarctic Research Expeditions (ANARE) occupied a research station on the island. Since the closure of the ANARE research station, the islands have been visited by occasional scientific and private expeditions. Today, the islands are a nature reserve and World Heritage Site managed by the Australian Antarctic Division. Heard Island is dominated by Big Ben, a stratovolcano that is topped by the volcanic cone Mawson

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