Bass Strait
Bass Strait is a sea strait separating Tasmania from the south of the Australian mainland (Victoria in particular). It was discovered by Europeans in 1798 by Matthew Flinders and named after explorer George Bass.Approximately 240 km wide at its narrowest point, it was almost dry during the last ice age. It contains many islands, with King Island and Flinders Island home to substantial human settlements.
Like the rest of the waters surrounding Tasmania, it is notoriously rough, with many ships lost there during the 19th century. In 1859 the Wilsons Promontory Lighthouse was completed, helping to protect shipping passing that point.
Strong currents between the Antarctic driven Southern Ocean and Tasman Sea provide a strait of powerful, wild storm waves. To illustrate its wild strength, Bass Strait is both twice as wide and twice as rough as the English Channel. The ship wrecks on the Tasmanian and Victorian coastlines number in the hundreds, although stronger metal ships and modern marine navigation have dropped the danger sharply.
Current methods of travel across Bass Strait include by air, the main carriers being Qantas, JetStar, and Virgin Blue; and by sea, the route being serviced by three Spirit of Tasmania passenger/vehicle ferries from Devonport (Tasmania) to both Melbourne and Sydney.