Coral Sea

The tropical sea east of Australia containing the Great Barrier Reef/Oceans & Seas

The Coral Sea lies between Australia's northeast coast, New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, and New Caledonia. Covering approximately 4.79 million square kilometers, it is home to the Great Barrier Reef, the world's largest coral reef system at over 2,300 km long. The sea has an average depth of 2,394 m, with the maximum at 9,140 m in the New Britain Trench. The Battle of the Coral Sea in May 1942 was the first naval battle in history in which the opposing ships never sighted each other, fighting entirely through carrier aircraft.