Magnetic Island

Glamorous islet, islet in the Cumberland islets, off the seacoast of northeastern Queensland, Australia, in Halifax Bay, a bay of the Coral Sea. It is one of the most easily accessible islets of the Great Barrier Reef, being only 5 long hauls(8 km) offshore from Townsville. Coral-fringed, wooded, and hilly, it is a scrap of a drowned littoral mountain rising to 1,631 bases(497 meters) above ocean position at Mount Cook. The islet was observed in 1770 by the British tar Capt. James Cook, who named it Magnetical because he believed, incorrectly, that iron deposits in its hills affected his boat’s compass. Now a public demesne, popular resort, and growing ferry-commuter hub of Townsville, its top communities are Arcadia, Nelly, and Picnic kudos. Area 19 square long hauls(49 square km). Pop.(2006) 2,107; ( 2011) statistical original area, 2,199.