Joseph Bonaparte Gulf
Encyclopedia
Joseph Bonaparte Gulf is a large body of water off the coast of the Northern Territory
, Australia
and Western Australia
. It was named after Joseph Bonaparte
, brother of Napoleon and King of Naples (1806-1808) and then Spain (1808-1813) by French explorer and naturalist Nicholas Baudin in 1803. It is also often referred to in Australia as the "Bonaparte Gulf".
and Victoria River drain into the gulf. The Legune (Joseph Bonaparte Bay) Important Bird Area
lies at the south-eastern end of the gulf. The Bonaparte Basin is a large sedimentary basin underlying the gulf and a large part of the Timor Sea
, deriving its name from the Joseph Bonaparte Gulf, which has several producing and potential oilfields.
Northern Territory
The Northern Territory is a federal territory of Australia, occupying much of the centre of the mainland continent, as well as the central northern regions...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
. It was named after Joseph Bonaparte
Joseph Bonaparte
Joseph-Napoléon Bonaparte was the elder brother of Napoleon Bonaparte, who made him King of Naples and Sicily , and later King of Spain...
, brother of Napoleon and King of Naples (1806-1808) and then Spain (1808-1813) by French explorer and naturalist Nicholas Baudin in 1803. It is also often referred to in Australia as the "Bonaparte Gulf".
Description
The Ord RiverOrd River
The Ord River is a 320-kilometre-long river in the Kimberley region of Western Australia. It was named in honour of Harry Ord, Governor of Western Australia from 1877 to 1880....
and Victoria River drain into the gulf. The Legune (Joseph Bonaparte Bay) Important Bird Area
Legune (Joseph Bonaparte Bay) Important Bird Area
The Legune Important Bird Area comprises a low-lying, swampy, floodplain peninsula at the south-eastern end of the Joseph Bonaparte Gulf in the Top End of the Northern Territory of Australia...
lies at the south-eastern end of the gulf. The Bonaparte Basin is a large sedimentary basin underlying the gulf and a large part of the Timor Sea
Timor Sea
The Timor Sea is a relatively shallow sea bounded to the north by the island of Timor, to the east by the Arafura Sea, to the south by Australia and to the west by the Indian Ocean....
, deriving its name from the Joseph Bonaparte Gulf, which has several producing and potential oilfields.