It is part of the state of Tasmania and lies 1500 kilometres southeast of the island of Tasmania and 1300 kilometres north of the Antarctic continent.
Macca, as the island is generally referred to, is 34 kilometres long and 5 kilometres wide at its widest point, with a total surface area of 128 square kilometres.
It is a Tasmanian State Reserve managed by the Tasmanian Parks and Wildlife Service.
Macca is home to a large variety of wildlife, which include elephant and fur seals; royal, king, gentoo and rockhopper penguins; skuas; petrels; and different types of albatross.
The island is covered by tussock grass and other plants. There are no trees.
For more than 50 years Australia has operated a research station at the northern end of the island. The station, built in 1948, is home to at least 40 people over the summer and around 20 through winter. A wide variety of research is carried out on the island including biology, botany, auroral physics, meteorology and medical research.
Macquarie Island was discovered on July 11, 1810, by Sydney-based sealing captain Frederick Hasselborough who named it after the then governor of New South Wales, Lachlan Macquarie.
Macquarie Island was inscribed as a World Heritage site in 1997.
