Science Fair Project Encyclopedia
Spencer Gulf
Spencer Gulf is the westernmost of two large inlets on the southern coast of Australia, in the state of South Australia, facing the Great Australian Bight. The Gulf is 322 km (200 mi) long and 129 km (80 mi) wide at its mouth. The western shore of the Gulf is the Eyre Peninsula, while the eastern side is the Yorke Peninsula, which separates it from the smaller Gulf St. Vincent. The largest towns on the gulf are Whyalla, Port Pirie, and Port Augusta.
Spencer Gulf (which is often erroneously called Spencer's Gulf) was discovered by the explorer Matthew Flinders in 1802. He named it after George John Spencer, 2nd Earl Spencer, the ancestor of Diana, Princess of Wales. The area was first explored on land by Edward Eyre in 1840. Settlement of the shores of the Gulf began in the late 1840s.
Geologically, Spencer Gulf is an inactive rift valley.
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