Falkor Reef place name proposal

This consultation is closed.
The decision has been made not to proceed with the proposal and not to name the feature Falkor Reef.

We are seeking feedback on a proposal to name a newly discovered undersea geographical feature Falkor Reef.

The reef, measuring more than 500m high – taller than the Empire State Building - was discovered by Australian scientists aboard Schmidt Ocean Institute’s Research Vessel Falkor in October 2020. It is the first detached reef identified in the Great Barrier Reef in more than 120 years and is located 70km northeast of Lockhart River and 2.6km north-northeast of Northern Small Detached Reef. Download and view the map here.

The name Falkor honours the Research Vessel Falkor, which conducted the first systematic seafloor mapping and remotely operated vehicle (ROV) survey of the offshore Cape York Peninsula area and that led to the discovery of this significant detached reef feature.

The vessel was named after the fictitious good-luck dragon from the book The Neverending Story by Michael Ende.

Traditional Owners, the Kuuku Ya’u people, have confirmed they have no existing Indigenous name for the reef or area of waters in which it is located.

We encourage you to leave your feedback by making a submission below.

Community consultation opened for two months starting 30 September 2022.