Why did it take so long to "discover" Australia's East Coast?
The continent's northern and western coasts were known well before James Cook encountered the eastern seaboard.
We have the possibility of Portuguese encounters with that coast, along with quite apparent reasons why such activity would be unheralded.
If Abel Tasman had followed a slightly different track on his first voyage, he might have encountered the eastern coast. Why did he continue tracking eastwards rather than turning north?
William Dampier intended to approach the 'unknown' coast from the east but changed directions. Why?
That last question raises another.
Did some inherent factor make Australia's east coast harder to approach from the Pacific?
