The Tasman Sea (Māori: Te Tai-o-Rehua.) is a marginal sea of the South Pacific Ocean, situated between Australia and New Zealand. It measures approximately 2,000 kilometres (1,200 mi) across, and extends 2,800 km (approx.) from north to south. The sea was named after the Dutch explorer Abel Janszoon Tasman, who was the first recorded European to encounter New Zealand and Tasmania.