Gough and Inaccessible Islands, Remote volcanic islands in South Atlantic Ocean, Tristan da Cunha.

Gough and Inaccessible Islands are two volcanic islands in the South Atlantic east of Tristan da Cunha with steep cliffs rising directly from the ocean. They support large seabird colonies, rare plants, and animals found nowhere else on Earth.

Gonçalo Álvares, captain of Vasco da Gama's flagship, most likely sighted Gough Island in July 1505, and maps named it Ilha de Gonçalo Álvares for the next three centuries. Anthony de la Roché may have been the first to land, in autumn 1675. Charles Gough of the Richmond rediscovered it on 3 March 1732, and cartographers later merged the two names. A South African weather station has operated continuously since 1956.

The islands have become important to scientists worldwide who study rare species here and share their findings with global conservation programs.

The islands are practically inaccessible to visitors and can only be reached with special permits granted almost exclusively to researchers. Those wanting to learn more from Tristan da Cunha can find local information and scientific publications there.

These islands are home to seabird species living in colonies with hundreds of thousands of birds found nowhere else to observe. These concentrated breeding grounds are invaluable to science because the birds are difficult to study elsewhere in the world.