When did people first arrive in Australia?

The first Australians crossed the sea from Southeast Asia, when lower sea levels joined Australia, New Guinea and Tasmania into one landmass called Sahul. Even then, reaching it required sea crossings of many kilometres, making it one of the earliest known ocean voyages by modern humans. Lake Mungo in New South Wales holds human remains dated to roughly 40,000–42,000 years old. A 2017 study of the Madjedbebe rock shelter in northern Australia dated artefacts to about 65,000 years ago, although some researchers argue for a younger date. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples are the descendants of these first arrivals and represent one of the oldest continuous cultures on Earth.