Political & Physical Features of Australia

Unit 10 Notes

I. Australia’s Political Features

Australia…

Is divided into territories and states:States: Tasmania, Victoria, South

Australia, Western Australia, New South Wales, Queensland

Territories: Northern Territory and Australian Capital Territory

Tasmania

Island off the southeast coast of the mainland

Almost half of Tasmania is unspoiled land that is protected by the government

Tasmanian Devil?

Victoria

State closest to TasmaniaSoutheast part of the mainland

Capital is Melbourne; it’s the most urban state in Australia

The many rivers of the region are a good source of fresh water for farming

South Australia

State in south-central Australia

The Great Victoria Desert is located here…

Western Australia

Largest state; makes up 1/3rd of the mainland

Most of Western Australia is desert (Great Victoria Desert and Great Sandy Desert are located here)

Great Sandy Desert

New South WalesNorth of Victoria, on the

eastern coastHas more people than any

other Australian stateThe capital, Sydney, is the most

populated city in Australia -- 3 1/2 million people live there!

Australian Capital Territory is located here

Sydney, New South Wales

QueenslandSecond largest state; 7 times the

size of England! In the northeastern part of the

mainlandGreat Barrier Reef is located off the

coast in the Coral SeaMore than half of Queensland’s

population lives in the capital: Brisbane

Brisbane

Northern Territory

Northern coast of the mainland, between Western Australia and Queensland

Largest population of Aborigines in Australia

Australian Capital Territory

Located in New South WalesThe national capital,

Canberra, is located here

Canberra (Australia’s Capital)

II. Australia’s Physical Features

Australia…The only country on the world’s

smallest and flattest continent…Has Earth’s oldest and least fertile soilsOnly Antarctica receives less rainfall!Commonwealth of Australia also

includes Tasmania, an island south of the mainland

It’s surrounded by the Indian and Pacific Oceans

Huge desert plains stretch across the country’s middle--central Australia’s climate is hot and dry

Milder climates along the southeastern and southwestern coasts

Most Australians live in the southeastern coastal region

Great Barrier ReefWorld’s largest coral reef!Lies off the northeast coast of

Queensland--over 1,200 miles long

Contains an amazing variety of marine life, including the world’s largest collection of coral400 types of coral, 1,500 species of

fish, & 4,000 mollusks (snails, clams, octopi, & squid)

Also includes rare species like the sea cow and the large green turtle

Great Barrier Reef from space

Coral SeaAn important source of coral for the

Great Barrier ReefPart of the Pacific OceanOff the northeast coast of Australia

When the earth’s crust moved millions of years ago, it created the Coral Sea and the Great Dividing Range (largest mountain range in Australia)

Coral Sea islands are scattered over thousands of miles of ocean--no one lives on the islands except for a small group of weather specialists

Ayers Rock

A huge, reddish rock in the center of AustraliaVery close to the geographic center of

the continent…It’s a monolith, which is a single,

large rock sticking out of the earthAppears reddish because its iron

content “rusts” at the surfaceNearly 12 stories high and almost 6

miles wide!

Ayers RockAborigines call it “Uluru”, which is its

official nameEuropean surveyor visited the rock in

1873 and named it after Sir Henry Ayers, an English government official in South Australia

In 1950, Australia created Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park around Ayers RockBoth are located in the southwest corner

of the state called Northern Territory

Great Victoria Desert

Stretches through the states of South Australia and Western Australia

Receives only 8 to 10 inches of rain each year, and it never snows!

Some grasslands in the desert along with sandhills and salt

Great Victoria Desert

First Europeans to cross the desert named it after British Queen Victoria in 1875

160,000 miles long & is a protected wilderness area

Very few Australians live here because it’s too hot and dry