Australia is a continent, island and a country. Chain of hills
& mountains known as the Great Dividing Range on the east side
Western Plateau covers 2/3s of the continent; very few people live
here The Outback is made up of 3 deserts: Great Sandy, the Gibson,
& the Great Victoria
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Western Plateau Darling River
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Despite being surrounded by water, Australia is the driest
inhabited continent on Earth. Freshwater is unevenly distributed,
unreliable & seasonal; 70% of continent is arid or semi- arid
with limited rain Darling River & Murray River support
agriculture Great Artesian Basin: water is too salty for humans
& crops but is used for livestock
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Ayers Rock also known as Uluru; large sandstone formation in
the northern territory Great Barrier Reef is the worlds largest
coral reef
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Droughts that lead to water restrictions Floods are a regular
seasonal phenomenon in Northern Australia Cyclones are a tropical
weather phenomenon & are usually experienced between November
& April mostly in the northern part. Bushfires that results in
loss of lives & millions of dollars in property damage Thunder
storms Dust storms are for the most part restricted to the drier
inland areas
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NZ is about 1,000 miles SE of Australia and has atolls and
coastal lagoons Unlike Australia, NZ has an abundance of freshwater
Climate varies from warm subtropical to cool temperate
climates
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Physical geography varied & ranges from volcanic mountains
to blue lagoons Includes tiny islands & atolls Consists of
three island groups: Melanesia, Micronesia, & Polynesia. These
groups are based on location, how they were formed &
culture.
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Most of Oceania has a tropical, wet climate & it warm year
round
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Discovered in 1820 Almost completely covered by ice Has no
indigenous inhabitants Very limited plant & animal life The
arid climate means the Antarctica is a desert; receives very little
rain & what little it does receives always falls as snow
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69 research stations operated by 30 countries that serve as
bases to study physical geography, climate, & wildlife.
Although the USA makes no territorial claims in Antarctica, it does
help maintain numerous stations like McMurdo Station, the largest
on the continent.
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Norway Australia unclaimed NZ France British
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CULTURAL GEOGRAPHY OF AUSTRALIA & OCEANIA
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Earliest inhabitantsAborigines, which have the oldest surviving
culture. Europeans began arriving in the 1500s Great Britain used
Australia as a prison colony for convicts from overcrowded British
prisons. By early 1850s free British settlers were along the
eastern coast European arrivals impacted Aboriginesdenied basic
rights, forced from land, diseases, conflicts, Stolen
Generations
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1901Commonwealth of Australia was formed as part of a dominion
of the British Empire Combined a federal system with a
parliamentary democracy Has constitutional monarchy
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Australias physical geography affects the distribution of its
people Most people live along the SE, E and SW coasts Diverse
societyover 7 million has migrated to Australia since 1945
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Migration was accompanied by increasing trade among the islands
Maori left eastern Polynesia & settled the islands of NZ
Europeans began arriving in the 1500s About the same time that
British settlers were establishing settlements in Australia, they
were also settling NZ
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Became self-governing colony in 1853; in 1907 became a self
governing dominion using British parliamentary system 1893-NZ
became the 1 st country to legally recognize womens right to vote
including Maori women Has a constitutional monarchy
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About 85% of inhabitants live in urban areas mostly located
along the coast Wellington (capital) & Auckland are located on
the North Island where about 75 % of all New Zealanders live
Diverse societyabout 7% is Maori, the majority are British, Asians,
and Pacific Islanders
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Diverse economies-(market economies) Close economic relations
with each other Agriculture, gold, food processing Agriculture is a
significant part of NZs economy Both countries have large service
sectors; about 75% of Australia & about 71% of NZ works in
services ranging from government agencies to banking &
tourism
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1600s-1700s: European navigators first contact the peoples of
Oceania 1800s-1830s: European countries & USA colonized the
islands; European missionaries arrived in Fiji, Samoa, & Tonga
to convert population to Christianity 1870s: population of Tuvalu
declines dramatically due to European diseases 1880s: Germany takes
control over part of New Guinea, Marshall Islands, & Nauru
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1899-1900: Germany buys Palau from Spain. Germany & USA
divide Samoa between them 1941-1945: Japanese forces occupy
Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Nauru, Palau, Papua New guinea &
Tuvalu 1946: USA begins nuclear weapons testing in Marshall
Islands; islanders were forced to evacuate 1962: Western Samoa
becomes first colony in Oceania to become independent
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1970s: Fiji, Tonga, Papua, New Guinea, Tuvalu, Federated States
of Micronesia, Kiribati, & Marshall Islands become independent
1994-Republic of Palau becomes independent state
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Original inhabitants moved from island to island Probably
settled by peoples from Asia more than 30,000 years ago 3 major
island groups: Melanesia, Polynesia, Micronesia Migration theory
explains how islands were first inhabited, the cultural differences
& similarities in this region
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Remote geographic locations & challenging environments
influence how people earn a living. Agriculture is important
Tourism is gaining importance in economies Trade between Oceania
& other parts of the world has increased because of
improvements in transportation & communications, as well as
trade agreements