Australia

Geography

Physical Geography

Overall, Australia’s topography features low elevation (under 1,000 feet), aside from the Great Dividing Range, which peaks at 7,300 feet. This range divides the heavily populated East Coast of Australia from the arid inland areas. These inland high desert regions produce hot temperatures and slim vegetation. As Australia is entirely surrounded by ocean, the sea plays a major role in Australia’s climate.

Physical Geography

● Climate○ Mostly arid and semi-arid○ Extremely hot in most

areas○ Temperate in Southeast○ Tropical in North

● Coast○ Entire country/continent

is an island○ Completely surrounded

by water Image Credit: GeoCurrents.info

Physical Geography

●Outback○ Inland area, not surrounded by ocean○ Dry, arid desert○ Mostly low elevations○ Low-lying bushes provide some vegetation for adapted life

●Fun Facts○ World smallest continent○ World’s sixth-largest country○ Largest country without land borders

Physical Geography

Image Credit: Outpoll

Image Credit: AKSnapshots

Human Geography

Australia’s population congregates near the coast because the interior of the country provides a harsh environment and few natural resources for civilization to thrive; however, Aborigines learned to adapt to the harsh environment and thrived with a unique culture for more than 30,000 years. Currently, most Australians claim European heritage, though many still claim Aboriginal roots.

Human Geography

●Population Density○ Total Population: 22.7 million○ 90% live in urban areas○ 85% of Australians live within 50 km of the coast

●Major Cities○ Canberra: Capital○ Sydney: Cultural center on East Coast○ Darwin: Northern coastal town○ Melbourne: Southern coastal town

Human Geography

●Languages○ English: 77%○ Mandarin: 2%○ Other: 10%

●Religions○ Protestant: 30%○ Catholic: 25%○ Buddhist: 2.5%○ Muslim: 2.2%

Image Credit: How Stuff Works

Aboriginal Man

Human GeographyPopulation Density Map

Image Credit: University of Adelaide

Image Credit: University of Texas

Australian Road Systems