Political

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Political Physical Features of Australia

• Unit 10 Notes

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I. Australias Political Features
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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

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Tasmania

• Island off the southeast coast of the mainland
• Almost half of Tasmania is unspoiled land that is
  protected by the government

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Tasmanian Devil?
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Victoria

• State closest to Tasmania
• Southeast part of the mainland
• Capital is Melbourne its the most urban state
  in Australia
• The many rivers of the region are a good source
  of fresh water for farming

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South Australia

• State in south-central Australia
• The Great Victoria Desert is located here

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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)

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Great Sandy Desert
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New South Wales

• North of Victoria, on the eastern coast
• Has more people than any other Australian state
• The capital, Sydney, is the most populated city
  in Australia -- 3 1/2 million people live there!
• Australian Capital Territory is located here

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Sydney, New South Wales
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Queensland

• Second largest state 7 times the size of
  England!
• In the northeastern part of the mainland
• Great Barrier Reef is located off the coast in
  the Coral Sea
• More than half of Queenslands population lives
  in the capital Brisbane

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Brisbane
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Northern Territory

• Northern coast of the mainland, between Western
  Australia and Queensland
• Largest population of Aborigines in Australia

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Australian Capital Territory

• Located in New South Wales
• The national capital, Canberra, is located here

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Canberra (Australias Capital)
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II. Australias Physical Features
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Australia

• The only country on the worlds smallest and
  flattest continent
• Has Earths oldest and least fertile soils
• Only Antarctica receives less rainfall!
• Commonwealth of Australia also includes Tasmania,
  an island south of the mainland
• Its surrounded by the Indian and Pacific Oceans

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• Huge desert plains stretch across the countrys
  middle--central Australias climate is hot and
  dry
• Milder climates along the southeastern and
  southwestern coasts
• Most Australians live in the southeastern coastal
  region

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Great Barrier Reef

• Worlds largest coral reef!
• Lies off the northeast coast of Queensland--over
  1,200 miles long
• Contains an amazing variety of marine life,
  including the worlds largest collection of coral
• 400 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

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Great Barrier Reef from space
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Coral Sea

• An important source of coral for the Great
  Barrier Reef
• Part of the Pacific Ocean
• Off the northeast coast of Australia
• When the earths 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

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Ayers Rock

• A huge, reddish rock in the center of Australia
• Very close to the geographic center of the
  continent
• Its a monolith, which is a single, large rock
  sticking out of the earth
• Appears reddish because its iron content rusts
  at the surface
• Nearly 12 stories high and almost 6 miles wide!

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Ayers Rock

• Aborigines call it Uluru, which is its official
  name
• European 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 Rock
• Both are located in the southwest corner of the
  state called Northern Territory

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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

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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 its too
  hot and dry

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