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Australia
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Australia is the smallest continent in the world. Lying southeast of Asia, it is bound by the Pacific Ocean to the east, the Coral Sea to the northeast, the Timor Sea to the northwest, the Indian Ocean to the west and the Tasman Sea to the southeast. The continent consists largely of plains and plateaux, and can be divided into three principal topographical regions.
The first is Western Plateau which is a vast desert and semidesert region that covers almost 66% of the land area and is comprised of ancient rocks similar to those of Africa. The Western Plateau has an average elevation of 305 metres (1,000 feet) and is relieved by the Hamersley Range to the west, the Kimberley Ranges and the valleys of Arnhem Land to the north-central as well as the Macdonnell, Musgrave and Petermann Ranges to the East. |
Uluru at midday |
Also located on the plateau are the country's four major deserts - the Gibson, Great Sandy, Great Victoria and Simpson as well as a massive monolith known as Ayers Rock which rises over 335 metres (1,100 feet). The plateau is also surrounded by escarpments, of which the most unusual is the Nullarbor Plain a flat, smooth, barren lowland that stretches inland along the Great Australian Bight.
The second is the Central Eastern Lowlands which comprises Lake Eyre as well as the Murray, Darling and Gulf of Carpentaria drainage basins stretch from the Gulf of Carpentaria in the north to Western Victoria in the south. The average elevation of the Central Eastern Lowlands is only 152 metres (500 feet) and falls to 12 metres (40 feet) below sea-level at Lake Eyre. The Great Artesian Basin also found beneath the Central Eastern Lowlands is the largest artesian basin in the world and accounts for approximately 20% of the continent.
The third is theEastern Highlands also described as the Great Dividing Range consist of a complex belt of tablelands, ridges and coastal ranges stretching from Cape York in northern Queensland to southern Victoria, and again resurfacing across Bass Strait in Tasmania. The Eastern Highlands have an average elevation of under 914 metres (3,000 feet) and are low and broad in the north, while tablelands characterized by the New England Plateau and the Blue Mountains are located in the central region. In the south the highlands pass through the Australian Alps and the Snowy Mountains, and across Victoria. The Eastern Highlands also contain a number of rivers, although many are short and swift with the Murray River the longest while its chief tributaries are the Darling, Murrumbidgee and Lachlan Rivers.
Major Cities (pop. est.); Sydney 3,739,000, Melbourne 3,198,000, Brisbane 1,455,000, Perth 1,239,000, Adelaide 1,076,000, Newcastle 460,000, Canberra 321,000, Gold Coast 314,000, Woollongong 251,000, Hobart 194,000 (1994). Land Use; pastures 54%, agricultural-cultivated 6%, other including forests, deserts and urban 40% (1993). MORE
Australia's climatic conditions are characterized by warmth, little rain, clear skies and sunshine while temperature ranges are moderate with the absence of an intense cold winter. The continent can be divided into several climatic zones, an arid and semiarid interior, the monsoonal north and the sub-humid to humid east. Australia can experience hurricanes and cyclones on both coasts mainly on the northeast and northwest while droughts are also common. Although droughts are generally limited, severe national droughts have occurred. More than 33% of the country has an average annual precipitation under 260 mm (10 inches) while less than 33% receives over 500 mm (19.5 inches). Average temperature ranges in Sydney are from 8 to 16 degrees Celsius (46 to 61 degrees Fahrenheit) in July to 18 to 26 degrees Celsius (64 to 79 degrees Fahrenheit) in January. MORE
Australia Weather Now
Australia Flora and Fauna
Although most of Australia is semi-arid or desert, it covers a diverse range of habitats, from alpine heaths to tropical rainforests. Because of the great age and consequent low levels of fertility of the continent, its extremely variable weather patterns, and its long-term geographic isolation, much of Australia's biota is unique and diverse. About 85% of flowering plants, 84% of mammals, more than 45% of birds, and 89% of in-shore, temperate-zone fish are endemic. Many of Australia's ecoregions, and the species within those regions, are threatened by human activities and introduced plant and animal species. The federal Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 is a legal framework used for the protection of threatened species. |
The Koala and the Eucalyptus make an iconic pair of Australian flora and fauna. |
Numerous protected areas have been created to protect and preserve Australia's unique ecosystems, 64 wetlands are registered under the Ramsar Convention, and 16 World Heritage Sites have been established. Australia was ranked 13th in the World on the 2005 Environmental Sustainability Index.
Most Australian plant species are evergreen and many are adapted to fire and drought, including the eucalypts and acacias. Australia has a rich variety of endemic legume species that thrive in nutrient-poor soils because of their symbiosis with Rhizobia bacteria and mycorrhizal fungi. Well-known Australian fauna include monotremes (the platypus and echidna), and a host of marsupials, including the koala, kangaroo, wombat, and birds such as the emu, cockatoo, and kookaburra. The dingo was introduced by Austronesian people that traded with Indigenous Australians around 4000 BCE. Many plant and animal species became extinct soon after human settlement, including the Australian megafauna; many more have become extinct since European settlement, among them the Thylacine (Tasmanian Tiger).
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The principal ethnic majority are the Whites who account for 95% of the population and are principally of British descent. However, around 22% of the population were born abroad with principal ethnic groups including Italians, Croats, Serbs, Greeks, Maltese, Germans, Dutch, Asians, New Zealanders, North Americans and South Africans. The native Aboriginal population accounts for around 1.5% of the population while Asians account for 1.3%.
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Density; 2.3 persons per sq km (6 persons per sq mi) (1993). Urban-Rural; 85.4% urban, 14.6% rural (1990). Sex Distribution; 49.9% male, 50.1% female (1991). Life Expectancy at Birth; 74.4 years male, 80.3 years female (1991). Age Breakdown; 22% under 15, 24% 15 to 29, 23% 30 to 44, 15% 45 to 59, 11% 60 to 74, 5% 75 and over (1991). Birth Rate; 15.1 per 1,000 (1992). Death Rate; 7.1 per 1,000 (1992). Increase Rate; 8.0 per 1,000 (1992). Infant Mortality Rate; 7.0 per 1,000 live births (1992). MORE
The Commonwealth of Australia is a constitutional monarchy and has a parliamentary system of government. Queen Elizabeth II is the Queen of Australia, a role that is distinct from her position as Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom. The Queen is nominally represented by the Governor-General; although the Constitution gives extensive executive powers to the Governor-General, these are normally exercised only on the advice of the Prime Minister. The most notable exercise of the Governor-General's reserve powers outside the Prime Minister's direction was the dismissal of the Whitlam Government in the constitutional crisis of 1975.
There are three branches of government.
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The legislature: the Commonwealth Parliament, comprising the Queen, the Senate, and the House of Representatives; the Queen is represented by the Governor-General, who in practice exercises little or no power over the Parliament.
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The executive: the Federal Executive Council (the Governor-General as advised by the executive councillors); in practice, the councillors are the prime minister and ministers of state, whose advice the Governor-General accepts, with rare exceptions.
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The judiciary: the High Court of Australia and other federal courts. The State courts became formally independent from the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council when the Australia Act was passed in 1986.
The bicameral Commonwealth Parliament consists of the Queen, the Senate (the upper house) of 76 senators, and a House of Representatives (the lower house) of 150 members. Members of the lower house are elected from single-member constituencies, commonly known as 'electorates' or 'seats'. Seats in the House of Representatives are allocated to states on the basis of population. |
Two of Canberra's best-known landmarks, Parliament House and Old Parliament House (foreground). Commonwealth Place runs alongside the lake and includes the International Flag Display. |
In the Senate, each state, regardless of population, is represented by 12 senators, with the ACT and the NT each electing two. Elections for both chambers are held every three years; typically only half of the Senate seats are put to each election, because senators have overlapping six-year terms. The party with majority support in the House of Representatives forms Government, with its leader becoming Prime Minister.
There are three major political parties: the Labor Party, the Liberal Party and the National Party. Independent members and several minor parties — including the Greens, Family First and the Australian Democrats — have achieved representation in Australian parliaments, mostly in upper houses, although their influence has been marginal. Since the 1996 election, the Liberal/National Coalition led by the Prime Minister, John Howard, has been in power in Canberra. In the 2004 election, the Coalition won control of the Senate, the first time that a party (or coalition of governing parties) has done so while in government in more than 20 years. The Labor Party is in power in every state and territory. Voting is compulsory in each state and territory and at the federal level.
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Mostly Christians, of which 52% of the population are Protestant or Anglican, 25% are Roman Catholic and 3% are Greek Orthodox. Other minorities include Muslims as well as Buddhists and both account for less than 1% each.
The official language is English, although Aboriginal and other numerous ethnic immigrant languages are also spoken.
Aged 15 or over and having attained: no formal schooling 0.3%, primary and secondary 56.1%, post secondary 34.0%, university 9.6% (1992). Literacy; literate population aged 15 or over 99.5% (1990).
The first human habitation of Australia is estimated to have occurred between 42,000 and 48,000 years ago.
The first Australians were the ancestors of the current
Indigenous Australians; they arrived via land bridges and short sea-crossings from present-day Southeast Asia. Most of these people were
hunter-gatherers, with a complex oral culture and spiritual values based on reverence for the land and a belief in the
Dreamtime. The Torres Strait Islanders, ethnically Melanesian, inhabited the Torres Strait Islands and parts of far-north Queensland; they possess distinct cultural practices from the Aborigines.
The first undisputed recorded European sighting of the Australian continent was made by the Dutch navigator Willem Jansz, who sighted the coast of Cape York Peninsula in 1606. During the 17th century, the Dutch charted the whole of the western and northern coastlines of what they called New Holland, but made no attempt at settlement. In 1770, James Cook sailed along and mapped the east coast of Australia, which he named New South Wales and claimed for Britain. The expedition's discoveries provided impetus for the establishment of a penal colony there following the loss of the American colonies that had previously filled that role.
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Lieutenant James Cook charted the East coast of Australia on HM Bark Endeavour, claiming the land for Britain in 1770. This replica was built in Fremantle in 1988 for Australia's bicentenary. |
Van Diemen's Land, now known as Tasmania, was settled in 1803 and became a separate colony in 1825. Britain formally claimed the western part of Australia in 1829. Separate colonies were created from parts of New South Wales: South Australia in 1836, Victoria in 1851, and Queensland in 1859. The Northern Territory (NT) was founded in 1863 as part of the Province of South Australia. Victoria and South Australia were founded as "free colonies" — that is, they were never penal colonies, although the former did receive some convicts from Tasmania. Western Australia was also founded "free", but later accepted transported convicts due to an acute labour shortage. The transportation of convicts to Australia was phased out between 1840 and 1868.
The Indigenous Australian population, estimated at about 350,000 at the time of European settlement, declined steeply for 150 years following settlement, mainly because of infectious disease, and forced migration, the removal of children and other colonial government policies, that some historians and Indigenous Australians have argued could be considered to constitute genocide by today's understanding. Such interpretations of Aboriginal history are disputed by some as being exaggerated or fabricated for political or ideological reasons. This debate is known within Australia as the History Wars. Following the 1967 referendum, the Federal government gained the power to implement policies and make laws with respect to Aborigines. Traditional ownership of land — native title — was not recognised until the High Court case Mabo v Queensland (No 2) overturned the notion of Australia as terra nullius at the time of European occupation.
A gold rush began in Australia in the early 1850s, and the Eureka Stockade rebellion in 1854 was an early expression of nationalist sentiment. Between 1855 and 1890, the six colonies individually gained responsible government, managing most of their own affairs while remaining part of the British Empire.
The Colonial Office in London retained control of some matters, notably foreign affairs, defence and international shipping. On 1 January 1901, federation of the colonies was achieved after a decade of planning, consultation and voting, and the Commonwealth of Australia was born, as a Dominion of the British Empire. The Australian Capital Territory (ACT) was formed from New South Wales in 1911 to provide a location for the proposed new federal capital of Canberra ( Melbourne was the capital from 1901 to 1927). The Northern Territory was transferred from the control of the South Australian government to the Commonwealth in 1911. Australia willingly participated in World War I; many Australians regard the defeat of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZACs) at Gallipoli as the birth of the nation — its first major military action. Much like Gallipoli the Kokoda Track Campaign is regarded by many as a nation defining battle from World War II. |
Jungle Trail" by Franklin Boggs depicts arduous resupply on the Kokoda Track. |
The Statute of Westminster 1931 formally ended most of the constitutional links between Australia and Britain, but Australia did not adopt the Statute until 1942. The shock of Britain's defeat in Asia in 1942 and the threat of Japanese invasion caused Australia to turn to the United States as a new ally and protector. Since 1951, Australia has been a formal military ally of the US under the auspices of the ANZUS treaty. After World War II, Australia encouraged mass immigration from Europe; since the 1970s and the abolition of the White Australia policy, immigration from Asia and other parts of the world was also encouraged. As a result, Australia's demography, culture and image of itself were radically transformed. The final constitutional ties between Australia and Britain ended in 1986 with the passing of the Australia Act 1986, ending any British role in the Australian States, and ending judicial appeals to the UK Privy Council. Australian voters rejected a move to become a republic in 1999 by a 55% majority,but the result is generally viewed in terms of dissatisfaction with the specifics of the proposed republican model rather than attachment to the monarchy. Since the election of the Whitlam Government in 1972, there has been an increasing focus on the nation's future as a part of the Asia-Pacific region.
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The official currency is the Australian Dollar (AUD) divided into 100 Cents.
Its main trading partners are China, Japan, Egypt, Indonesia and the former USSR. MORE
Barley, Bauxite, Cattle, Coal, Copper, Diamonds, Fish, Fruit, Gold, Iron Ore, Lead, Maize, Manganese, Natural Gas, Nickel, Oats, Opals, Oil, Pigs, Rice, Rutile, Sheep, Sorghum, Sugar cane, Timber, Tin, Tobacco, Tungsten, Uranium, Vegetables, Wheat, Zinc. MORE
Agriculture, Aluminum Refining and Smelting, Cement, Chemicals, Fishing, Food Processing, Forestry, Iron and Steel, Light Engineering, Machinery, Mining, Oil and Gas Production, Textiles and Clothing, Vehicles, Wool and Hide Processing. MORE
Alumina, Aluminum, Beef, Coal, Iron Ore, Manufactured Goods, Petroleum Products, Various Minerals, Veal, Wheat, Wool. MORE
Railroads; route length 37,295 km (23,174 mi) (1991), passenger-km 2,187,120,000 (1,359,013,000 passenger-mi) (1989), cargo ton-km 53,163,000,000 (36,411,000,000 short ton-mi) (1991). Roads; length 810,264 km (503,475 mi) (1990). Vehicles; cars 7,913,200 (1992), trucks and buses 2,041,300 (1992). Merchant Marine; vessels 695 (1992), deadweight tonnage 3,857,271 (1992). Air Transport; passenger-km 41,279,000,000 (25,650,000,000 passenger-mi) (1991), cargo ton-km 2,578,029,000 (1,765,692,000 short ton-mi) (1991).
Daily Newspapers; total of 69 with a total circulation of 4,600,000 (1992). Radio; receivers 20,000,000 (1994). Television; receivers 8,000,000 (1994). Telephones; units 8,540,000 (1993).
56,100 (1995) total active duty personnel with 42.2% army, 26.7% navy and 31.1% air force while military expenditure accounts for 2.4% (1993) of the Gross National Product (GNP). MORE
Link - Provides detailed information and statistics on Geography, People, Government, Economy, Communications, Transportation, Military and Transnational Issues.
Link - World Bank Dat Profile provides key statistical information on People, Environment, Economy, Technology Infrastructure, Trade & Finance.
Link - link to an Wikipedia page providing a wealth of information from History and Culture through to Politics and Religion.
Link - link to the latest New Headlines for this country.
Link - link to Human Rights report for this country produces by Amnesty International.
Link - link to GE Source World Guide providing country profile, demographics, economic data, satellite images.
Wikitravel guide to Australia
Australian Government Entry Portal
Commonwealth Government Online
Department of Immigration and Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs (DIMIA)
DFAT: Country Information
Satellite images of Australia (Google Maps)
National Library of Australia
National Museum of Australia
Official Australia Tourism Website
Bureau of Meteorology
Official website of the Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games
Time Now
