rocky huckitta view

Geography of Australia is very unique and equally amazing. Australia is the smallest continent and the sixth largest country of the world, nestled between the Indian Ocean and South Pacific Ocean. Its vastness and expanse gives this country down under a wide variety of biogeographic regions.

The Terrain

40% of the total 7, 617, 930 sq km land area is desert and sand dunes, totally a semi arid region. Temperate Climate and moderately fertile soil can only be found in the south east and south west corners of the country.

However, the Northern lush green area with all its rainforests grasslands and partly desert, experiences an essentially tropical climate.

Australia has a diverse terrain, from second largest monolith of the world (located in Uluru, central Australia) to the Great Barrier Reef, the world’s largest coral reef off the north eastern shore. The wonders of exotic Australian geography seem endless. Due to its location in the middle of a tectonic plate it might not suffer volcanic activity but minor earthquakes sometimes do rock the land. The landscape encompasses low plateaus, deserts, rangelands, Australian Alps and the fertile plains of south. While the lowest altitude point is Lake Eyre at -15m, the highest elevation is that of Mount Kosciuszko at 2228m. However, the Australian Alps have no permanent ice fields or glaciers.

The Climate

Major part of the continent is a hot and arid desert owing to its tropical and subtropical location and the cold currents of west coast. Highly unpredictable and mischievously variable nature of rain in Australia often results in frequent and several lengthy droughts. Other natural hazards are the cyclones which recurrently hit the Australian coastline, frequent bushfires, severe thunderstorms and occasional floods. Australia also suffers from poor water quality and limited natural fresh water resources.

Despite of all the natural irregularities, the life survives and thrives in Australia. Its varied topography has led to the evolution of a whole array of diverse kinds of wildlife. The unique geography of Australia makes it very rich in flora and fauna with most of them being native only to the continent. Not only does it have the longest lasting continual cultural history but also the longest and most diverse biotic history.

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