This document summarizes key geographic features of Australia. It outlines that Australia is divided into 6 states and 2 territories, and describes some of the key physical attributes of each state/territory such as capital cities, population sizes, and geographic highlights. It then discusses Australia's physical features at a national level, including its climate, largest deserts, and natural landmarks like the Great Barrier Reef, Ayers Rock, and Great Victoria Desert.

1. Geographic
Features of
Australia

2. I. Australia’s Political
Features

3. Australia…
Is divided into 2 territories and 6 states:
States: Tasmania, Victoria, South Australia,
Western Australia, New South Wales,
Queensland
Territories: Northern Territory and
Australian Capital Territory

5. Tasmania
Island off the southeast coast of the
mainland
Almost ½ is unspoiled land that is
protected by the government

7. Tasmanian Devil?

9. Victoria
State closest to Tasmania
Southeast part of the mainland
Capital is Melbourne; it’s the most
urban state in Australia
The many rivers of the region are a
good source of fresh water for farming

12. South Australia
State in south-central Australia
The Great Victoria Desert is located
here…

15. 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)

16. Gr eat Sandy Deser t

17. 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

18. Sydney, New Sout h
Wal es

19. 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 Queensland’s population
lives in the capital: Brisbane

20. Brisbane

22. Northern Territory
Northern coast of the mainland,
between Western Australia and
Queensland
Largest population of Aborigines in
Australia

24. Australian Capital Territory
Located in New South Wales
The national capital, Canberra,
is located here

25. Canber r a ( Aust r al i a’ s
Capi t al )

26. II. Australia’s Physical
Features

27. Australia…
The world’s smallest and flattest continent…
Has Earth’s oldest and least fertile soils
Only Antarctica receives less rainfall!
Commonwealth of Australia also includes
Tasmania, an island south of the mainland
It’s surrounded by the Indian and Pacific
Oceans

28. Huge desert plains stretch across the
country’s middle--central Australia’s
climate is hot and dry
Milder climates along the southeastern
and southwestern coasts
Most Australians live in the southeastern
coastal region

29. Great Barrier Reef
World’s largest coral reef!
Lies off the northeast coast of
Queensland--over 1,200 miles long
Contains an amazing variety of marine
life, including the world’s 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

30. Gr eat Bar r i er Reef f r om
space

33. 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 earth’s 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

35. Ayers Rock
A huge, reddish rock in the center of
Australia
Very close to the geographic center of the
continent…
It’s 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!

37. 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

39. 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

41. 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 it’s too hot and dry