Australia Flashcards

Practice flashcards covering the geographical, political, and physical characteristics of Australia, as well as terminology related to its unique environments and livestock industries.

australis

The Latin word meaning 'southern', which is the origin of the name Australia.

Commonwealth of Australia

The formal name of the country of Australia.

The Land Down Under

A common name for Australia due to its location in the Southern Hemisphere.

Tropic of Capricorn

The major latitude at $23\frac{1}{2}^{\circ}S$ that passes through the middle of Australia.

Mount Kosciuszko

The highest elevation in Australia, standing at $2,228\,m$ above sea level.

Lake Eyre

The lowest point in Australia, located at $16\,m$ below sea level.

Canberra

Australia's capital and largest inland city, located about $150\,km$ from the east coast.

Sydney

The largest city in Australia and the capital of New South Wales, with approximately $4,000,000$ people.

Eastern Highlands

Also known as the Great Dividing Range, this region extends from Cape York in the north to Tasmania in the south.

Great Artesian Basin

An area covering about $22\%$ of Australia that contains underground water stored in porous rock.

Western Plateau

A physical region covering about two-thirds of Australia, made of old rocks rich in minerals like gold.

Uluru

A huge monolith rising from the surface in Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park.

Nullarbor Plain

A plain located south of the Western Plateau.

Murray River

The longest river in Australia, measuring $2,520\,km$ long.

Darling River

A non-perennial river in Australia that is $2,739\,km$ long.

Great Barrier Reef

A $2,300\text{-km-long}$ underwater, ridge-like feature off the northeast coast and the world's largest coral reef system.

Sheep stations

Large sheep farms in Australia that provide meat and wool.

Merino sheep

A breed of sheep known for producing excellent-quality wool and adapting well to the Australian climate.

Jackaroos

Paid male workers who help manage sheep stations.

Jillaroos

Paid female workers who help manage sheep stations.

Mustering

The act of gathering sheep on a station.

Shearing

The process of removing the fleece from a sheep, usually occurring around the end of winter or beginning of summer.

Paddocks

Fenced smaller sections of a sheep station where sheep are gathered into before shearing.

Fire-stick farming

A traditional practice used by Australia's Indigenous people, the Aborigines.

Willem Janszoon

The Dutch navigator and captain of the Duyfken who in $1606$ became the first known European to make contact with the Australian continent.

Aquifer

A porous layer of rock capable of storing water and allowing it to pass through.

Artesian well

A well drilled into an aquifer through which water rises to the surface under natural pressure.

Perennial

A term describing a water source that flows at all times of the year.

Coral

A hard substance formed from the skeletons of tiny marine organisms called coral polyps.

Dingo

A wild Australian dog.