COPYRIGHT
57
PENNSVALLEY
Lesson 30:
Physical Features of Australia
ACTIVITY 1:
Lower case lettershavebeenplacednext toeachmajorwaterformof Australia in theparagraphbelow.
Use the numbers and a school or classroom atlas reference to help you find and label the following
bodies of water on your map on the previous page.
a)
Australia is surrounded by oceans.The
PacificOcean
is located to the east of Australia.The
IndianOcean can be found to itswest.
b)
Mapmakers now label the body of water to the south of Australia as the
SouthernOcean
.
c)
BetweenAustralia andNew Zealand lies the
TasmanSea
.
d) BassStrait
is situated betweenVictoria andTasmania.
e)
On a small scalemap, it looks like someone took a big bite out of Australia at the
Great
AustralianBight
.
f)
To the northeast of Queensland, the
Coral Sea
is located.
g)
The
Murray-DarlingRiver Basin
(1,703miles) is the onlymajor river system of Australia.
h)
The
Great ArtesianBasin
is an underground source of freshwater. It is located to thewest of
theGreat DividingRange.Thiswater lays under 20 percent of Australia.
i)
The
Great Barrier Reef
is theworld’s largest coral reef system. It runs parallel to the coast of
Queensland for 1,400miles toPapuaNewGuinea.The reef itself is not a body of water but it is
formed in the ocean.
ACTIVITY 2:
Capital letters have been placed next to eachmajor landform of Australia in the paragraph below.Use
the letters and your school or classroom atlas reference to help you find and label the following
landform features on your map on the previous page.
A)
The
Great DividingRange
in easternAustralia divides the coastal areas and the flat dry plains
and desert regions of Australia.The interior of Australia is often called the outback.Much of the
central andwestern parts of Australia are deserts.
B)
The
Great SandyDesert
is located in northwesternAustralia.
C)
The
GreatVictoriaDesert
lies to the south of theGreat Sandy Desert.
D)
At 7,316 feet,
Mt. Kosciuszko
is the highest point inAustralia. It is located south of Canberra.
E) LakeEyreBasin
is the lowest point inAustralia.This area is 52 feet below sea level.
F) Uluru
is theworld’s largest monolith (a big solid rock). It is a sacred site for many of the
Aboriginal native people.
G) CapeYorkPeninsula
contains tropical rain forests. Almost one half of Australia lies in the
tropical region, north of theTropic of Capricorn.
Australia
