Deserts of Australia

Deserts in Australia

Deserts of Australia (in red), overlaid with internal boundaries and Interim Biogeographic Regionalisation for Australia (IBRA) biogeographic regions.

Climate zones in Australia

Rain days in Australia

Named deserts of Australia cover 1,371,000 square kilometres (529,000 sq mi), or 18% of the Australian mainland. However, approximately 35% of the Australian continent receives so little rain it is effectively desert. The deserts in Australia are primarily distributed throughout the western plateau and interior lowlands of the continent.

By international standards Australian deserts receive relative high rates of rainfall. No weather station situated in an arid region records less than 100 mm of average annual rainfall. The deserts of Australia, particularly in the interior, lack any significant summer rains.

Deserts are not necessarily completely devoid of vegetation, but have large areas where vegetation is very limited in height or extent.

Deserts

Desert	State/Territory	Area (km2)		Area (miles2)	Area Rank
Great Victoria Desert	Western Australia, South Australia	348,750 km2	134,650 sq mi	1	4.5%
Great Sandy Desert	Western Australia	267,250 km2	103,190 sq mi	2	3.5%
Tanami Desert	Western Australia, Northern Territory	184,500 km2	71,200 sq mi	3	2.4%
Simpson Desert	Northern Territory, Queensland, South Australia	176,500 km2	68,100 sq mi	4	2.3%
Gibson Desert	Western Australia	156,000 km2	60,000 sq mi	5	2.0%
Little Sandy Desert	Western Australia	111,500 km2	43,100 sq mi	6	1.5%
Strzelecki Desert	South Australia, Queensland, New South Wales	80,250 km2	30,980 sq mi	7	1.0%
Sturt Stony Desert	South Australia, Queensland, New South Wales	29,750 km2	11,490 sq mi	8	0.3%
Tirari Desert	South Australia	15,250 km2	5,890 sq mi	9	0.2%
Pedirka Desert	South Australia	1,250 km2	480 sq mi	10	0.016%

Great Victoria Desert

Main article: Great Victoria Desert

The Great Victoria Desert lies in Western Australia and South Australia. It is over 800 kilometres (500 mi) wide and covers an area of 348,750 square kilometres (134,650 sq mi).

Gibson Desert

Main article: Gibson Desert

A four-wheel drive vehicle in the Gibson Desert

The Gibson Desert lies in central Western Australia. The desert is about 156,000 square kilometres (60,000 sq mi) in size. Most of the inhabitants of the area are Indigenous Australians.

Desert group

• Western Desert – a grouping of the Gibson Desert, the Great Sandy Desert, and the Little Sandy Desert.

Climate issues

Australia's climate is mostly determined by the hot, sinking air of the subtropical high pressure belt. Dry conditions are associated with an El Niño–Southern Oscillation in Australia. Vegetation in arid areas is primarily dependent upon soil type.

Extensive areas are covered by longitudinal dunes. Forty percent of Australia is covered by dunes. Central Australia is very dry, averaging 150 mm of rainfall each year.

Ecological issues

Many introduced species have affected the fauna and flora of Australia's desert regions. The Australian feral camel affects native vegetation. This is partly because Australian desert vegetation evolved without any major herbivores present. Uncontrolled access to more sensitive areas by four-wheel-drive vehicles is also an issue.

See also

• Irrigation in Australia

External links

• The Australian Landscape, A Cultural History - A four part program exploring the way Europeans and Aboriginal people have engaged with the desert, through art, science and religion, from ABC Radio National
• Encarta (Archived 2009-10-31)
• World Book

Further reading

• Johnson, John & Catherine de Courcy.(1998) Desert Tracks Port Melbourne, Vic. Lothian Books. ISBN 0-85091-811-1