| Australian General Geography & Facts |
| Location: | Oceania, continent between the Indian Ocean and the South Pacific Ocean |
| Geographic Coordinates: | 27 00 S, 133 00 E |
| Map references: | Oceania |
| Area: | total:
7,686,850 sq km
land: 7,617,930 sq km
water: 68,920 sq km
note: includes Lord Howe Island and Macquarie Island |
| Area - comparative: | slightly smaller than the contiguous 48 states of the US |
| Land boundaries: | 0 km |
| Coastline: | 25,760 km |
| Maritime claims: | contiguous zone: 24 NM
continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
| Climate: | generally arid to semiarid; temperate in south and east; tropical in north |
| Terrain: | mostly low plateau with deserts; fertile plain in southeast |
| Elevation extremes: | lowest point: Lake Eyre -15 m
highest point: Mount Kosciuszko 2,229 m |
| Natural resources: | bauxite, coal, iron ore, copper, tin, silver, uranium, nickel, tungsten, mineral sands, lead, zinc, diamonds, natural gas, petroleum |
| Land use: | arable land: 6%
permanent crops: 0%
permanent pastures: 54%
forests and woodland: 19%
other: 21% (1993 est.) |
