Australia occupies the continent of Australia, which lies south-east of Asia and the island of Tasmania with a number of small islands.
It is washed by the Timor Sea in the north, by the Coral and Tasman Seas in the east, and by the Indian Ocean in the south and west.
Australia is the most droughty continent on the earth. About one half of its territory is occupied by deserts and semideserts. It is also the land of great plains.
The main part of Australia lies in tropics. Southwestern parts of the country are situated in subtropics. December, January and February are summer months in Australia. The average summer temperature there is from 20 to 30 degrees above zero. Winter comes in June, July and August. Then the average temperature is from 12 to 20 degrees above zero.
Droughts are common in Australia. The rainfall in the country is rather small, and that’s why a special plan was worked out for irrigation of plains.
The largest rivers in Australia are the Darling and the Murray. In the middle part of Australia there are salt lakes, such as Lake Eyre and Torrence.
Australia is an agricultural country. Cattle-breeding is highly developed in Australia. It exports sheep wool, wheat, meat, butter and cheese, and raw materials. Its major partners are Japan, the USA and Great Britain.