Natural conditions.
Australia is the driest mainland in the world, with three quarters of its surface underwriting. Climatic conditions in Australia are primarily determined by its geographical location.
The entire continent is located in the southern hemisphere, and the seasons back to the northern hemisphere, with hot seasons in November-January and relatively cold seasons in June-August.
Average summer temperatures here range from 20 - 280C, winter - from 12 to 240C. Even the lowest winter temperatures in the plains do not fall below -40, -60C, only in the Australian Alps there are frosts to -220C.
The change of seasons is clearly enough manifested only in the northern and southern parts of the continent, but it is expressed not so much in seasonal temperature changes, which are everywhere quite high, as in the seasonality of precipitation. "The 'wet season' and 'dry season' in Australia are concepts that are associated with very abrupt changes in vegetation, living conditions and economic opportunities.
Australia is located in four climatic zones - subequatorial, tropical, subtropical and temperate (Tasmania).
In the belt of sub equatorial climate there is an area to the north from 200 south. N. There are constantly high temperatures (about 250 C) and large contrasts of humidification associated with the dominance of humid equatorial air masses in summer (December - February), in winter (June-August) - dry tropical. Only off the eastern coast of Cape York Peninsula is the air humidity and precipitation high in all months, although their summer maximum is noticeable here.
Tropical cyclones strike the northwest and northeast coasts once or twice a year. Tropical cyclones are considered to be the season from November to April, but they can occur in any month. On average, there are up to 14 cyclones in a season, of which 5 are hurricane forces. Winds that can speed up to more than 30 m/sec often devastate the coast.
The vast area to the west of the Great Dividing Range, lying between the 20th and 30th parallels, has a tropical, hot and dry climate with a very large range of temperatures, with episodic precipitation.
In the same latitudes, but east of the Great Dividing Range, the coastal plains and slopes of the mountains are characterized by hot, but very rainy summers and warm, less humid winters. Precipitation is 1000-1500 mm.
The most diverse is the subtropical climate belt, which stretches south of the thirtieth parallel. There are three types of climate in the belt: subtropical humid - in the south-east, subtropical continental - along the Great Australian Gulf, subtropical Mediterranean - in the south-west of the continent. Thus, in the area of subtropical, humid climate precipitation falls throughout the year with a summer maximum, the temperature in January is about 220C; in July about 60C. The continental type of climate is characterized by low precipitation throughout the year and rather sharp annual and daily temperature fluctuations. The peculiarity of the Mediterranean climate is autumn and winter rains, hot dry summers, average precipitation of 500-600 mm.
The mildest and wettest climate is Tasmania. Most of the island is located in a temperate zone with warm windy winters and relatively cool summers. In the west of the island, facing the wet winds, precipitation is abundant in all seasons, in the east, lying in the wind shade, in the summer comes without rain.
The water problem is as important for Australia as it is for other countries. In this country, numerous projects of territorial redistribution of river runoff by means of its transfer have been implemented. The main ports are Sydney, Melbourne, Fremantle, Newcastle.
The rivers flowing down from the eastern slopes of the Big Dividing Range are short and flow in narrow gorges in the upper reaches. Here they can be used, and partly already used, for the construction of hydroelectric power plants. When they reach the coastal plain, rivers slow down their flow and increase their depth. Many of them are even accessible to large ocean-going vessels in the estuaries.
The Clarence River is navigable 100 kilometres from the estuary and the Hawkesbury River 300 kilometres from the estuary. The volume of runoff and the regime of these rivers are different and depend on the amount of precipitation and the time of their fallout.
On the western slopes of the Great Dividing Range, the rivers begin their way through the inner plains. In the Kostyushko Mountains area, Murray, Australia's highest-water river, begins. Only Murray and Marrambiji keep the constant current (except exclusively dry years).
Dams and dams have been built on almost all Murray system rivers, and reservoirs have been built near them to collect flood water used to irrigate fields, gardens and pastures.
The rivers along Australia's northern and western coasts are shallow and relatively small. The longest of these, Flinders, flows into Carpentaria Bay. These rivers are rain-fed and their aquifers vary greatly at different times of the year.
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