Australia, also known as the land 'down under', has a population of over 21 million and features diverse climates as well as unique wildlife, including kangaroos, koalas, and the platypus. The Great Barrier Reef is the largest coral reef ecosystem in the world, while cultural history highlights the impact of colonization on the Indigenous population. Today, efforts are made to support Indigenous communities and combat racial discrimination.

1. Australia is sometimes called the
land "Down Under". This is
because if you look on a map, it is
located in the bottom half of the
Earth.

2. Size: 2,967,909 square
miles (7,686,850 square
kilometers); slightly smaller than
the continental United States
Population: 21,262,641 as of
July 2009

3. Capital: Canberra
Official Languages: English
Climate: Tropical in
the north
temperate in
the south
Dry and hot in the
deserts The interior of
Australia (called the
Outback) is dry with
many deserts.Currency: Australian dollar

4. Uluru National Park (Ayers Rock)
Ayers Rock, known also by its aboriginal
name, "Uluru," is located in a desert
region of Australia known as the Red
Center. Australia's native people, the
Aborigines, believed this giant stone hill
was a sacred dwelling for spirits that
created the world.

5. The Great Barrier Reef is the
world's largest coral reef
ecosystem. It stretches more
than 2,000 kilometers along the
eastern coast of Australia. The
Reef is so big, it can be seen
from outer space!

6. Sydney is Australia's biggest
city. The Sydney Opera House
was made to look like the
white sails of a ship.

7. kookaburra, which is also
known by its nickname
'laughing jackass.
The echidna, or spiny anteater
The koala looks like a cuddly little
bear. It's not a bear at all, though - it's
a marsupial. Koalas like to eat
eucalyptus leaves. They get all the
water they need from eating leaves
and never have to have a drink!

8. The platypus is one of only two
mammals in the world that lay
eggs.
Lorikeets (shown here)
and parakeets are among
Australia's most colorful -
and noisiest - birds. They
often travel in large flocks,
creating a rainbow of
beautiful colors.

9. Australia is hopping
with about 50 kinds of
kangaroos .
Kangaroos are
marsupials, or
mammals that give
birth to tiny, poorly
developed offspring.
In most species, the
babies grow up in a
pouch on the
mother's belly.

10. Australian Aborigines were
almost exterminated by
the English colonizers.
Today, they represent only
1% of the Australian
population, roughly
estimated at around
200,000 people. When
Captain Cook arrived in
1770, there were about
300,000 of them. The
Aborigines inhabited
Australia for at least
25,000 years
A Pioneer settler
. Racial
discrimination is
a very serious
crime in
Australia, and
the government
is giving extra
support to
indigenous
Happily many things
have changed for the
better amongst
Aborigines today, and
many anti-discrimination
laws have been
reinforced.

11. The large, white,
seven-pointed
Commonwealth Star
(also called the Star of
Federation) - it is
symbolic of the
original states of
Australia.
The flag is also
called the
Commonwealth
Blue Ensign. It
has three main
design elements
on a deep blue
background:
The British Union Jack flag
is in the upper left corner -
noting Australia's ties to
Great Britain
The Southern Cross
constellation (5 stars)
is on the right side of
the flag - the Southern
Cross is a major
navigational
constellation in the
Southern Hemisphere

12. A Boomerang is a wooden
device that is thrown,
primarily for the purposes
of hunting.

14. A simple wooden tube blown
with the lips like a trumpet,
which gains its sonic
flexibility from controllable
resonances of the player's
vocal tract.