Deserts
Apart from Antarctica, Australia is the driest continent in the world. About 35 per cent of the continent receives so little rain, it is effectively desert. In total, 70 per cent of the mainland receives less than 500 millimetres of rain annually, which classes it as arid, or semi-arid.
Australia's deserts, listed below, are distributed throughout the western plateau and interior lowlands. The total desert area equates to 18 per cent of the total mainland area of Australia.
Areas of Australian deserts
| STATE/TERRITORY |
NAME |
SIZE (km2) |
AUSTRALIA ( % ) |
| WA, SA |
Great Victoria |
348 750 |
4.5 |
| WA |
Great Sandy |
267 250 |
3.5 |
| WA, NT |
Tanami |
184 500 |
2.4 |
| NT, QLD, SA |
Simpson |
176 500 |
2.3 |
| WA |
Gibson |
156 000 |
2.0 |
| WA |
Little Sandy |
111 500 |
1.5 |
| SA, QLD, NSW |
Strzelecki |
80 250 |
1.0 |
| SA, QLD, NSW |
Sturt Stony |
29 750 |
0.3 |
| SA |
Tirari |
15 250 |
0.2 |
| SA |
Pedirka |
1 250 |
less than 0.1 |
| - |
Total |
1 371 000 |
18 |
| Source: Geoscience Australia Deserts database, 1994. |
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Updated: 23 12 2009
