Extreme Australian Geography Trivia Quiz

Answer: Mount Kosciuszko

One of the so-called "Seven Summits" (a term from mountaineering to indicate the feat of scaling the highest points of each continent), Mount Kosciuszko at 2228 m (7310 ft) is by far the shortest and easiest to scale. One can simply park close to the summit and hike a smooth 5-mile path to the top. Many mountaineers have proposed replacing Mount Kosciuszko on the Seven Summits list with Puncak Jaya, the highest point in Oceania, which is a very difficult mountain to climb.

The "mountain" was named because of its similarity to Kosciuszko Mound in Poland. That feature was in turn named after a Polish war hero, Tadeusz Kosciuszko, who led American troops in the American Revolution and also fought against Russia in the Polish-Russian Wars.

Of the wrong answers, Mt. Townsend is the second-highest mountain on the Australian mainland; Mawson Peak is the highest mountain when Australian island holdings are included; and Dome Argus is the highest point when Antarctic claims are included.

Answer: Lake Eyre

Lake Eyre is Australia's largest lake (when flooded). Situated in the deserts of South Australia, it was named not after the Bronte novel "Jane Eyre", but the explorer Edward John Eyre, who first discovered it. In addition to being the largest lake, it also contains the lowest point on the Australian mainland (approximately 15 meters below sea level), when empty.

Answer: Murray River

The Murray River is 2508 km (1558 mi) long and contains much less water than rivers of similar length on other continents. However, a large percentage of the Australian population settles in areas within the system created by the main river and its tributaries.

There is some controversy as to whether the Darling River is longer. If all tributaries are counted, then the Darling River can be said to be approximately 2700-2800 km long. Many lists, however, do not include these tributaries, and only the Murray River forms the border between New South Wales and Victoria.

Answer: Great Victoria Desert

The Great Victoria Desert is 348,750 sq km (134,650 sq mi) which makes it the 6th largest desert in the world (if Antarctica is included). Named after the Queen of the United Kingdom by the first person to cross it, Ernest Giles, the Great Victoria Desert has very few people living in it, mostly Aborigines.

The arid land, not good for agriculture, has been used for nuclear bomb testing.

Answer: Cape York

Cape York was named after the Duke of York who was the second son of King George III. It lies at the northernmost end of the Cape York Peninsula, which is surrounded by the Gulf of Carpentaria to the west, Torres Strait to the north, and the Coral Sea to the east. Even though the cape is about half the size of the state of Victoria and not a desert, it is severely underpopulated -- only 18,000 people (0.1%) of the population, mostly Aborigines, live there. It is one of the largest wilderness areas left on Earth.

The wrong answers are the extreme points in the three other directions. Wilsons Promontory is the southernmost point on the Australian mainland, Steep Point is the westernmost, and Cape Byron is the easternmost.

Answer: Papua New Guinea

Even though one thinks of Australia as a remote and distant continent, Papua New Guinea is only 5 km or so away from an Australian island. Papua New Guinea lies beyond the Torres Strait across from Cape York. The country, which occupies the eastern half of New Guinea, was an Australian territory for 70 years before being granted independence in 1975.

Answer: Western Australia

Western Australia is the largest Australian state. It is mostly desolate, with few geographical features to block heavy ocean winds. The capital of Western Australia, Perth, is renowned for its windiness.

Tropical Cyclone Olivia hit Barrow Island of Western Australia in 1996 and a 253 mph gust of wind was recorded by an anemometer, breaking the long-held world record of 231 mph set on Mount Washington in the United States. The new world record didn't even become official until 2010, as apparently the recorders didn't publicize it enough. Only a belated review of meteorological data discovered the record-breaking gust of wind.

Answer: South Australia

The searing temperature was recorded in Oodnadatta, South Australia, near the Simpson Desert. A sign in Oodnadatta claims that it is "the driest town, in the driest state of the driest continent".

Answer: Queensland

Babinda and Tully are the two Queensland towns, and they annually compete for the Golden Gumboot, a trophy given to the wettest town in Australia. Babinda has an average annual rainfall of 4297.4mm (over 13 feet). This may not seem like much compared to other wet spots on the earth (a place in India averages over 10000 mm a year) but it's pretty wet for Australia!

Answer: Melville Island

Melville Island was not named after the American writer of "Moby Dick" but Robert Dundas, 2nd Viscount Melville. It lies off the northern coast of Australia. Together with Bathurst Island and nine uninhabited islands, it forms the Tiwi Islands which contain around 2500 Aboriginals known as the Tiwi.

Kangaroo Island is the 3rd-largest Australian island, while Uluru is the name for a famous rock formation/island mountain in the middle of Australia.