Quick facts
Population: 19,731,984 (July 2003)
Languages: English , native languages
Political system: Democratic, federal-state system recognizing the British monarch as sovereign
Capital: Canberra
Education: 100 % literacy
Culture: Caucasian 92% ; Asian 7% ; aboriginal and other 1%
Religions: Anglican 26.1% , Roman Catholic 26% , other Christian 24.3% , non-Christian 11% , other 12.6%
Age structure:
0-14 years: 20.2% (male:2,045,783; female:1,949,864)15-64 years: 67.1% (male:6,680,531; female:6,553,141)
65 years and over: 12.7% (male:1,099,275; female:1,403,390)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $27,000 (2002 .est)
Terrain: Australia is a land of contrasts: sweeping golden beaches, coral reefs rich with marine life, tropical rainforests, mountain ranges, vast grazing lands and sparse deserts.
Geography: World's smallest continent but sixth-largest country; population concentrated along the eastern and southeastern coasts; regular, tropical, invigorating, sea breeze known as "the Doctor" occurs along the west coast in the summer
Climate: Generally arid to semiarid; temperate in south and east; tropical in north
Seasons:
Summer: December - February
Autumn: March - May
Winter: June - August
Spring: September - November
Major cities: Adelaide, South Australia; Brisbane, Queensland; Melbourne, Victoria; Perth, Western Australia; Sydney, New South Wales