Why is Australia such a dry country?

Answer 1

Warm air rises; cold air sinks. The equator is hot; air rises then cools down by adiabatic effect and causes clouds and precipitations. The poles are cold; air sinks and warms up by the same effect. Any cloud then evaporates.

If it wasn't for the earth's rotation and the Coriolis Effect, the rising air at the equator would, perhaps come down at the poles. But due to the Coriolis Effect that makes any slow fluid displacement to move to the left in the Southern Hemisphere, it creates zones of high pressure at roughly latitudes 30 north and 30 south. This is where you find most of the deserts on earth. Australia is subject to that high pressure zone.

Answer 2

Not all states are bad, but Australia is in need of more rain. Some states, like S.A, have had fairly good rain in September 2009, which is helping Dams to fill up, and also keeping the ground wet closer to the fire season.

Answer 3

One of the main factors causing Australia to be such a dry country is the presence of the Great Dividing Range in the east. Rainfall frequently develops east of this range, which extends up the entire eastern aboard of the continent, but under normal conditions, not much of this rain penetrates west past the range.

Another factor is the El Nino, a weather phenomenon which forms every 2-7 years, and brings dry conditions to the country. El Niño brings a shift in ocean currents and winds brings warm water in a westerly direction, displacing the usual cold water that comes up from the ocean depths. During an El Niño, changes in sea surface temperatures cause a shift in air pressure which, in turn, can result in climatic anomalies, such as severe droughts, flooding and even cyclones, in different continents. Australia is characteristically affected by droughts during an El Niño. This is because the normal circulation patterns over the Pacific are disrupted, and moisture-bearing trade winds weaken, whilst drier westerlies increase.

Another reason why Australia is so dry is because of its latitude. The mid latitudes at around 30 degrees South and North are affected by high pressure systems where air is descending and there is less cloud formation, and subsequently, little formation of rain compared to other latitudes. Note that in the far north of Australia, where the latitude is very different, summers are particularly wet, with seasonal monsoons.

Answer 4

Droughts cannot be prevented. Droughts are natural disasters, and there is nothing anyone can do to prevent them. However, their effects can be reduced, by simple measures such as limiting unnecessary water use. Australia has many schemes for minimising the effects of drought, but it cannot prevent them.

Answer 5

Because we have dry winds and very little rainfall.

Answer 6

Australia does have drought. Much of Australia is desert and very hot, and does not get much rain. So there is drought in those parts of Australia.

Answer 7

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