Portal:Australia/Featured picture/2007
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[edit] Featured pictures in 2007
- Week 1
New Year's Eve in Australia is celebrated with public events in most major centres. Celebrations typically include substantial fireworks displays and musical entertainment. The New Year's Eve event in Sydney is one of the largest celebrations in the world, with in excess of one million people gathering at vantage points around Sydney Harbour to view a fireworks centred on the Sydney Harbour Bridge.
Photo credit: Kvasir
- Week 2
Blue Lake is a large lake located in an extinct volcanic caldera in Mount Gambier. It is known as Waawor in the local Aboriginal language. During summer and the surrounding months, the lake takes on a vibrant blue colour, returning to a colder steely-grey colour for winter. The exact cause of this phenomenon is still a matter of conjecture but it is generally considered likely that it revolves around the warming of the surface layers of the lake during the summer months to around 25 degrees celsius, causing calcium carbonate to precipitate out of solution and enabling micro-crystallites of calcium carbonate to form. This results in a scatter of the blue wavelength of sunlight. The movement of planktonic life-forms within the lake during the seasons and during the day may also play a part in the visibility changes.
Photo credit: Aaron Allen
- Week 3
The Art Gallery of South Australia (AGSA) is located on the cultural boulevard of North Terrace in Adelaide. With a large collection of more than 30,000 works of art and more than 500,000 visitors annually, the AGSA is renowned for its leading collections of Indigenous Australian and colonial art, as well as for its innovative exhibitions. Located adjacent to State Library of South Australia, the South Australian Museum and the University of Adelaide, AGSA is part of Adelaide's cultural precinct. The gallery was established in 1881, and has existed at its current location since 1897.
Photo credit: K. Lindstrom
- Week 4
The Art Gallery of South Australia (AGSA) is located on the cultural boulevard of North Terrace in Adelaide. With a large collection of more than 30,000 works of art and more than 500,000 visitors annually, the AGSA is renowned for its leading collections of Indigenous Australian and colonial art, as well as for its innovative exhibitions. Located adjacent to State Library of South Australia, the South Australian Museum and the University of Adelaide, AGSA is part of Adelaide's cultural precinct. The gallery was established in 1881, and has existed at its current location since 1897.
Photo credit: K. Lindstrom
- Week 5
Heard Island and McDonald Islands is an Australian territory comprised of uninhabited, barren islands in the Southern Ocean, about two-thirds of the way from Madagascar to Antarctica. The islands have been a territory of Australia since 1947 and became a World Heritage Site in 1997. It contains the only two active volcanoes in Australian territory, one of which, Mawson Peak, is the highest Australian mountain.
Photo credit: NASA World Wind
- Week 6
The University of Sydney, established in Sydney in 1850, is the oldest university in Australia. It is a member of Australia's "Group of Eight" Australian universities that are highly ranked in terms of their research performance, and is one of the country's most prestigious educational institutions. In 2005, the University of Sydney had 45,966 students and 2,300 (full-time equivalent) academic staff, making it the second largest in Australia. The university's main campus has Oxbridge-inspired grounds and is situated in the south-west of the Sydney central business district.
Photo credit: User:KittySaturn
- Week 7
Campbell Park, together with Russell Offices, is the headquarters of the Australian Defence Force (ADF). It is located in Canberra, the national capital of Australia, in the suburb of Campbell. The building looks eastward across the Majura Valley and Canberra International Airport and backs onto Mount Ainslie. The main offices of the Department of Defence and the ADF's administrative headquarters are located in the Russell Offices.
Photo credit: Nick Dowling
- Week 8
The Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia (RFDS, informally known as The Flying Doctors) is an air ambulance service for those living in the remote inland areas of Australia. It is a not-for-profit organisation which provides both emergency assistance and primary health care to people who cannot easily access a hospital or general practice due to the prohibitive distances of the Outback. The service, founded in 1928 by The Reverend John Flynn, also assists with distance education.
Photo credit: Hossen
- Week 9
The Pinnacles Desert is an area of unique limestone formations within within the Nambung National Park in Western Australia. The desert contains many thousands of pillars, which rise up to five metres, with shape and texture having been defined by calcification processes and erosion. Since the The Pinnacles was incorporated into the national park in the 1960s, the area has become significant tourist attraction.
Photo credit: Sean Mack
- Week 10
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Yulara is an isolated town in the Northern Territory of Australia, with approximately 3,000 inhabitants. More than three quarters of the residents of Yulara are from either overseas or another Australian state. The name is derived from a local Aboriginal word for howling and dingos. Located 18 kilometres by road from world heritage site Uluru and 55 kilometres from Kata Tjuta, Yulara was created in 1984 as an infrastructure hub to support tourism to the Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park.
Photo credit: Manfred Wiesinger
- Week 11
Lamington National Park is a 206 square kilometre conservation area situated on the Lamington Plateau in Queensland, 75 kilometres south of Brisbane. It is part of the World Heritage site, Central Eastern Rainforest Reserves. Most of the park is situated 900 m above sea level only 30 km from the Pacific's ocean shores. The plateau and cliffs, remnants of a huge volcano, remain one of the world's most special sanctuaries.
Photo credit: Malcolm Jacobson
- Week 12
Irrigation in Australia is a widespread practice to supplement low rainfall levels in Australia with water from other sources to assist in the production of crops or pasture. As the driest inhabited continent, irrigation is required in many areas for production of crops for domestic and export use. Irrigation differs from dryland farming (farming relying on rainfall) in Australia in its level of intensity and production.
Photo credit: Virtual Steve
- Week 13
Fremantle Prison is a former Australian prison located in Fremantle in Western Australia. The 60,000 m² site includes the prison, gatehouse, perimeter walls, cottages, tunnels, and prisoner art. The prison was built by convict labour in the 1850s, and transferred to the colonial government in 1886 for use as a gaol for locally-sentenced prisoners. It closed as a prison in 1991 and re-opened as a historic site and is now a public museum.
Photo credit: Sean Mack
- Week 14
Uluru, also known as Ayers Rock, is a large sandstone rock formation located in the Northern Territory of central Australia. It is found in the Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park, 440 km southwest of Alice Springs. Uluru is sacred to the Pitjantjatjara and Yankunytjatjara, the Aboriginal people of the area. It has many springs, waterholes, rock caves and ancient paintings. Uluru is listed as a World Heritage Site for its natural and man-made attributes.
Photo credit: Maurus Blank
- Week 15
Adelaide is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of South Australia, and is the fifth largest city in Australia, with a population of over 1.1 million. It is a coastal city beside the Southern Ocean, and is situated on the Adelaide Plains, north of the Fleurieu Peninsula, between the Gulf St. Vincent and the low-lying Mount Lofty Ranges. It is roughly a linear city: it is 20 km from the coast to the foothills, but it stretches 90 km from Gawler at its northern extent to Sellicks Beach in the south.
Photo credit: Maggas
- Week 16
The Western Australian Museum is the main museum for the state of Western Australia. Established in 1891, the museum is situated in the heart of Perth's cultural precinct in Northbridge.
Photo credit: Greg O'Beirne
- Week 17
Happy Valley Reservoir is one of the oldest reservoirs in South Australia, being built between 1892 and 1897. Initially 15 kilometres from Adelaide, the reservoir is now largely enveloped by the city's southern suburbs. It is relatively small in capacity, holding only 11,500 megalitres, but it is the site of the biggest water treatment plant in Adelaide and is responsible for providing more than 40% of the city's water.
Photo credit: Ctbolt
- Week 18
Hakea is a genus of about 110 species of shrubs and small trees native to Australia. Many species of Hakea are popular as ornamental garden plants.
Photo credit: Fir0002
- Week 19
Horseracing is the third most popular spectator sport in Australia, behind Australian rules football and rugby league, with almost 2 million admissions to the 379 racecourses throughout Australia in 2002–03. It is administered nationally by the Australian Racing Board, with the Australian Rules of Racing applying in each state.
Photo credit: Fir0002
- Week 20
The Australian 11th Battalion was an Australian Army unit in World War I. It was among the first infantry units raised for the 1st Australian Imperial Force during the war and was the first battalion recruited in Western Australia. Along with the 9th, 10th and 12th Battalions, it formed the 3rd Brigade. By the end of the war, the Battalion suffered casualties of 1,115 killed and 2,249 wounded (including gassed). Prior to the Gallipoli landing, the Battalion was posted in Egypt.
Photo credit: Unknown
- Week 21
The Grampians is a mountain range and national park in Victoria, located 235 kilometres west of Melbourne. The ranges were named in 1836 by Surveyor-General of New South Wales, Sir Thomas Mitchell, after the Grampian Mountains in his native Scotland, but are also known by the name Gariwerd, from one of the local Australian Aboriginal languages.
Photo credit: Stevage
- Week 22
The Grampians is a mountain range and national park in Victoria, located 235 kilometres west of Melbourne. The ranges were named in 1836 by Surveyor-General of New South Wales, Sir Thomas Mitchell, after the Grampian Mountains in his native Scotland, but are also known by the name Gariwerd, from one of the local Australian Aboriginal languages.
Photo credit: Stevage
- Week 23
Luna Park Sydney (originally Luna Park Milsons Point, now formally Sydney's Luna Park) is a historical amusement park, located on the northern shore of Sydney Harbour in Sydney. The heritage-listed park first opened in 1935, and is open for business as of 2007, but over its 70-year history, the park has experienced multiple closures, changes of ownership, legal battles, and community action in both support of and opposition to Luna Park's operation.
Photo credit: Joanjoc
- Week 24
The Royal Exhibition Building is located in Victorian capital of Melbourne. Situated in the Carlton Gardens, at the north-eastern edge of the central business district, it was completed in 1880 for the Melbourne International Exhibition. It was also the site of the the inauguration of the Commonwealth of Australia with the opening of the first Parliament of Australia.
Photo credit: Diliff
- Week 25
The Royal Exhibition Building is located in Victorian capital of Melbourne. Situated in the Carlton Gardens, at the north-eastern edge of the central business district, it was completed in 1880 for the Melbourne International Exhibition. It was also the site of the the inauguration of the Commonwealth of Australia with the opening of the first Parliament of Australia.
Photo credit: Diliff
- Week 26
The Common Eastern Froglet (Crinia signifera) is a very common, Australian ground-dwelling frog, of the family Myobatrachidae. It ranges from south-eastern Australia, from Adelaide to Melbourne, up the eastern coast to Brisbane. It also inhabits a majority of Tasmania. It is a small frog (3 centimetres), of brown or grey colour of various shades. It has extremely variable markings, with great variety usually found within confined populations
Photo credit: LiquidGhoul
- Week 27
John Landy (born 12 April 1930) is a former track athlete and was the 26th Governor of Victoria. Landy became the second man after Roger Bannister to achieve a sub-4 minute mile, recording a world record time of 3:58.0 minutes in Finland. He subsequently achieved the same in what was dubbed the The Miracle Mile at the 1954 British Empire Games.
Photo credit: Max Stevens
- Week 28
John Landy (born 12 April 1930) is a former track athlete and was the 26th Governor of Victoria. Landy became the second man after Roger Bannister to achieve a sub-4 minute mile, recording a world record time of 3:58.0 minutes in Finland. He subsequently achieved the same in what was dubbed the The Miracle Mile at the 1954 British Empire Games.
Photo credit: Max Stevens
- Week 29
Manly Beach is a well-known beach situated off Manly in the Northern Beaches area of Sydney. There are three main sections known as Queenscliff, North Steyne, and South Steyne, from North to South. Located near Sydney Harbour National Park, it is the city's most popular beach after Bondi.
Photo credit: Petesmiles
- Week 30
Manly Beach is a well-known beach situated off Manly in the Northern Beaches area of Sydney. There are three main sections known as Queenscliff, North Steyne, and South Steyne, from North to South. Located near Sydney Harbour National Park, it is the city's most popular beach after Bondi.
Photo credit: Petesmiles
- Week 31
Manly Beach is a well-known beach situated off Manly in the Northern Beaches area of Sydney. There are three main sections known as Queenscliff, North Steyne, and South Steyne, from North to South. Located near Sydney Harbour National Park, it is the city's most popular beach after Bondi.
Photo credit: Petesmiles
- Week 32
Sturt's Desert Pea is an Australian plant in the genus Swainsona. One of Australia's best-known wildflowers, it is known for its distinctive blood-red leaf-like flowers, each with a bulbous black centre, or "boss". It is native to the arid regions of central and north-western Australia, and its range extends into all mainland Australian states with the exception of Victoria. It is the floral emblem of South Australia.
Photo credit: Fir0002
- Week 33
The 2000 Summer Olympics, or the Millennium Games, were the Summer Olympic Games held in 2000 in the New South Welsh capital of Sydney. Hailed as the "best Olympic Games ever", it was the first to be held in Australia since the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne. The top five medal-takers of the Sydney Olympics were the United States, Russia, China, Australia and Germany.
Photo credit: Robert A. Whitehead
- Week 34
Wattle Point Wind Farm is a wind farm near Edithburgh on the coast of South Australia. Upon officially opening in June 2005 it became Australia's largest wind farm at 91 megawatts. The installation consists of 55 wind turbines and was built at a cost of around AU$165 million.
Photo credit: Scott Davis
- Week 35
The National Gallery of Victoria is an art gallery and museum in the Victorian capital of Melbourne. Founded in 1861, it is the oldest and the largest public art gallery in Australia. At that time of the gallery's establishment, Victoria had been an independent colony for just ten years, but in the wake of the Victorian gold rush, it was the wealthiest part of Australia, and Melbourne the largest city. Generous gifts from moneyed citizens, notably industrialist Alfred Felton, made it possible for it to begin buying a large collection of overseas works from both old and modern masters.
Photo credit: Robert Merkel
- Week 36
The National Gallery of Victoria is an art gallery and museum in the Victorian capital of Melbourne. Founded in 1861, it is the oldest and the largest public art gallery in Australia. At that time of the gallery's establishment, Victoria had been an independent colony for just ten years, but in the wake of the Victorian gold rush, it was the wealthiest part of Australia, and Melbourne the largest city. Generous gifts from moneyed citizens, notably industrialist Alfred Felton, made it possible for it to begin buying a large collection of overseas works from both old and modern masters.
Photo credit: Robert Merkel
- Week 37
The National Gallery of Victoria is an art gallery and museum in the Victorian capital of Melbourne. Founded in 1861, it is the oldest and the largest public art gallery in Australia. At that time of the gallery's establishment, Victoria had been an independent colony for just ten years, but in the wake of the Victorian gold rush, it was the wealthiest part of Australia, and Melbourne the largest city. Generous gifts from moneyed citizens, notably industrialist Alfred Felton, made it possible for it to begin buying a large collection of overseas works from both old and modern masters.
Photo credit: Robert Merkel
- Week 38
Taronga Zoo is the zoological park of the city of Sydney. Founded in 1916, it is located on the shores of Sydney Harbour in Mosman. It is divided into eight zoogeographic regions and features over 2,600 animals on 28.7 hectares, making it one of the largest zoos of its kind.
Photo credit: Jan Derk
- Week 39
Taronga Zoo is the zoological park of the city of Sydney. Founded in 1916, it is located on the shores of Sydney Harbour in Mosman. It is divided into eight zoogeographic regions and features over 2,600 animals on 28.7 hectares, making it one of the largest zoos of its kind.
Photo credit: Jan Derk
- Week 40
Taronga Zoo is the zoological park of the city of Sydney. Founded in 1916, it is located on the shores of Sydney Harbour in Mosman. It is divided into eight zoogeographic regions and features over 2,600 animals on 28.7 hectares, making it one of the largest zoos of its kind.
Photo credit: Jan Derk
- Week 41
Taronga Zoo is the zoological park of the city of Sydney. Founded in 1916, it is located on the shores of Sydney Harbour in Mosman. It is divided into eight zoogeographic regions and features over 2,600 animals on 28.7 hectares, making it one of the largest zoos of its kind.
Photo credit: Jan Derk
- Week 42
Macquarie Island lies in the southwest corner of the Pacific Ocean, about half-way between Australia and Antarctica. Politically, it has formed part of the Australian state of Tasmania since 1900 and became a Tasmanian State Reserve in 1978. In 1997 it became a world heritage site. The Australian Antarctic Division (AAD) maintains a permanent base on the island. The base's residents, the island's only inhabitants, range in numbers from 20 to 40 people throughout the year.
Photo credit: M. Murphy
- Week 43
Macquarie Island lies in the southwest corner of the Pacific Ocean, about half-way between Australia and Antarctica. Politically, it has formed part of the Australian state of Tasmania since 1900 and became a Tasmanian State Reserve in 1978. In 1997 it became a world heritage site. The Australian Antarctic Division (AAD) maintains a permanent base on the island. The base's residents, the island's only inhabitants, range in numbers from 20 to 40 people throughout the year.
Photo credit: M. Murphy
- Week 44
The Eastern Banjo Frog, Limnodynastes dumerilli, is a frog species from the family Myobatrachidae. It is native to eastern Australia and has been introduced to New Zealand. The frog is also commonly called the "pobblebonk" after its distinctive "bonk" call, which is likened to a banjo string being plucked.
Photo credit: Fir0002
- Week 45
The State Library of Victoria is the central library of the state of Victoria, Australia, located in the city of Melbourne. It is situated on the block bounded by Swanston, La Trobe, Russell, and Little Lonsdale Streets, in the northern centre of the central business district. The Library's combined collections contain over 1.5 million books and 16,000 serials, including the diaries of the city's founders, John Batman and John Pascoe Fawkner, as well as the folios of Captain James Cook.
Photo credit: David Iliff
- Week 46
Luna Park is an amusement park located on the foreshore of Port Phillip Bay in St Kilda, Victoria, which is an inner suburb of Melbourne, Australia. It opened in 1912 and has been operating since. It is the first of two Luna Parks still operating in Australia; the other is on Sydney Harbour.
Photo credit: Stevage
- Week 47
The Koala (Phascolarctos cinereus) is a thickset arboreal marsupial herbivore native to Australia, and the only extant representative of the family Phascolarctidae.
The Koala is found in coastal regions of eastern and southern Australia, from near Adelaide to the southern part of Cape York Peninsula. Populations also extend for considerable distances inland in regions with enough moisture to support suitable woodlands. The Koalas of South Australia were largely exterminated during the early part of the 20th century, but the state has since been repopulated with Victorian stock. The Koala is not found in Tasmania or Western Australia.
Photo credit: Guillaume Blanchard
- Week 48
The Yarra River is a river in southern Victoria, Australia. It is the river on which the city of Melbourne was founded. The river measures in at 242 km (150 mi), starting in swamps of the Yarra Ranges National Park and eventually flows into Port Phillip, Melbourne's busiest sea port.
Photo credit: David Iliff
- Week 49
The Three Sisters are a famous rock formation in the Blue Mountains of New South Wales, Australia. They are close to the town of Katoomba and are one of the Blue Mountains' most famous sights, towering above the Jamison Valley. Their names are Meehni (922 m), Wimlah (918 m), and Gunnedoo (906 m).
Photo credit: David Iliff
- Week 50
The Australian wine industry is the fourth largest exporter in the world, exporting over 400,000,000 litres a year to a large international export market that includes "old world" wine-producing countries such as France, Italy and Spain.
Photo credit: Fir0002
- Week 51
The Kiewa River is a major tributary of the Murray River in Australia and the source of approximately 40% of the Murray's flow. The river's headwaters include Victoria's highest mountain, Mount Bogong, and wind their way north-west about 100 kilometres, gradually slowing before joining the Murray west of Albury.
Photo credit: Mattinbgn
- Week 52
A notice of a £8000 pound reward for the capture of the Kelly gang, which included Ned Kelly, Dan Kelly, Joe Byrne, Steve Hart, Kate Kelly.
Source: National Archives
