Australia is a huge country, but while most of the country has at least one major city, such as Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth, and even Hobart, its northern coastline does not.
This is a little odd because this region is so close to the primary shipping lanes connecting to Asia.
So why doesn't Australia have a major city along its northern coastline?
And before anyone says Darwin is a major city, it's smaller than you probably think.
Australia is a continent defined by its contradictions.
It's huge, but largely empty.
It's surrounded by oceans, yet much of its interior is bone dry.
It has some of the most livable cities in the world, yet entire regions remain nearly uninhabited.
Understanding the country's physical geography helps explain why Australians have chosen to live where they do, and why so few of them live along the country's northern coast.
Australia is the flattest continent on Earth, lacking in towering mountain ranges or active volcanoes.
