About Australia’s Northern Territory
The Northern Territory (NT) comprises a land area of 1 346 200 sq. km. It is the third largest of the states and territories after Western Australia and Queensland, yet has the smallest population and lowest population density. The largest city in the NT is Darwin, located on the northern coast, 12 degrees below the equator. Darwin is as close to Singapore and Manila as it is to Sydney and Melbourne.
Darwin city is the commercial and administrative centre of the Territory. Alice Springs is the largest population centre outside Darwin and is the base for significant tourism activities in the central region. Mining, tourism and defence are major contributors to the NT economy.
The northern region of the NT is referred to as the Top End and has two official seasons. The 'Wet' occurs between October and April and has high humidity and heavy monsoonal rainfall while the 'Dry' season runs from May to September. In contrast the central and southern regions of the NT display vastly different landscape, flora and fauna and climatic conditions. Generally the southern region is relatively dry for most of the year and experiences cooler winters and hot summers.
Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics
