World Map › Oceania › Australia
Country
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Map of Australia
Oceania · Canberra
Australia lies on the Australian Plate. It has 3 volcanoes active over the last 10,000 years, 1 of which have erupted since 1900. Since 1900, 28 major earthquakes have been recorded, causing at least 12 deaths. Its exposure to natural hazards is 4.6 out of 10 (INFORM index), a medium level. Its overall risk index, which accounts for its ability to cope, is 2.4 out of 10.
- Capital
- Canberra
- Population
- 27,614,411
- Area
- 7,692,024 km²
- Continent
- Oceania
Tectonic Plates
Natural Hazards
Exposure to natural hazards according to the European Commission's INFORM index, from 0 (very low) to 10 (very high), overall and for each type of hazard.
Overall Risk Index
This overall score combines hazard exposure with the vulnerability of the population (2.1 out of 10) and the lack of coping capacity (2.3 out of 10). A highly exposed but well-prepared country therefore gets a low overall score.
People Exposed Each Year
- 18to strong shaking (intensity VI and above)
- 54to tsunamis
- 111,592to hurricane-force winds (category 1 and above)
- 53,756to river floods
- 25,213to coastal floods
Overall Risk Index Over Time
Hazard Levels
Hazard level assessed by ThinkHazard! (World Bank, GFDRR), meaning the likelihood of a damaging event, from very low to high.
- River FloodHigh
- Urban FloodHigh
- Coastal FloodHigh
- EarthquakeHigh
- LandslideHigh
- TsunamiHigh
- CycloneHigh
- Extreme HeatHigh
- WildfireHigh
- VolcanoMedium
- Water ScarcityLow
Volcanoes (3)
Volcanoes active over the last 10,000 years; year of the last known eruption.
Major Earthquakes Since 1900
Earthquakes that caused deaths or significant damage, or of magnitude 7.5 and above (NOAA).
Deadliest
- 1989Newcastle · M 5.412 deaths
Regions
Regions with volcanoes, major earthquakes, tsunamis, cyclones or famous faults.
Tsunamis
41 major tsunamis have reached Australia since 1900. The deadliest and highest are listed below.
- 1977Tsunami (Indonesia) · 6.0 m
- 1960Tsunami (Chile) · 4.3 m
- 1994Tsunami (Indonesia) · 4.0 m
- 1910Tsunami (Australia) · 2.1 m
- 2006Tsunami (Indonesia) · 2.0 m
- 2011Tsunami (Japan) · 1.0 m
- 2022Tsunami (Tonga) · 1.0 m
- 2004Tsunami (Indonesia) · 0.9 m
Tropical Cyclones
92 major tropical cyclones have made landfall in Australia since 1950. The deadliest and most powerful are listed below.
- 2021Cyclone Seroja · 139 km/h160 deaths
- 1990Cyclone Joy · 74 km/h6 deaths
- 1999Cyclone John · 241 km/h
- 2023Cyclone Ilsa · 232 km/h
- 1996Cyclone Olivia · 232 km/h
- 2000Cyclone Rosita · 232 km/h
- 2011Cyclone Yasi · 228 km/h
- 2005Cyclone Ingrid · 222 km/h
- 2009Cyclone Laurence · 222 km/h
- 1984Cyclone Kathy · 222 km/h
Sources : Natural Earth · Wikidata · INFORM Risk Index (1 September 2026 v 0.7.3), Commission européenne, CC BY 4.0 · NOAA NCEI · ThinkHazard!, GFDRR, CC BY · Bird (2003), PB2002 · Global Volcanism Program, Smithsonian Institution