Question Booklet

2012 National Geographic Channel

Australian Geography Competition

I N S T R U C T I O N S

1 Fill in your name, school code (your teacher will give you this), school’s
postcode, your gender and age. You must fill in the ovals, not just write the
letters and numbers, as the computer only reads the ovals. For example, a
filled-in postcode (for some other school) would look like the sample on the
right. Also fill in an oval in the school assigned column if instructed to do so by
your teacher. Otherwise leave it blank.

2 If you are 13 years or under on 31 August 2012 complete Questions 1-30, or

continue to Question 40 to be eligible for major prizes.

3 If you are 14 or 15 years old on 31 August 2012 complete Questions 1-40.

4 If you are 16 to 18 years old on 31 August 2012 complete Questions 16-50.

5 Answer all questions by filling in only one oval on the answer sheet
corresponding to the most appropriate answer for each question.

6 You have 35 minutes to answer the questions. The time to fill in the preliminary
information is extra.

7 Do not mark the front or back of the answer sheet in any other way as this can
lead to errors in the computerized marking, or to your not getting a result.
National Geographic Channel Australian Geography Competition 2012

3 Which major river forms part of the border

between Thailand and Laos?
A Ganges
B Indus
C Mekong
D Volga
THAILAND E Yangtze

4 In 2011 Thailand experienced disastrous

Bangkok
and widespread flooding. What was the
cause of this flooding?
A cyclonic storm surge
B El Niño conditions
C failure of the Sirikit Dam
D heavy monsoon rains
E snow melt from Thailand’s mountains

Phuket N
5 Which features protected central Bangkok
from the worst of the flooding?
A buoys
200 km
B docks
Figure 1. Map of Thailand © D. Dalet, d-maps.com C flood gauges
D levees
E terraces
Start at Question 1 if you are under 16
years old on 31 August 2012. Start at 6 Which religion do most people in Thailand
Question 16 if you are older. follow?
A Buddhism
B Christianity
1 The tourist resort of Phuket (see Figure 1) is C Hinduism
on the coast of which ocean? D Islam
A Arctic E Shintoism
B Atlantic
C Indian 7 Which milestone was world population
D Pacific estimated to have reached in 2011?
E Southern A 3 billion
B 4 billion
2 Thailand has been sheltering approximately C 5 billion
100,000 refugees from which neighbouring D 6 billion
country? E 7 billion
A Afghanistan
B Burma 8 Which Australian state has approximately
C China 40% of its land area reserved for nature
D Indonesia conservation?
E Vietnam A Queensland
B South Australia
C Tasmania
D Victoria
E Western Australia

Page 2
 National Geographic Channel Australian Geography Competition 2012

Turkey
Norway
Denmark
Italy
UK
Switzerland
Japan
Australia Price less tax
USA Tax component
0 25 50 75 100 125 150 175 200 225 250 275
Australian cents per litre

Figure 4. Petrol prices in selected OECD countries,

June 2011 Source: Australian Petroleum Statistics, no. 182
Figure 2. © Commonwealth of Australia

12 From Figure 4, which OECD country had

9 Figure 2 is an extract from which type of an average petrol price of approximately
map? A$0.97 in June 2011?
A political map A Australia
B relief map B Italy
C road map C Switzerland
D topographic map D UK
E weather map E USA

10 The symbol in Figure 2 13 From Figure 4, which OECD country had

represents: the highest petrol taxes in June 2011?
A a cold front A Australia
B high pressure B Denmark
C an isobar C Japan
D low pressure D Norway
E a warm front E Turkey

14 From Figure 4, why did Turkey have higher

petrol prices than Norway in June 2011?
A Norway had higher petrol taxes.
B Norway’s petrol price before tax was
higher.
C Turkey had higher petrol taxes.
D Turkey had larger oil reserves than Norway.
E Turkey’s petrol price before tax was higher.

15 Some farmers are concerned that coal

seam gas extraction in the Liverpool Plains,
NSW, will cause water pollution, affecting
Figure 3. Miyako, Japan, 20 March 2011 which of Australia’s drainage divisions?
Source: U.S. Navy
A Murray-Darling
11 What caused the devastation shown in B Northeast Coast
Figure 3? C Southwest Coast
A fire D Timor Sea
B tornado E Western Plateau
C tsunami
D typhoon
E volcanic eruption

Page 3
 National Geographic Channel Australian Geography Competition 2012

174°02´E
89
1 90
2 91
3 92
4 93
5 94
6 95
7 96
8 97

55 55

A A

54 54

B B

53 53

C C

52 52

D D

51 51

E E

50 50

F F

49 49

G G

48 48

H H

47 47

I I

46 46
39°20´S

J J

45 45

K K

44 44

89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Figure 5. Topographic map of Mt Taranaki

Page 4
 National Geographic Channel Australian Geography Competition 2012

Legend
Start at Question 16 if you are 16 to 18
years old on 31 August 2012. If you are
younger, continue answering questions.

16 Using Figure 5, where is Mt Taranaki

located?
A Alaska
B Iceland
C Japan
D New Zealand
E Sicily

17 What is the approximate distance from

Lake Dive Hut (square J3) to Kapuni Lodge
(G5), following the shortest tracks?
A 3.5 km
B 4.5 km
C 5.5 km
D 6.5 km
E 7.5 km

18 The vegetation around Lake Dive Hut (J3) is

mostly:
A exotic coniferous forest
B exotic non-coniferous forest
C native forest
D scattered scrub
E swamp

19 What is the approximate height above sea

level of Lake Dive Hut (J3)?
A 910 m
B 930 m
C 950 m
D 975 m
E 1000 m

20 Which natural feature is located at grid

reference 925503?
A East Ridge
B Hen and Chickens
C The Sisters
D Snow Valley
1 0 1 2 kilometres E Turtle Ridge

20 metre contour interval

Source: LINZ; Crown copyright reserved, 2009

Page 5
National Geographic Channel Australian Geography Competition 2012

A B C D

Figure 6. A © Sbork; B © Diceman; C © H. Duckworth; D © Pseudopanax

21 Which photo in Figure 6 is of Mt Taranaki?

A photo A
B photo B 5000

C photo C
D photo D
E none of the above 4000

metres above sea level

22 How was The Dome (B1 in Figure 5)
formed? 3000
A erosion of soft sediment
B landslide on a steep slope
C lava solidifying around a vent 2000
D slippage along a fault line
E subsidence of the underlying strata
1000
23 Which activity is not catered for within the
area shown in Figure 5?
A bushwalking
B overnight hikes
C rock climbing Figure 7. Altitudinal zones, northern Andean region
Source: www.kartenraum.de
D skiing
E wind surfing 26 Using Figure 7, alpine grasslands are found
in which zone in the northern Andean
24 Which type of drainage does the area region?
shown in Figure 5 have? A tierra caliente
A dendritic B tierra fria
B internal C tierra helada
C radial D tierra nevada
D rectangular E tierra templada
E trellis
27 Using Figure 7, which of these agricultural
25 During the recent earthquakes in activities occurs in the tierra caliente in the
Christchurch, the structure of some soils northern Andean region?
collapsed, transforming the soil material into A growing bananas
a fluid mass. What is this process called? B growing grapes
A dissolution C growing wheat
B hydration D rearing llamas
C leaching E rearing sheep
D liquefaction
E percolation

Page 6
 National Geographic Channel Australian Geography Competition 2012

30 The feature circled in Figure 9 is made

The International Date Line is an imaginary line mostly of:
located at about the 180º line of longitude. Despite its A ash
name, the International Date Line has no international
status and is not defined by any treaty. This means B concrete
that countries close to the Date Line are free to C rock
choose which date they will observe.
D sediment
E shells
Figure 8. International Date Line
Adapted from Royal Observatory, Greenwich

28 Which of these countries skipped a day in If you are under 14 years old on
2011 as it realigned the International Date 31 August 2012 you may stop at
Line (see Figure 8) to its east instead of its Question 30 or continue to Question
west? 40 to be eligible for major prizes.
A Jamaica
B Papua New Guinea
C Samoa
31 From Table 1, the number of visitors
D Sri Lanka from which country decreased the most
E United Kingdom between 2000 and 2010?
A China
B Japan
C Singapore
D South Korea
E Taiwan

32 From Table 1, visitors from which of these

countries increased at the highest rate
between 2005 and 2010?
A China
B Hong Kong
C India
Figure 9. Satellite mosaic image D Indonesia
© Commonwealth of Australia (Geoscience Australia) E Malaysia

29 The water body featured in the satellite 33 The increase in visitor numbers from China
image in Figure 9 is part of: to 2010 was partly due to:
A Gippsland Lakes, Vic A increasing income levels in China
B Lake Eyre, SA B onset of the global financial crisis
C Lake St Clair, Tas C outbreak of flu in Australia
D Sydney Harbour, NSW D rise in value of the Australian dollar
E Swan River Estuary, WA E Shanghai Expo

Table 1. Visitors to Australia from selected Asian countries (in thousands) Source: Tourism Research Australia

Japan China Singapore South Malaysia Hong India Indonesia Taiwan

Korea Kong
2000 721 120 286 157 152 154 41 98 134
2005 685 285 266 251 166 160 68 83 111
2010 398 454 308 214 237 164 139 124 87

Page 7
National Geographic Channel Australian Geography Competition 2012

34 Although world population is rising, some

countries have falling populations. Which
list is of three such countries?
A Bangladesh, Laos, Nepal
B Bolivia, Colombia, Peru
C Bulgaria, Hungary, Ukraine
D Canada, Mexico, USA
E Kenya, Nigeria, Tanzania

35 Which city, experiencing rapid population

growth, is building a light rail system to
alleviate traffic congestion?
A Alice Springs, NT Figure 10. Satellite image showing smoke plumes,
B Broken Hill, NSW 23 November 2011 Source: NASA
C Canberra, ACT
39 Which tourism and wine region was burnt
D Gold Coast, Qld by the fires with the largest smoke plume in
E Launceston, Tas Figure 10?
A Barossa Valley, SA
36 Which of these is not part of the new B Granite Belt, Qld
infrastructure for the proposed expansion
of the Olympic Dam mine in South C Hunter Valley, NSW
Australia? D Margaret River, WA
A electricity transmission line from Port E Yarra Valley, Vic
Augusta
B expanded tailings storage 40 The wind on 23 November 2011 in the area
C new airport for larger aircraft of the satellite image (Figure 10) is best
described as:
D rail link to the national rail network
A calm
E water pipeline from Lake Eyre
B cool, moist westerly wind
37 Which of these is a qualitative indicator C hot, dry southerly wind
used to compare levels of human well- D moderate easterly wind
being? E strong northerly wind
A doctors per 1000 people
B infant mortality
C literacy rates
If you are under 16 years old on 31
D per capita income
August 2012 stop at Question 40. If you
are older, continue to Questions 41- 50.
E social harmony

38 The fact that most malaria cases occur

in tropical areas in an example of which
geographic concept?
A change over time
B movement
C scale
D spatial association
E sustainability

Page 8
 National Geographic Channel Australian Geography Competition 2012

Wind power is set to become an important means of generating electricity worldwide. For thousands of years it has
turned windmills, flown kites, cooled houses and filled sails. Now, technological advances are breathing new life into
our use of wind power as a clean, renewable, cost-effective means of generating electricity.
There are probably two main reasons for the increasing interest in wind power. First, most electricity generated
today uses non-renewable fuels such as coal, oil and gas. These contribute vast quantities of carbon dioxide to
the atmosphere, causing the enhanced greenhouse effect warming Earth’s atmosphere. The second reason is that
advances in wind power science and technology are reducing the cost of wind power to a point at which it is becoming
competitive with many other energy sources.
The power available from a wind turbine increases very rapidly with wind speed: a doubling of wind speed results in
as much as an eight-fold increase in power. Therefore it is important to site wind generators in a place where the wind
speed is high, as well as reasonably constant. A drawback to wind power is that the wind can be erratic, changing
direction by the hour. There may be no wind at all one day and a howling gale the next. It may blow hard at times when
electricity demand is low, and be a mere gentle breeze when demand is high. Wind is slowed by friction with the land
surface.
The large-scale production of wind-powered electricity involves the use of windfarms. These are concentrations of
wind turbines – from just a few to hundreds.
How far can wind power take us? The Australian government wants 20% of the nation’s electricity to be obtained from
renewable sources such as wind power. Wind power technology has the potential to supply a significant proportion of
the nation’s electricity needs – just as long as the wind keeps blowing.

Figure 11. Wind power gathers speed Adapted from Australian Academy of Science

To answer Questions 41 to 50 use the

information in Figures 11 to 16, Table
2, and your own knowledge.

41 Which of these energy sources is best

described as intermittent but predictable?
A biomass
B geothermal
C solar
D tidal
E wind
metres per sec
42 The areas of Australia with the greatest
wind farm potential are influenced by which
winds?
Figure 12. Background winds in Australia A Fremantle Doctor
Source: Australian Greenhouse Office B Monsoons
C Polar Easterlies
D Roaring Forties
E Trade Winds

Figure 13. Albany Wind Farm © J. Grant

Page 9
National Geographic Channel Australian Geography Competition 2012

43 Placing a wind turbine at which of the sites

in Figure 14 would be likely to result in the
highest output of power?
A site A
B site B
C site C
D site D
E site E

44 A site with strong winds may still be

Figure 14. Wind flow over an isolated steep hill unsuitable for a wind farm. Which of these
Source: CSIRO is a disadvantage in siting a wind farm?
A high levels of wind turbulence from uneven
terrain
Table 2. Land area available at selected wind speeds
B mostly bare ground surface
in sample area in Great Dividing Range, NSW
Source: CSIRO C scarcity of water for on-going wind farm
operation
Mean annual wind speed Percentage
exceeded (m/sec) land area D short distance to connect to existing
electricity grid
9 0.02%
E wind speeds are high and relatively
8.5 0.08%
constant
8 0.16%
7.5 0.54% 45 Technological advances have allowed
7 3.07% power to be economically generated at
6.5 12.13%
lower wind speeds. For the area reported
in Table 2, how much more land is available
6 28.60% if the threshold for viable production is
lowered from 8 m/sec to 7 m/sec?
A approx 2 times
B approx 3 times
C approx 8 times
D approx 20 times
E approx 50 times

46 Changes to regulations in some Australian

states will affect the development of wind
farms within 2 km of a residence. The
primary reason for these changes is:
A bushfires from lightning strikes on turbines
B community concern over turbine noise
C erratic energy production not being
economical
D high levels of carbon dioxide produced by
turbines
Figure 15. Seasonality in mean half-hourly wind E injuries to endangered bird species
power output from the Albany Wind Farm
Source: H. Suenaga & M. Lampard

Page 10
 National Geographic Channel Australian Geography Competition 2012

20%

10%

%
10

%
10
10

%
%

20

%
%

20
30
20
9 am Summer % 9 am Autumn 9 am Winter 9 am Spring

30%

20%

20

20
%

%
10
10%

10
%

%
10%

20%
3 pm Summer 3 pm Autumn 3 pm Winter 3 pm Spring

calm km/h
0-10 10-20 20-30 >30 Wind frequency analysis for Albany Airport using the wind record from 1965 to 2004

Figure 16. Wind roses for Albany Airport © Commonwealth of Australia (Bureau of Meteorology)

47 Albany is in the country of the Noongar 49 Using Figure 15, on average, the greatest
people. The Noongar season of bunuru output from the Albany Wind Farm occurs
commonly has easterly winds, and people on:
moved to the coast to fish. Bunuru overlaps A autumn mornings
with:
B summer afternoons
A autumn
C summer mornings
B spring
D winter afternoons
C summer
E winter nights
D winter
E none of the above 50 The output of the Albany Wind Farm:
A can be adjusted to meet rising electricity
48 Which statement about the winds at Albany demand
Airport is correct?
B does not relate to the wind strength
A Autumn afternoons have the gentlest experienced at Albany Airport
winds.
C is greatest at the time of day when demand
B On spring afternoons, easterlies blow for electricity is increasing
about 10% of the time.
D is greatest in the season when demand for
C The strongest winds come from the electricity for heating is highest
northwest on winter mornings.
E is lowest in the season when demand for
D Westerlies blow above 30 km/h 20% of the electricity for cooling is highest
time on spring mornings.
E all of the above

Page 11
 Thank you for taking part in the
2012 National Geographic Channel
Australian Geography Competition.