Great Sandy Desert

The Great Sandy Desert contains large ergs, often consisting of longitudinal dunes. In the north east of the desert there is a meteorite impact crater, the Wolfe Creek crater.

The region is sparsely populated. The main populations consist of indigenous Australian communities and mining centres. The aboriginal people of the desert fall into two main groups, the Martu in the west and the Pintupi in the east. Linguistically, they are speakers of multiple Western Desert languages. Many of these indigenous people were forcibly removed from their lands during the 20th century and relocated to settlements such as Papunya in the Northern Territory. In recent years, some of the original inhabitants have returned.[5]

Young indigenous adults from the Great Sandy Desert region travel to and work in the Wilurarra Creative programs to maintain and develop their culture.[6]

Rainfall is low throughout the coast and far north and is strongly seasonal. Areas near the Kimberley have an average rainfall that exceeds 300 mm (12 in), but is patchy. Many drought years end with a monsoon cloud mass or tropical cyclone. Like many of Australia's deserts, rainfall is high by desert standards, with the driest parts recording falls little below 250 mm (9.8 in). A massive evaporation rate makes up for the higher than normal desert rainfall. This region is one which gives rise to the heat lows which help drive the NW monsoon. Almost all rain comes from monsoon thunderstorms or the occasional tropical cyclone rain depression.[7]

On average for most of the area, there are about 20–30 days where thunderstorms form. However, in the north bordering the Kimberley, 30-40 per year is the average.[8]

Summer daytime temperatures are some of the hottest in Australia.[9] Regions further south average 38 to 42 °C (100 to 108 °F) except when monsoonal cloud cover is active. Several people have died in this region after their vehicles have broken down on remote tracks.[10] Winters are short and warm; temperatures range from 25 to 30 °C (77 to 86 °F).

Frost does not occur in most of the area. The regions bordering the Gibson Desert in the far southeast may record a light frost or two every year.[11] Away from the coast winter nights can still be chilly in comparison to the warm days.

Indigenous art is a huge industry in central Australia. Mines, most importantly the Telfer Gold Mine and Nifty Copper Mine, and cattle stations are found in the far west. Telfer is one of the largest gold mines in Australia. The undeveloped Kintyre uranium deposit lies south of Telfer.

The vegetation of the Great Sandy Desert is dominated by spinifex.[13]

Animals in the region include feral camels, dingoes, goannas (including the large perentie) and numerous species of lizards and birds. Other animal inhabitants include bilbies, mulgara, marsupial moles, rufous hare-wallabies, thorny devils, bearded dragons, and red kangaroos.

Some of the bird-life found within the desert include the rare Alexandra's parrot, the mulga parrot and the scarlet-chested parrot.[14]

• Deserts of Australia
• List of deserts by area
• Carnegie expedition of 1896

• Burbidge, A. A.; McKenzie, N. L., eds. (1983). Wildlife of the Great Sandy Desert, Western Australia. Perth, W.A.: Western Australian Wildlife Research Centre [and] Dept. of Fisheries and Wildlife. ISBN 0-7244-9307-7.
• Thackway, R.; Cresswell, I. D. (1995). An interim biogeographic regionalisation for Australia: a framework for setting priorities in the National Reserves System Cooperative Program. Version 4.0. Canberra: Australian Nature Conservation Agency, Reserve Systems Unit. ISBN 0-642-21371-2.

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