Topographic maps
Click on a map to view its topography, its elevation and its terrain.
Sydney
Sydney's topography is characterized by a diverse landscape that seamlessly blends coastal features with inland plateaus. The city is divided into two primary regions: the relatively flat Cumberland Plain to the south and west of Sydney Harbour, and the elevated Hornsby Plateau to the north. The Cumberland…
Average elevation: 53 m
City of Melbourne
Melbourne's topography is characterized by a diverse landscape that transitions from flat coastal plains to rolling hills and mountainous regions. The city is situated at the northern end of Port Phillip Bay, where the terrain is predominantly flat, facilitating urban development. As one moves eastward, the…
Average elevation: 18 m
Victoria
Victoria, Australia, exhibits a remarkably varied topography shaped by the Great Dividing Range, which forms a west-to-east spine across the state. In the northeast, the Victorian Alps rise to the state’s highest point, Mount Bogong at 1,986 meters, amid deep valleys and snow-capped ridges, while westward,…
Average elevation: 179 m
Perth
Perth, the capital of Western Australia, is situated on the Swan Coastal Plain, a flat expanse of sandy soil nestled between the Indian Ocean to the west and the Darling Scarp to the east. The Darling Scarp, also known as the Darling Range, is a low escarpment that extends north–south, marking a distinct…
Average elevation: 26 m
Adelaide
Australia > South Australia > Adelaide
Adelaide is north of the Fleurieu Peninsula, on the Adelaide Plains between the Gulf St Vincent and the low-lying Mount Lofty Ranges. The city stretches 20 km (12 mi) from the coast to the foothills, and 90 km (56 mi) from Gawler at its northern extent to Sellicks Beach in the south. According to the Regional…
Average elevation: 148 m
Western Australia
Because the only mountain-building since then has been of the Stirling Range with the rifting from Antarctica, the land is extremely eroded and ancient, with no part of the state above 1,245 metres (4,085 ft) AHD (at Mount Meharry in the Hamersley Range of the Pilbara region). Most of the state is a low…
Average elevation: 194 m
Queensland
Queensland's topography is characterized by a diverse landscape that includes coastal plains, mountain ranges, plateaus, and expansive inland areas. The Great Dividing Range runs parallel to the state's eastern coast, forming a series of mountain ranges, plateaus, and upland areas. This range influences the…
Average elevation: 122 m
Australia
Australia's topography is characterized by vast, low-lying plains interspersed with notable highland regions. The Western Plateau, encompassing much of the continent's interior, is a flat expanse punctuated by isolated ranges such as the MacDonnell and Musgrave Ranges, as well as iconic formations like Uluru.…
Average elevation: 35 m
Tasmania
The most mountainous region is the Central Highlands area, which covers most of the central western parts of the state. The Midlands located in the central east, is fairly flat, and is predominantly used for agriculture, although farming activity is scattered throughout the state. Tasmania's tallest mountain…
Average elevation: 220 m
Melbourne
Melbourne is also prone to isolated convective showers forming when a cold pool crosses the state, especially if there is considerable daytime heating. These showers are often heavy and can include hail, squalls, and significant drops in temperature, but they often pass through very quickly with a rapid…
Average elevation: 185 m
Canberra
Australia > District of Canberra Central
The area chosen for the capital had been inhabited by Indigenous Australians for up to 21,000 years, with the principal group being the Ngunnawal people. European settlement commenced in the first half of the 19th century, as evidenced by surviving landmarks such as St John's Anglican Church and Blundells…
Average elevation: 638 m
New South Wales
New South Wales (NSW), located on Australia's eastern seaboard, boasts a diverse topography that significantly influences its landscapes and ecosystems. The state's eastern edge is dominated by a narrow coastal plain, featuring regions such as the Illawarra and Shoalhaven near Nowra, characterized by rolling…
Average elevation: 154 m
Sydney
Phillip had been given no instructions for urban development, but in July 1788 submitted a plan for the new town at Sydney Cove. It included a wide central avenue, a permanent Government House, law courts, hospital and other public buildings, but no provision for warehouses, shops, or other commercial…
Average elevation: 32 m
Great Dividing Range
The Great Dividing Range, also known as the East Australian Cordillera or the Eastern Highlands, is a cordillera system in eastern Australia consisting of an expansive collection of mountain ranges, plateaus and rolling hills, that runs roughly parallel to the east coast of Australia and forms the…
Average elevation: 117 m
Toowoomba
The city occupies the edge of the range and the low ridges behind it. Two valleys run north from the southern boundary, each arising from springs either side of Middle Ridge near Spring Street at an altitude of around 680 m. These waterways, East Creek and West Creek, flow together just north of the CBD to…
Average elevation: 458 m
Brisbane River
The RAAF also perform a practice session in the days preceding the event, serving as an opportunity to both practice beforehand and also promote Riverfire. One of the most popular RAAF aircraft to perform at Riverfire was the F-111 which was known for performing a 'dump-and-burn' above the city. The final…
Average elevation: 235 m
New Zealand
New Zealand (Māori: Aotearoa [aɔˈtɛaɾɔa]) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island (Te Ika-a-Māui) and the South Island (Te Waipounamu)—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island country by area, covering 268,021…
Average elevation: 399 m
City of Brisbane
Brisbane's topography is characterized by a series of hills and ranges that define its landscape. The city is situated on a low-lying floodplain, with the Brisbane River meandering through its heart, creating a winding course with many steep curves from the southwest to its mouth at Moreton Bay in the east.…
Average elevation: 71 m
Raleigh
United States of America > North Carolina > Raleigh
Raleigh is located in the northeast central region of North Carolina, where the Piedmont and Atlantic Coastal Plain regions meet. This area is known as the "fall line" because it marks the elevation inland at which waterfalls begin to appear in creeks and rivers. As a result, most of Raleigh features gently…
Average elevation: 103 m
Ballarat
Ballarat has a moderate oceanic climate (Köppen climate classification Cfb) with four distinct seasons. Its elevation, ranging between 400 and 630 metres (1,310 and 2,070 feet) above sea level, causes its mean monthly temperatures to tend to be on average 3 to 5 °C (5 to 9 °F) below those of Melbourne,…
Average elevation: 470 m
Grampians National Park
Mount William is known within the gliding community for the "Grampians Wave", a weather phenomenon that sometimes enables glider pilots to reach extreme altitudes of the order of 28,000 ft (8,500 m). This predominantly occurs during the months of May, June, September and October when strong westerly winds flow…
Average elevation: 262 m
Byron Bay
Byron Bay, located in northeastern New South Wales, Australia, is characterized by diverse topography shaped by its geological history. The town is part of the erosion caldera of the ancient Tweed Volcano, which erupted approximately 23 million years ago, resulting in the rich volcanic soils that define the…
Average elevation: 7 m
Cape York Peninsula
The tropical landscapes are among the most stable in the world. Long undisturbed by tectonic activity, the peninsula is an extremely eroded, almost level low plain dominated by meandering rivers and vast floodplains, with some very low hills rising to 800 m (2,600 ft) elevation in the McIlwraith Range on the…
Average elevation: 71 m
kunanyi / Mount Wellington
"... In many parts the Eucalypti grew to a great size, and composed a noble forest. In some of the dampest ravines, tree-ferns flourished in an extraordinary manner; I saw one which must have been at least twenty feet high to the base of the fronds, and was in girth exactly six feet. The fronds forming the…
Average elevation: 941 m
Portland
United States > Oregon > Multnomah County
Annual snowfall in Portland is 4.3 inches (10.9 cm), which usually falls between December and March. The city of Portland avoids snow more frequently than its suburbs, due in part to its low elevation and the urban heat island effect. Neighborhoods outside of the downtown core, especially in slightly higher…
Average elevation: 77 m
Sunshine Coast
Australia > Queensland > Sunshine Coast Regional
The Sunshine Coast in Queensland, Australia, showcases a diverse topography that harmoniously blends coastal plains with rugged hinterlands. Along its eastern edge, the region features expansive sandy beaches and coastal dunes that transition smoothly into fertile lowlands. Inland, the terrain becomes more…
Average elevation: 109 m
Lama Lama National Park (Cape York Peninsula Aboriginal Land)
Average elevation: 86 m
Mount Macedon
Due to its relatively high elevation of approximately 620 metres (2,030 ft) AHD, the area experiences much cooler temperatures on average relative to nearby Melbourne. The area also receives high rainfall relative to the surrounding plains and much of the Melbourne area. This combination of geographic factors…
Average elevation: 673 m
Adaminaby
Another site 20 km to the north (Yaouk, since 1969) records significantly greater rainfall due to its higher elevation and proximity to the dividing range. This site is most representative of the areas situated on and around Lake Eucumbene. Rainfall total and pattern here approach those of Khancoban and very…
Average elevation: 1,174 m
Trentham
Trentham is a small town in the Shire of Hepburn and Shire of Moorabool local government area, Victoria, Australia. At the 2016 census, Trentham had a population of 1,180, with a median age of 55 years. Located at an altitude of 700 metres (2,297 ft), the town is 87 kilometres (54 mi) north-west of Melbourne.
Average elevation: 702 m
Melbourne
Melbourne is also prone to isolated convective showers forming when a cold pool crosses the state, especially if there is considerable daytime heating. These showers are often heavy and can include hail, squalls, and significant drops in temperature, but they often pass through very quickly with a rapid…
Average elevation: 49 m
Port Phillip
Port Phillip's mostly flat topography and moderate waves make perfect conditions for recreational swimming, kitesurfing, windsurfing, sailing, boating, snorkeling, scuba diving, stand up paddle boarding (SUP) and other sports.
Average elevation: 18 m
