Tasmania is the island state of Australia. It is the smallest Australian state and one of the most beautiful. Many Australians vacation there.

Tasmania once formed the southeastern corner of the Australian mainland. But it split off from the continent, and the rough waters of Bass Strait now separate Tasmania from the state of Victoria.

Tasmania administers several small islands, including Macquarie, Maria, Flinders, Bruny, and King islands. Tasmania and its islands cover an area of 26,200 square miles (67,800 square kilometers). The mountains in eastern Tasmania form part of the Great Dividing Range that runs down the eastern edge of the Australian mainland. Western Tasmania has steep jagged mountains. Mount Ossa (5,305 feet or 1,617 meters) in western Tasmania is the highest point on the island.

It's lakes and rivers are the source of electric power for industry. Its swift rivers rise in the mountains of the central region and the coastline has many capes and bays.

Tasmania's temperature averages 60 ¡F (16 ¡C) in January and 50 ¡F (10 ¡C) in July. The annual rainfall averages 20 to 40 inches (51 to 100 centimeters) in eastern Tasmania and 40 to 60 inches (100 to 150 centimeters) in the west.

Tasmania has many mineral deposits. They include coal, copper, gold, lead, silver, tin, and zinc. Large forests cover parts of the island. The seeds that produced California's first eucalyptus trees came from Tasmania. The Tasmanian devil, a small bearlike beast, lives on the island.

THE PEOPLE
Tasmania has a population of about 459,659. Of the circa 460,000 inhabitants, most of the people are of British descent, and most were born in Australia. In the early 1800's, European settlers hunted down and killed most of the Aborigines who lived in Tasmania. Those who remained were taken to Flinders Island in Bass Strait for protection. The last surviving full-blooded Tasmanian Aborigine died in 1876.

Most major cities and towns of Tasmania lie on or near the coast. Tasmania has no large cities. Hobart is the capital and largest city, and Launceston ranks as the second largest city. Other important towns in Tasmania include Burnie-Somerset, Devonport, and Ulverstone.

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