Semi-arid and desert conditions prevail in most of the interior. To the east lie the two islands of New Zealand. North Island has active volcanoes. South Island has a great mountain range, the Alps. Australia and New Zealand Most of Australia is semi-desert.
Mountains are infrequent and relatively low.
One region of low ranges and dissected crystalline and sedimentary rocks we will see again in a mosaic on page 17-3 . But here we will look more closely at one of the images making up that mosaic. This is the so-called Pilbara District of northwest Australia, near the coast. This is probably the classic example of an Archaen Greenstone Complex anywhere on Earth. Much of the Australian Interior is dry, harsh, inhospital, and sparsely developed.