00:00northern australia is basically the perfect spot it's right next to some of the world's
00:05busiest trade routes that move trillions of dollars worth of goods every year with all that
00:11action going on you'd naturally think this massive coastline would be packed with skyscrapers
00:16shopping malls and sprawling suburbs but instead the whole region is practically empty so why is
00:24that okay okay before you rush to the comments and type that's not true let's clear one thing up
00:31yes there are some important cities up north places like darwin with around 150 000 people
00:38or townsville which has about 200 000 but let's be real it's a bit of a stretch to call them major
00:45cities large metropolitan areas are generally considered places with a population of one and
00:51a half million people or more like sydney melbourne or perth now take a look at them can you see what
00:58all those cities have in common yep they're located in the southern part of the country the thing is
01:04australia is massive stretching across a little under three million square miles making up about five
01:12percent of the world's total land area to put that into perspective you could fit almost 60 england's
01:19inside australia's borders but it's also one of the most sparsely populated countries on earth see
01:26these red zones here that's where the majority of people live this means that the center of australia
01:33is well practically empty that's basically because this area has an intense climate covered with semi-arid
01:41and desert regions it's really dry most of the time and hardly gets any rain so they end up facing big
01:48challenges when it comes to having enough water during summer days average temperatures are typically
01:55between 98 and 102 degrees fahrenheit and suddenly living by the beach starts to sound a whole lot more
02:03appealing looking for more bearable temperatures is one of the reasons why most australians are concentrated
02:10along the coastlines great but think about it australia is totally surrounded by ocean waters
02:17yet for some reason people choose the southern coastlines not the north and that doesn't make
02:24much sense take a closer look at darwin and you'll see that it's actually closer to indonesia than it is
02:32to australia's own capital we're talking about the world's fourth most populous nation with one of the
02:38fastest growing economies indonesia has a ton of positive ingredients behind that growth it's rich
02:45in mineral reserves has a large working age population and is becoming strong in sectors like
02:51manufacturing trade and digital services put all that in a blender and indonesia's economy is expected to
02:59grow at an average annual rate of 4.8 percent over the next two years in fact experts believe that indonesia
03:08and southeast asia in general will be some of the most important countries for australia over the next
03:14hundred years financially speaking so that brings us back to the question why hasn't the northern part
03:20of the country turned into a booming metropolis soaking up the benefits of its prime spot near asia
03:27well there are a couple reasons for that first up the weather the top of australia has a tropical
03:35climate and that means two things it's hot and humid during the wet season it rains a lot and i mean
03:43a lot the region suddenly gets hit by big intense storms and yeah thunderstorms can put on a heck of
03:51a visual show but the situation can also get pretty tense because when it rains that much it also floods
03:59sometimes badly and that can lead to roads being closed and towns getting completely cut off as a
04:05result producers have a hard time distributing their goods and stores sometimes end up with empty shelves
04:12it's like a domino effect the afternoons feel super sticky with the air so humid it feels like you're
04:19walking around wrapped in a warm wet blanket during the wet season the humidity often stays above 70
04:28but sweat isn't the only problem the real issue is that all the heat and dampness cause
04:34infrastructure to wear out a lot faster the wet season also means it's a tropical cyclone season
04:41cyclones can stick around for days or even weeks and often follow messy unpredictable paths they're
04:48dangerous and bring all kinds of hazards like extreme winds heavy rainfall and storm surges
04:56then a few months later comes the dry season humidity takes a break and there's very little rain but
05:03that means the same wetlands dry up and vanish under the scorching sun leaving cracked earth behind
05:10that leads to dust fire risks and water shortages this kind of wild weather might work out fine for small
05:18towns or a few businesses but it's a real problem if you want to develop a big city major cities need
05:25reliable infrastructure and steady access to water and energy and the north doesn't provide any of that
05:32that easily maintaining a modern city up there would cost a fortune without a big local population to help
05:39pay for it mining companies do operate in the north extracting minerals gas and other resources but
05:46they don't build cities they build temporary towns workers fly in for a few weeks then fly back home
05:54there is money in the north but it doesn't translate into busy centers
05:59all right so here's the second reason why there aren't any big cities up north
06:04the place is super remote sure it is closer to asia but that's a whole other continent
06:11when it comes to australia's own big cities like sydney or melbourne it's really far away
06:17the problem is that the north has always been lacking good roads and railways and that's related
06:22to how things played out in australia's history some would say it's kind of a too little too late situation
06:30because you see back when britain first settled australia in 1788
06:34they made practical choices over the years settlers picked spots with safe harbors manageable
06:41weather and fertile soil all things the northern coast just didn't have early attempts to build
06:48towns up north like port essington and fort wellington failed spectacularly because of disease isolation
06:55and harsh conditions only darwin managed to survive but like i mentioned earlier it never grew into a major
07:03city but none of this means the region was empty before europeans arrived and that brings us to
07:09reason number three protected areas the north has long been home to diverse aboriginal and tourist
07:16strait islander peoples groups who were living there thousands of years before britain showed up
07:22over the years many areas have stayed under traditional ownership or have remained really significant
07:28and important to indigenous communities even today big parts of northern australia are indigenous lands
07:35national parks or conservation zones these lands are protected by law so developing these areas means
07:43navigating complex legal agreements and risking damage to places of enormous cultural and spiritual
07:49significance in other words it's not exactly easy to just come in and say hey let's build a big
07:56metropolis right here but it's not like the idea hasn't crossed people's minds experts have come
08:03up with plans every now and then to open up the north many of those plans have ended up failing
08:08mostly because of all the reasons i've already talked about in this video even in 2025 the north's
08:15remoteness is still a problem but that doesn't mean it can't be developed and right now there's fresh
08:21buzz around that old dream with the northern australia action plan working to crack the code authorities
08:29are pouring billions into roads ports and infrastructure hoping to spark industries like clean energy
08:35minerals and agriculture all while working closely with indigenous communities who call the north home
08:42it's a bold vision sure but it just might finally turn this vast wild region into a thriving frontier
08:50for now though we just have to accept that the north remains mostly wild full of intense storms
08:56breathtaking landscapes and unique animals you can't find anywhere else that's it for today so hey if you
09:04pacified your curiosity then give the video a like and share it with your friends or if you want more
09:09just click on these videos and stay on the bright side
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