Kati Thanda–Lake Eyre

A vast, usually dry salt lake in South Australia and the lowest natural point on the Australian continent. Its shallow basin fills intermittently after inland floods.

Lake Eyre Basin: A vast drainage basin in central Australia whose rivers flow toward Kati Thanda–Lake Eyre. The lake is the basin’s terminal sink, receiving its episodic inland flows.
Channel Country: A network of branching, often dry channels across the floodplains of inland Queensland and South Australia. Its floodways carry water toward the lake across otherwise arid country.
Lake Eyre Yacht Club: An Australian sailing club that organizes expeditions on Kati Thanda–Lake Eyre when water levels permit. Its rare sailing events depend on sufficient floodwater reaching the lake.
Lake Eyre: The English name historically used for Kati Thanda–Lake Eyre, honoring explorer Edward John Eyre. The paired name joins the established English name with the Indigenous name.
Warburton River: An intermittent river in central Australia that can carry floodwater into Kati Thanda–Lake Eyre. Its floods are a major route by which distant rain reaches the lake.
Arid climate: A climate in which potential evaporation substantially exceeds precipitation. High evaporation and scarce rain keep the lake dry for long periods.
Lake Eyre Basin Intergovernmental Agreement: An Australian agreement for cooperative management of the Lake Eyre Basin across jurisdictions. It coordinates protection of the rivers and wetlands that feed the lake.
Edward John Eyre: A nineteenth-century British explorer who traveled through parts of southern Australia. The lake’s English name commemorates his explorations in the region.
Cooper Creek: An ephemeral river system in Queensland and South Australia that drains toward Kati Thanda–Lake Eyre. Flood pulses from Cooper Creek can inundate the lake’s northern reaches.
Evaporation: The conversion of liquid water into vapor at a surface. It removes floodwater from the shallow lake and concentrates dissolved salts.

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Simpson DesertRelated: Rare floods from surrounding catchments can link desert waterways to the lake.