How Big Is Greenland Compared To Australia?
Last updated on September 22nd, 2023 at 01:30 pm
It’s hard to imagine two countries as different as warm Australia, with its tropical and desert environments, and snow-covered Greenland.
But to get a good idea of the true differences between these countries, you can learn some interesting statistics about them, such as land area, GDP, and how many airports, hospitals, and universities each country has.
Area
In terms of land area, Greenland is 836,300 square miles. Australia, on the other hand, is quite a bit larger. Australia is 2.97 million square miles, making it about three and a half times the size of Greenland.
Rivers and Lakes
Greenland has a varied landscape, and much of the land lies under glaciers or large ice sheets.
This makes it challenging to get an exact feel for geography. However, we do know that the country has 19 rivers.
Greenland also has many lakes, but it can be difficult to pinpoint the exact number, as some of the lakes on or under ice sheets appear and disappear without much warning.
So far, scientists have discovered about 50 lakes under Greenland’s ice sheet.
Because it’s so large, it makes sense that Australia also has a large number of lakes and rivers. To be exact, Australia has 439 rivers and 11,400 lakes.
The largest lake in Australia is Lake Eyre, also known as Kati Thanda, which is about 3,668 square miles.
Population
As of 2021, the population of Greenland was about 56,400 people. Greenland is actually part of the Kingdom of Denmark, so most people living in Greenland are Danish citizens.
This population number, paired with the size of Greenland, officially makes Greenland the most sparsely populated country on the planet.
Greenland is covered by glaciers and ice sheets, so it makes sense that the area where people can live is smaller, which leads to a smaller population.
The population of Australia, on the other hand, was about 25,823,800 in 2021. Most people in Australia live along the coasts, in Australia’s major cities, but there are also many people who live in Australia’s interior.
Australia has a long, rich history of farming, and many people still live in more remote areas to continue this profession.
Gross Domestic Product
Gross domestic product, also known as GDP, is a figure that shows how much money was produced by goods made within a country during a specific time period.
As of 2021, Greenland’s GDP was about 3.052 billion United States dollars.
Australia has a much higher population than Greenland, so it makes sense that its gross domestic product would be higher as well.
As of 2021, Australia’s GDP was 1.397 trillion United States dollars.
Military
Because Greenland is officially part of Denmark, the defense of Greenland is Denmark’s responsibility. This means that Greenland doesn’t actually have any military forces.
They do, however, have an armed coast guard. The coast guard is mainly responsible for patrolling the coast and rescue operations at sea.
As of 2009, Greenland was granted more autonomy over its own military forces. The armed coast guard was transferred solely to Greenland’s control, and Greenland was given the option to make foreign affairs policies that aren’t linked to Danish policies.
Australia’s military is called the Australian Defense Force, and it’s broken into three divisions. These divisions are the Australian Army, the Royal Australian Navy, and the Royal Australian Air Force.
The Australian Defense Force has a little over 58,000 active-duty personnel and just less than 30,000 reserve personnel overall.
Cities
Determining how many cities a country has can sometimes be a bit tricky, as how a city is classified or incorporated can vary from country to country.
For example, Greenland doesn’t have any areas that are truly classified as cities. Instead, they have more than 60 towns and settlements.
Even the capital of Nuuk is not actually classified as a city. It is, however, the largest town in the country with a population of just under 19,000 people.
Australia has 50 cities with populations over of 10,000 people. The largest city in Australia is Sydney, which has a population of about 4,778,000 people.
Five of Australia’s cities have more than a million people.
Airports
Greenland has many airports, which makes sense since there are often no roads between towns.
There are 14 major aerodromes, or small airports, with scheduled flights in the country, including the airport in the capital of Nuuk.
There are also six airports with no scheduled flights, as well as 47 major helipads.
Australia has a total of 613 airports across the country. This number includes 13 international airports that serve air traffic both within the country and from around the world.
Universities
Greenland has just one university, called the University of Greenland or Ilisimatusarfik, located in the capital of Nuuk.
The school has about 700 students and four institutes, which are the Institute of Learning, Institute of Nursing and Health Research, Institute of Society, Economics, and Journalism, and the Institute of Culture, Language, and History.
Australia has 43 universities, which includes 40 Australian universities, two international universities, and one private university.
Hospitals
Because of its low population, Greenland doesn’t require many hospitals. There are five main hospitals, including one hospital in Nuuk and four regional hospitals.
Australia, on the other hand, has a total of 1,347 hospitals, including 746 public hospitals and 601 private hospitals.
Greenland has a population of 56,400 people.
Highways
Because it is so small, and because it’s largely covered by ice and snow, there are no highways in Greenland.
In fact, the entire country has only 91 miles of roadway, and only 40 miles of that roadway are paved.
Australia, however, has the largest road network in the world.
Although it’s difficult to pinpoint just how many highways Australia has, as many highway-type roads aren’t designated as highways, we do know that there are about 221,000 miles of paved roads and 289,000 miles of unpaved roads in the country.
Australia is also home to Highway 1, also known as the Big Lap, which is the world’s longest highway. The Big Lap is about 9,000 miles long.
