Australian Geographic
Encyclopedia
The Australian Geographic is a quarterly geographical magazine-style journal
created by Dick Smith
in 1985. It focuses mainly on stories about Australia
, or about Australian people in other countries. The four editions published each year are available by subscription only.
The journal is known for its poster
included in each edition as well as high quality photograph
s, excellent map
s from award-winning mapmakers and detailed technical illustration
s. The 10th anniversary edition featured one of the country's most comprehensive maps of exploration ever produced. These maps have been used by explorers crossing Central Australia
and Antarctica.
Australian Geographic now also runs a frequently updated online news service with three to four news articles, features, image galleries and blogs online each day.
It was published by Australian Geographic, a privately-owned organisation that also managed a chain of retail stores similarly named in Australia. Each year, a portion of the profits is given to the Australian Geographic Society, the non-profit arm of Australian Geographic which supports scientific research as well as environmental and community projects. Funds are also used to highlight and support Australian adventurers and produce related diaries, calendars and books. There are also 70 Australian Geographic retail stores which sell products including Australiana, Weather stations, telescope
s, books and toys, these are now owned and run separately to the journal.
north of Sydney. Smith was advised to include his name on the cover to aid the journal's establishment. After two years he removed his name from the cover. Smith wanted the publication to focus on accuracy by exclusively including articles that were peer-reviewed. In 1995, when subscriptions totalled more than 200,000, the publication was sold to Fairfax
.
From September 2000 to December 2001, Australian Geographic published a bimonthly science and technology magazine known as Newton Graphic Science. There were, however, only eight issues published before the magazine went permanently out of print. In 2001 the journal's offices were threatened by fires during the Black Christmas
bushfires.
Today the journal is owned by ACP Magazines (who purchased it in 2006) and is based in Goulburn Street Sydney. Dick Smith no longer has direct editorial control over content found in the journal, but remains as chairman of trustees of the Australian Geographic Society. The current editor-in-chief of Australian Geographic is Ian Connellan.
Scientific journal
In academic publishing, a scientific journal is a periodical publication intended to further the progress of science, usually by reporting new research. There are thousands of scientific journals in publication, and many more have been published at various points in the past...
created by Dick Smith
Dick Smith (entrepreneur)
Dick Smith, AO is an Australian entrepreneur, businessman, aviator, and political activist. He is the founder of Dick Smith Electronics, Dick Smith Foods and Australian Geographic, and was selected as the 1986 Australian of the Year.-Electronics:In 1968, Dick Smith founded electronics retailer...
in 1985. It focuses mainly on stories about Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, or about Australian people in other countries. The four editions published each year are available by subscription only.
The journal is known for its poster
Poster
A poster is any piece of printed paper designed to be attached to a wall or vertical surface. Typically posters include both textual and graphic elements, although a poster may be either wholly graphical or wholly text. Posters are designed to be both eye-catching and informative. Posters may be...
included in each edition as well as high quality photograph
Photograph
A photograph is an image created by light falling on a light-sensitive surface, usually photographic film or an electronic imager such as a CCD or a CMOS chip. Most photographs are created using a camera, which uses a lens to focus the scene's visible wavelengths of light into a reproduction of...
s, excellent map
Map
A map is a visual representation of an area—a symbolic depiction highlighting relationships between elements of that space such as objects, regions, and themes....
s from award-winning mapmakers and detailed technical illustration
Illustration
An illustration is a displayed visualization form presented as a drawing, painting, photograph or other work of art that is created to elucidate or dictate sensual information by providing a visual representation graphically.- Early history :The earliest forms of illustration were prehistoric...
s. The 10th anniversary edition featured one of the country's most comprehensive maps of exploration ever produced. These maps have been used by explorers crossing Central Australia
Central Australia
Central Australia/Alice Springs Region is one of the five regions in the Northern Territory. The term Central Australia is used to describe an area centred on Alice Springs in Australia. It is sometimes referred to as Centralia; likewise the people of the area are sometimes called Centralians...
and Antarctica.
Australian Geographic now also runs a frequently updated online news service with three to four news articles, features, image galleries and blogs online each day.
It was published by Australian Geographic, a privately-owned organisation that also managed a chain of retail stores similarly named in Australia. Each year, a portion of the profits is given to the Australian Geographic Society, the non-profit arm of Australian Geographic which supports scientific research as well as environmental and community projects. Funds are also used to highlight and support Australian adventurers and produce related diaries, calendars and books. There are also 70 Australian Geographic retail stores which sell products including Australiana, Weather stations, telescope
Telescope
A telescope is an instrument that aids in the observation of remote objects by collecting electromagnetic radiation . The first known practical telescopes were invented in the Netherlands at the beginning of the 1600s , using glass lenses...
s, books and toys, these are now owned and run separately to the journal.
History
The publication's offices were originally based in Terrey HillsTerrey Hills, New South Wales
Terrey Hills is a suburb of northern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Terrey Hills is located 25 kilometres north of the Sydney central business district in the local government area of Warringah Council and is part of the Northern Beaches region.Terrey Hills is also considered...
north of Sydney. Smith was advised to include his name on the cover to aid the journal's establishment. After two years he removed his name from the cover. Smith wanted the publication to focus on accuracy by exclusively including articles that were peer-reviewed. In 1995, when subscriptions totalled more than 200,000, the publication was sold to Fairfax
Fairfax Media
Fairfax Media Limited is one of Australia's largest diversified media companies. The group's operations include newspapers, magazines, radios and digital media operating in Australia and New Zealand. Fairfax Media was founded by the Fairfax family as John Fairfax and Sons, later to become John...
.
From September 2000 to December 2001, Australian Geographic published a bimonthly science and technology magazine known as Newton Graphic Science. There were, however, only eight issues published before the magazine went permanently out of print. In 2001 the journal's offices were threatened by fires during the Black Christmas
Black Christmas (bushfires)
The Black Christmas bushfires were bushfires that burnt for almost three weeks from 25 December 2001 across New South Wales, Australia. It was the longest continuous bushfire emergency in NSW history....
bushfires.
Today the journal is owned by ACP Magazines (who purchased it in 2006) and is based in Goulburn Street Sydney. Dick Smith no longer has direct editorial control over content found in the journal, but remains as chairman of trustees of the Australian Geographic Society. The current editor-in-chief of Australian Geographic is Ian Connellan.
Awards
Each year the society bestows awards as a celebration of achievement and not a competition as such, not all categories are awarded annually.Adventurer of the Year
| Year | Recipient |
|---|---|
| 2010 | Linda Beilharz |
| 2009 | Andrew Lock |
| 2008 | Josef Truban |
| 2007 | Lloyd Godson |
| 2006 | Tim Cope Tim Cope Tim Cope is an Australian adventurer, author, filmmaker, trekking guide, and public speaker who grew up in Gippsland, Victoria. He has learned to speak fluent Russian and specializes in countries of the former Soviet Union.- Adventures :... |
| 2005 | Andrew McAuley Andrew McAuley Andrew McAuley was an Australian adventurer. He is best known for his mountaineering and sea kayaking in remote parts of the world. He is presumed to have died following his disappearance at sea while attempting to kayak 1600 km across the Tasman Sea in February 2007.-Personal:McAuley was... |
| 2004 | Jon Johanson Jon Johanson Jon Johanson is a world-record setting Australian aviator. He is well known for his pioneering flights in a home-built Van's Aircraft RV-4. Johanson is a qualified nurse, midwife, carpenter and air-transport pilot.-Flights:... |
| 2003 | Sue Fear Sue Fear Susan Erica Fear was an Australian mountain climber, passionate supporter of the Fred Hollows Foundation and a 2005 recipient of the Order of Australia medal in the Queen's birthday honours... |
| 2002 | Jon Muir Jon Muir Jon Muir is an Australian adventurer, rock climber and mountaineer.-Exploration:-Awards:* 1989 - Recipient of the Order of Australia for services to mountaineering.* 2001 - Australian Geographic Society's Adventurer of the Year.... |
| 2001 | Tammy van Wisse Tammy van Wisse Tammy van Wisse is a long-distance swimmer from Australia. As a marathon swimmer she swam the Murray River in 2001, a distance of 2,438 kilometres and the English Channel in 1993 in a time of 8h 35mins and again in 1994 in a time of 8h 33mins... |
| 2000 | Dick Smith Dick Smith Dick Smith may refer to:*Dick Smith , Australian entrepreneur**Dick Smith , electrical retailer in Australia.**Dick Smith Foods, food brand in Australia*Dick Smith , former player with Manchester United... |
| 1999 | David Mason |
| 1998 | David Lewis David Henry Lewis David Henry Lewis, DCNZM was a sailor, adventurer, doctor, and Polynesian scholar. He is best known for his studies on the traditional systems of navigation used by the Pacific Islanders... |
| 1997 | Syd Kirkby Sydney L. Kirkby Sydney L. Kirkby, MBE is an Australian surveyor and Antarctic explorer.-Work:Syd Kirkby was first appointed as Surveyor at Mawson Station for 1956, the third year of ANARE operations in Antarctica.... |
| 1996 | Don & Margie McIntyre |
| 1995 | Dennis Bartell |
| 1994 | Len Beadell Len Beadell Leonard Beadell OAM BEM FIEMS was a surveyor, roadbuilder , bushman, artist and author, responsible for opening up the last remaining isolated desert areas of central Australia from 1947 to 1963. Len is sometimes called "the last true Australian explorer"... |
| 1993 | Warwick Deacock |
| 1992 | Ron and Valerie Taylor Ron & Valerie Taylor Ron Taylor and Valerie Taylor are prominent Australian shark and underwater experts. Their expertise has been called upon for films such as Jaws, Orca and Sky Pirates.... |
| 1991 | Warren Bonython Warren Bonython Charles Warren Bonython AO is an Australian conservationist, explorer, author and chemical engineer. A keen bushwalker, he is perhaps best known for his role, spanning many years, working towards the promotion, planning and eventual creation of the Heysen Trail... |
| 1990 | Hans Tholstrup |
| 1989 | Dot Butler |
| 1988 | Philip Law |
| 1987 | Colin Putt |
Young Adventurer of the Year
| Year | Recipient |
|---|---|
| 2010 | Jessica Watson |
| 2009 | Angus Paradice |
| 2008 | James Castrission and Justin Jones |
| 2007 | Rex Pemberton |
| 2006 | Stephen Fordyce and Roger Chao |
| 2005 | Rex Pemberton Rex Pemberton Rex Pemberton is an Old Knox Grammarian and was the youngest Australian ever to climb Mount Everest at the age of 21. Rex climbed his first alpine peak when he was 16 and he was inspired by Jesse Martin, who did a solo sail around the world... |
| 2004 | Chris Bray and Jasper Timm |
| 2003 | Christopher Harris |
| 2002 | Tim Cope |
| 2001 | Jeremy Richardson, Jarlath Weingott and Angus Weingott |
| 2000 | Krista Bernard |
| 1998 | Chris Hatherly |
| 1997 | David Dicks |
| 1996 | Mark Shearer & Eric Croker |
| 1994 | Damon & Deanne Howes |
| 1992 | James Woodford and Adam Kerezsy |
| 1991 | Jeremy Durbin |
| 1990 | John Weir |
| 1989 | Richard Wood |