Alice Springs, Northern Territory

Alice Springs
Northern Territory

View of Alice Springs CBD from Anzac Hill.

Alice Springs

Location in Northern Territory

Coordinates

23°42′0″S 133°52′12″E / 23.70000°S 133.87000°ECoordinates: 23°42′0″S 133°52′12″E / 23.70000°S 133.87000°E

Population

27,972 (2015)

• Density

85.411/km² (221.21/sq mi)

Established

1872

Postcode(s)

0870-0872

Area

327.5 km² (126.4 sq mi) (2011 urban)

Time zone

ACST (UTC+9:30)

Location

1,499 km (931 mi) from Darwin
1,532 km (952 mi) from Adelaide

LGA(s)

Alice Springs Town Council

Territory electorate(s)

Federal Division(s)

Lingiari

Mean max temp	Mean min temp	Annual rainfall
28.8 °C ^{84 °F}	13.2 °C ^{56 °F}	282.8 mm ^{11.1 in}

Alice Springs /ˌælᵻs ˈsprɪŋz/ (Arrernte: Mparntwe) is the third largest town in the Northern Territory of Australia. Popularly known as "the Alice" or simply "Alice", Alice Springs is situated roughly in Australia's geographic centre.

The area is known as Mparntwe to its original inhabitants, the Arrernte, who have lived in the Central Australian desert in and around what is now Alice Springs for thousands of years. The name Alice Springs was given by surveyor William Whitfield Mills after Lady Alice Todd (née Alice Gillam Bell), wife of the telegraph pioneer Sir Charles Todd.

Alice Springs has a population of 27,972, which makes up 8.7 percent of the territory's population. Alice Springs is nearly equidistant from Adelaide and Darwin.

The town straddles the usually dry Todd River on the northern side of the MacDonnell Ranges. The surrounding region is known as Central Australia, or the Red Centre, an arid environment consisting of several different deserts. In Alice Springs temperatures can vary dramatically, with an average maximum temperature in summer of 35.6 °C (96.1 °F) and an average minimum temperature in winter of 5.1 °C (41.2 °F). Alice Springs has faced many problems in recent years, largely stemming from an increase in crime and a strong racial divide that has existed for years in the town.

The Arrernte Aboriginal people have made their home in the Central Australian desert in and around the site of the future Alice Springs for thousands of years, with evidence suggesting Indigenous occupation of the region dating back at least 30,000 years. The Aboriginal name for Alice Springs is Mparntwe. Many Arrernte people also live in communities outside of Alice Springs and on outstations.

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Wikipedia