**Early European Land Exploration**:
– Crossing the Blue Mountains by Blaxland, Paterson, and Evans.
– Exploration of the inland by Oxley, Evans, and Hume.
– Disproving the inland sea theory by Sturt, Hume, and Hovell.
– Impact of explorations on opening up new territories and changing settlement patterns.
– Contributions of Sturt, Mitchell, Strzelecki, and the Henty family to early exploration.
**Exploration Expansion and Impact**:
– Cox’s road across the Blue Mountains and Macquarie’s establishment of Bathurst.
– Discovery of fertile land and water sources influencing settlement patterns.
– Disproving the inland sea theory and changing perceptions of Australia’s geography.
– Establishment of new towns and territories due to exploration efforts.
– Contributions of various expeditions and explorers to mapping and discovery.
**Outback Exploration and 20th-century Explorers**:
– Role of Afghan cameleers in opening up the outback.
– Tragic Burke and Wills expedition and other notable explorers like John Forrest.
– Significant expeditions like the Australian Overland Telegraph Line.
– Contributions of 20th-century explorers like Ted Colson, Donald George Mackay, Cecil Madigan, and Len Beadell.
– Use of aerial photography for mapping and exploration, including by the Royal Australian Air Force.
**21st-century Mapping and Exploration**:
– Google Street View mapping of Australian streetscapes.
– Extensive use of aerial photography for mapping.
– Documentation of historical expeditions and explorers.
– Aerial photography revolutionizing mapping efforts in the 20th century.
– Resumption of mapping efforts by Google cars after a brief hiatus.
**Legacy and Contributions to Australian Exploration**:
– Preservation of the legacy of early explorers like Sturt, Mitchell, and Strzelecki in place names.
– The groundwork laid by the Hume and Hovell expedition for future explorations.
– Notable contributions of explorers like Mackay, Madigan, and Beadell.
– The Royal Australian Air Force’s aerial photography of Australian land features.
– The ongoing legacy of exploration and mapping efforts in Australia.
European land exploration of Australia deals with the opening up of the interior of Australia to European settlement which occurred gradually throughout the colonial period, 1788–1900. A number of these explorers are very well known, such as Burke and Wills who are well known for their failed attempt to cross the interior of Australia, as well as Hamilton Hume and Charles Sturt.