On the surface, the place looks pretty deserted.
But thats only half the town.
Within a few years hundreds of prospectors were tearing up the turf.
But people who flocked here to mine the previous stones soon discovered life above ground was pretty tough.
In the summer, the temperature often exceeds 40 degrees Celsius.
One of the most famous signs of Coober Pedy.
The early Coober Pedy houses were built in the holes that had already been dug in search for opal.
The entrance is usually at street level, and the rooms extend towards the back into the hill.
All the rooms are ventilated with a vertical shaft, keeping the temperature regulated.
Today Coober Pedy is the leading supplier of gem-qualityopal, producing the bulk of the world’s white opal.
The town has over 70 opal fields and is the largest opal mining area in the world.
