Live blog
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After a breathless 27 hours, Barack Obama has left Australia so this is where we end our live blog coverage. Stay tuned to ABC radio and television for all the reaction to his historic visit. If you missed his address to Federal Parliament earlier today, it will be replayed in full on ABC News 24 at 10:00pm (AEDT).
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Barack Obama says his final farewells to Julia Gillard and other dignitaries before boarding Air Force One. He is heading to Bali for a meeting with Indonesian president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and the East Asia Summit.
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The speeches are done and the president and Prime Minister are mingling with the thousands of troops and guests. Swap the uniforms, accents and the Aussie flags and this could be a pep rally in any US presidential campaign.
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US president Barack Obama shakes hands with Australian troops while at RAAF Base Darwin on November 17, 2011. Read the story (Reuters: Larry Downing)
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Barack Obama and Julia Gillard get a rousing reception as they enter the hangar at RAAF Base Darwin. The Army band cranks out a big band welcome. The president has dropped the coat and tie for the occasion. He even gives a shout-out with an "Aussie, Aussie, Aussie", greeted in turn with a rowdy "Oi, Oi, Oi".
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US president Barack Obama addresses Australian troops and US Marines at RAAF Base Darwin on November 17, 2011. Read the story (AFP: Jim Watson)
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Jessica Mauboy warms the crowd of 2,000 or more troops and dignitaries ahead of the arrival of Barack Obama at RAAF Winnellie in Darwin. (credit: @1057darwin)
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Barack Obama and Julia Gillard pay their respects at the memorial for USS Peary, an American ship sunk during the Japanese bombing of Darwin. The leaders then met Australian and Japanese veterans and their family members. One Japanese woman wiped away tears as she spoke with Mr Obama, who then gave her a hug.
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Here are the essential details of the Australian swag Mr Obama has received for himself and his family...
@latikambourke: Prime Minister Julia Gillard gave US President Barack Obama an Akubra Cattleman hat... (and) past 3 Miles Franklin winners - That Deadman Dance, Truth and Breath. Other gifts include framed photo from 1695 of ambassadors at the treaty signing, framed stamp.
@KarenMMiddleton: Aussie gifts for DOPOTUS (daughters of): UGG boots, toy koala & kangaroo, a blu-ray DVD of 'Red Dog' & 2 packs of Tim Tams.
And there are no prizes for guessing whether it was Julie Bishop's or Tony Abbott's idea to give the president a West Coast guernsey...
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In a now-familiar scene, PM Julia Gillard greeted President Obama on the tarmac in Darwin, before his motorcade started to wind its way through the city.
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Air Force One has landed in Darwin, with President Obama set to visit the USS Peary Memorial and speak to Australian troops and US Marines at the Royal Australian Air Force Base Darwin.
Mr Obama is the first sitting US president to visit Darwin.
Use the stream above to tune in to ABC News 24 for live coverage.
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Plenty is being said about the speeches to Parliament today, but if you'd like to do your own analysis we have uploaded the president's full speech to the ABC News website (it is also available on iView).
Also, here are the transcripts to Julia Gillard's and Tony Abbott's speeches.
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As the screenshot of the NY Times homepage below suggests, the US media is taking a greater interest in President Obama's trip Down Under after yesterday's troop deployment announcement and subsequent reaction from China.
Read reports from the New York Times and the Washington Post.
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The president is due to touch down in Darwin within the next 15 minutes, and going by these photos on Twitter, Obama fever has well and truly taken hold.
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Now that the president is up in the air, we're going off the air for a bit ... will be back when Air Force One touches down in the Top End!
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Mr Obama is not too far behind the PM; here's a nice behind the scenes pic of the president and Ambassador Bleich in the Beast, on the way to the airbase (credit: @USAembassyinOZ):
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Hot off the presses: vid of the president's address to Parliament:
UPDATE: You can now watch Mr Obama's full speech on iView.
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Julia Gillard, proud that her plane beat Air Force One to Canberra after the APEC summit in Hawaii, is determined to repeat the performance today. She's got the hop on the president by taking off for Darwin while he plants a tree at the US embassy.
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From the photo desk..
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US President Barack Obama addresses a special sitting of Federal Parliament in the House of Representatives, Canberra, on November 17, 2011. Read the story (Reuters: Jason Reed)
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Barack Obama got another rock star reception when he visited Canberra's Campbell High School this morning.
The prez was greeted by a throng of screaming students.
Mr Obama, accompanied by Prime Minister Julia Gillard, then sat down in the school library with a group of students, including some who are studying a journalism elective.
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More hugs in store for the president?
@KarenMMiddleton President Obama now headed to Campbell High, just down road from the War Memorial. As in DC, kids there abt to get a big surprise. #aubama
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We've just posted this video of Barack Obama's visit to the Australian War Memorial this morning.
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Speaker Harry Jenkins gets a big laugh when he thanks the president for inspiring MPs to behave themselves. He then finishes off with a bit of rhyming slang, wishing Mr Obama a good trip home to see the 'cheese and kisses' and 'billy lids' (that's the missus and kids).
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The Big O gets a standing O as he wraps up his speech to Parliament.
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Barack Obama vows budget cuts will not stop plans for a wider US military role in Asia, declaring America is "here to stay" as a Pacific power.
He says the US will seek continued cooperation with China, but promises to speak candidly about the differences between the two powers.
He also resolves to take firm action to prevent North Korea proliferating nuclear material to other states or terrorism groups.
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Barack Obama steps up to the plate. The president opens his speech by acknowledging the first Australians.
He also draws on the fair go nature of Australians and Americans to highlight the common bonds between the two nations.
"The bonds between us run deep. In each other's story we see so much of ourselves. Ancestors who crossed vast oceans-some by choice, some in chains.
Settlers who pushed west across sweeping plains. Dreamers who toiled with hearts and hands to lay railroads and build cities. Generations of immigrants who, with each new arrival, add a new thread to the brilliant tapestry of our nations.
And we are citizens who live by a common creed - no matter who you are or what you look like, everyone deserves a fair chance; everyone deserves a fair go."
Watch Mr Obama's speech live with the online stream at the top of the page.
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If you're not able to watch the live stream, you can follow the action in the chamber using our twitter list of press gallery journalists, including our own ABC tweeps:
@lyndalcurtis - Tony Abbott: It could be said what's good for america is likely to be what's good for the wider world. #obama #aubama
This service may include material from Agence France-Presse (AFP), APTN, Reuters, AAP, CNN and the BBC World Service which is copyright and cannot be reproduced.
AEDT = Australian Eastern Daylight Savings Time which is 11 hours ahead of UTC (Greenwich Mean Time)
