What is some information on Uluru?

Answer 1

• Uluru changes colour depending on the time of day, and whether or not it is raining.
• After the rain, tiny water invertebrates start breeding in the numerous water puddles formed on the top of the Rock. These invertebrates may lie dormant for many months in between rains.
• Uluru is the second largest monolith in Australia and in the world; correctly speaking, it is not a monolith but an inselberg.
• About seven-eighths of the rock lies underground. It stands 348m (1142ft) high at its highest point and is believed to extend another 2.5 km into the ground.
• Uluru was not discovered by Europeans until 1873. It was originally named Ayers Rock by explorer William Gosse.
• Uluru is about 5 kilometres in length, but this is difficult to measure as it is an irregular shape, not the oblong-shape it often appears from the ground. Its circumference is 9.4km.

Answer 2

• Uluru/Ayers Rock was discovered by accident. William Gosse, of the South Australian Survey Department, discovered the rock when the need to find water for his camels forced him to take a more southerly course than he had originally planned.
• Uluru is not the largest monolith in the world, as is commonly thought. it is the second largest. The largest monolith is Mt Augustus, also in Australia, and not nearly as remarkable in appearance as the bald dome of Uluru.
• The only creatures that live on Uluru are tiny crustaceans that lay their eggs in the crevices on the rock's surface. These are fairy or brine shrimp, crab shrimp and tadpole shrimp. During rain, the crevices atop the rock fill with water, and the eggs, which are able to tolerate long periods without water, hatch.

Answer 3

Ayers Rock, now known by its indigenous name of Uluru, is in the southern part of Australia's Northern Territory, about 75 km from the South Australian border. It lies about 470km southwest of Alice Springs, by road, and is within the Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park.

It is commonly thought to be the largest monolith in the world. However, Uluru is only the world's second-largest free-standing single, large rock. Its circumference is just over 9km, and it rises 349 metres above the surrounding plain. Only one-seventh of the rock is visible above the ground. The rest lies beneath the ground. It is located in Kata Tjuta National Park 450 km southwest of Alice Springs. (The largest rock in the whole world is Mt Augustus in Western Australia, located inland, east of Carnarvon, and about 850km north of Perth. It is more than twice the size of Ayers Rock. It rises 717 metres above the stony desert, and extends for a length of 8km - almost the entire circumference of Uluru.)

Explorer William Gosse, of the South Australian Survey Department, is believed to have been the first European explorer to see Ayers Rock. Gosse discovered the rock (now known by its native name of Uluru) by accident during an expedition through Australia's interior. The need to find water for his camels forced him to take a more southerly course than he had originally planned. On 18 July 1873 he sighted Ayers Rock, recording that, "This rock is certainly the most wonderful natural feature I have ever seen". It was named Ayers Rock after Sir Henry Ayers, Premier of South Australia at the time.

Uluru is made of a special type of sandstone which includes minerals such as feldspar, which is why it can seem to change colour with the time of day and the weather conditions. The feldspar reflects light in a unique way, making the rock appear red, orange, grey or yellow, depending on the circumstances.

Answer 4

• Uluru is considered the heart of Australia and the outback, both physically, and culturally in many ways.
• Although only the second largest monolith in the country and the world, it's stark contrast to the flat plain surrounding it is spectacular.
• It changes colour with the weather and the time of day.

Answer 5

Uluru, or Ayers Rock is a large sandstone monolith, and the world's second largest but best known monolith. It is 9 km in circumference and rises 348 metres above the desert. Uluru is in central Australia, about 335 km south west of the small inland city of Alice Springs, in the southern region of Australia's Northern Territory.

The Aborigines have known about Uluru for thousands of years. The site is highly sacred to them, and featus strongly in their Dreamtime (Creation) stories. Uluru is a place where, thendigenous people believe, the bodies of their ancestors hardened into rock. It was there at the Alcheringa (the Dawn of Time) and will be there until the very end. It holds peace and power. For the central Australian Aborigines, the Dreamtime stories come out of Uluru. They kindly ask that you don't climb the rock because you must walk over the dreamtime exit path.

Explorer William Gosse, of the South Australian Survey Department, is believed to have been the first European explorer to see Uluru, or Ayers Rock As it was then known. Gosse discovered the landform by accident during an expedition through Australia's interior. The need to find water for his camels forced him to take a more southerly course than he had originally planned. On 18 July 1873 he sighted Ayers Rock, recording that, "This rock is certainly the most wonderful natural feature I have ever seen". Gosse named the featur Ayers Rock after Sir Henry Ayers, Premier of South Australia at the time.

Uluru is about 3.6 kilometres in length, but this is difficult to measure as it is an irregular shape, not the oblong-shape it often appears from the ground. Its circumference is 9.4km. Uluru stands 348m (1142ft) high at its highest point. It is estimated that only one eighth of the rock is visible - the remainder lies underground, to a depth of about 2.5 km.

Answer 6

Uluru is a large sandstone rock formation in the Northern Territory of Australia, sacred to the indigenous Anangu people. It is known for its color-changing appearance at different times of the day, from red to purple to gray. Uluru is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a popular tourist destination.