The physical landscapeThe physical landscape

The physical landscape

The major features of the physical landscape within the park are the iconic rock formations of Uluṟu and Kata Tjuṯa, whose exceptional natural beauty and ongoing geological processes are recognised in the park’s World Heritage inscription. Aṉangu explanations of the formation of Uluṟu and Kata Tjuṯa derive from Tjukurpa (see Tjukurpa and a living cultural landscape in Part A). According to Western science, they were formed when earth movements caused the folding and upthrust of rock, which were later affected by weathering and erosion, resulting in the monoliths we see today.

Uluṟu is a red sedimentary rock formation comprised of arkose sandstone. It is approximately 9.4 kilometres in circumference and rises to a height of over 340 metres above the surrounding plain. During rain periods, the water runoff from Uluṟu cascades down fissures forming waterfalls, some up to 100 meters high. Caves at the base of Uluṟu formed by an arid zone process known as cavernous weathering. Kata Tjuṯa comprises 36 rock domes of varying sizes made from a sedimentary, conglomerate rock. The domes cover an area of 35 square kilometres, with the highest point over 500 metres above ground level. Surrounding the exposed rock features, the landscape of the park is dominated by sand dunes, sandplains and alluvium deposited by water flows, particularly from Uluṟu and Kata Tjuṯa.

Aṉangu have a broad system of categorising habitats in the park, according to characteristics such as landform, soil, vegetation, fire state, and animal inhabitants. The categories are:

• tali—sand dunes or sand dune systems and accompanying vegetation
• pila—flat to undulating sandy plains between dunes, generally dominated by spinifex species and occasionally trees and shrubs; pila is the most common habitat in the park
• puṯi—flat areas of usually heavier soils characterised by the presence of woodlands, scrubby bush, or dense stands of mulga; puṯi occurs in a ring around Uluṟu and Kata Tjuṯa before the sand dunes begin and where the ground is hard and sometimes stony
• puḻi—the rocky areas, gorges and stony slopes of Uluṟu and Kata Tjuṯa; only plants that can live in shallow, barren soils are found here