Giralang, Australian Capital Territory
Encyclopedia
Giralangis a suburb of Canberra
, Australia
in the district of Belconnen
. The suburb is named after the word in the language of the Wiradhuri Aboriginal tribe of the Central West of New South Wales
, meaning star. The suburb name was gazetted on 15 January 1974. Streets in Giralang are named after Aboriginal words for stars, astronomers and constellations seen from the southern hemisphere.
In the suburb is the Giralang District Playing fields and adjacent Giralang Primary School. The suburb is bordered by Baldwin Drive, William Slim Drive and the Barton Highway
.
Giralang Primary School was under threat to close in 2006. After completion of the school closure process it was decided that Giralang Primary School will remain open.
age Pittman Formation greywacke
and turbidite
s are found in the far east and northwest including a band of Acton Shale
occurring right on the eastern border of the suburb.
Next in the center, south and north west of Giralang there are late Silurian
sedimentary rocks. From the east to west there are,
mudstone
, State Circle Shale, and then mica
ceous Black Mountain Sandstone that contains lenses of shale.
In the south west of Giralang is calcareous shale from the Canberra Formation.
A long fault heading north west roughly parallel to Ginninderra Creek is marked on the surface by an iron oxide reef.
In the south of Giralang this fault separates the Canberra formation from State Circle Shale uplifted on the east side.
Canberra
Canberra is the capital city of Australia. With a population of over 345,000, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The city is located at the northern end of the Australian Capital Territory , south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Melbourne...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
in the district of Belconnen
Belconnen
Belconnen is a district of Canberra, the capital city of Australia, comprising 25 suburbs with 29,900 dwellings housing 82,247 people of the 311,518 people in the Australian Capital Territory ....
. The suburb is named after the word in the language of the Wiradhuri Aboriginal tribe of the Central West of New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
, meaning star. The suburb name was gazetted on 15 January 1974. Streets in Giralang are named after Aboriginal words for stars, astronomers and constellations seen from the southern hemisphere.
In the suburb is the Giralang District Playing fields and adjacent Giralang Primary School. The suburb is bordered by Baldwin Drive, William Slim Drive and the Barton Highway
Barton Highway
The Barton Highway is a short highway in New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory, Australia.The Barton Highway connects Canberra to the Hume Highway at Yass, and it is part of the route from Melbourne to Canberra....
.
Giralang Primary School was under threat to close in 2006. After completion of the school closure process it was decided that Giralang Primary School will remain open.
Geology
OrdovicianOrdovician
The Ordovician is a geologic period and system, the second of six of the Paleozoic Era, and covers the time between 488.3±1.7 to 443.7±1.5 million years ago . It follows the Cambrian Period and is followed by the Silurian Period...
age Pittman Formation greywacke
Greywacke
Greywacke or Graywacke is a variety of sandstone generally characterized by its hardness, dark color, and poorly sorted angular grains of quartz, feldspar, and small rock fragments or lithic fragments set in a compact, clay-fine matrix. It is a texturally immature sedimentary rock generally found...
and turbidite
Turbidite
Turbidite geological formations have their origins in turbidity current deposits, which are deposits from a form of underwater avalanche that are responsible for distributing vast amounts of clastic sediment into the deep ocean.-The ideal turbidite sequence:...
s are found in the far east and northwest including a band of Acton Shale
Shale
Shale is a fine-grained, clastic sedimentary rock composed of mud that is a mix of flakes of clay minerals and tiny fragments of other minerals, especially quartz and calcite. The ratio of clay to other minerals is variable. Shale is characterized by breaks along thin laminae or parallel layering...
occurring right on the eastern border of the suburb.
Next in the center, south and north west of Giralang there are late Silurian
Silurian
The Silurian is a geologic period and system that extends from the end of the Ordovician Period, about 443.7 ± 1.5 Mya , to the beginning of the Devonian Period, about 416.0 ± 2.8 Mya . As with other geologic periods, the rock beds that define the period's start and end are well identified, but the...
sedimentary rocks. From the east to west there are,
mudstone
Mudstone
Mudstone is a fine grained sedimentary rock whose original constituents were clays or muds. Grain size is up to 0.0625 mm with individual grains too small to be distinguished without a microscope. With increased pressure over time the platey clay minerals may become aligned, with the...
, State Circle Shale, and then mica
Mica
The mica group of sheet silicate minerals includes several closely related materials having highly perfect basal cleavage. All are monoclinic, with a tendency towards pseudohexagonal crystals, and are similar in chemical composition...
ceous Black Mountain Sandstone that contains lenses of shale.
In the south west of Giralang is calcareous shale from the Canberra Formation.
A long fault heading north west roughly parallel to Ginninderra Creek is marked on the surface by an iron oxide reef.
In the south of Giralang this fault separates the Canberra formation from State Circle Shale uplifted on the east side.