AndreaBozzo/ceres-open-data-index huggingface dataset:
The "Geera Clay equivalent": a regressive marine unit in the Renmark Group that sheds new light on the age of the Mologa weathering surface in the Murray Basin

Sandy clays deposited during the waning phase of Oligocene-Middle Miocene transgression of the Murray Basin conformablyoverlie the shallow to marginal marine Geera Clay and grade laterally into fluvio-Iacustrine sediments of the Middle and Upper Renmark Group. These sandy clays (informally named "Geera Clay equivalent") and the Geera Clay preserve marine dinoflagellates that became extinct by middle to late Middle Miocene time.  If the subsequent regression was due to a global drop in relative sealevel, then we propose that the unconformity developed across the Geera Clay and that the lateral equivalents during the Late Miocene (Mologa weathering surface) correlates with either the 13.8 Ma or (preferred) 10.5 Ma sequence boundary of Haq and others (1987).  Three pollen species of potential biostratigraphic value in the Murray Basin are illustrated and discussed. One new species is described: Tetrapollis campbellbrownii.

Tags: Earth Sciences, GA Publication, Journal, NSW, Published_External, SA, VIC
Organization: Geoscience Australia Data
The Lander Trough, southern Wiso Basin, Northern Territory

The Lander Trough forms the east-southeast trending, southern and deeper part of the Wiso Basin, and is flanked on the north by an extensive less deformed area of the Basin. Recent geological mapping, shallow stratigraphic drilling, and a reassessment of geophysical data in the southeastern part of the trough provide additional information on the nature and structure of the rocks it contains. Beneath the Cainozoic superficial material, three sequences of rocks are distinguished. The upper sequence consists of ?Late Palaeozoic Lake Surprise Sandstone; the middle of Cambrian or Ordovician sediments and volcanics; and the lower of Proterozoic rocks. The ?Late Palaeozoic sequence is flat-lying and thin (100-250 m), whereas the Early Palaeozoic sequence forms a wedge which thins to the north and thickens southwards to about 800 m In the deepest part of the trough. The Proterozoic sequence forms the basement to these Palaeozoic sediments of the Wiso Basin. The trough is indicated to be a downwarp in the crust, about 300 km long and 100 km wide, bounded by an overthrust fault system against the Arunta Block on the south. The fault system is considered to be contemporaneous with the post-Devonian Alice Springs Orogeny which affected the NgaIia and Amadeus Basins farther to the south. The presence of a thick (up to 800 m), partly marine sequence of Cambrian and Ordovician sediments upgrades the petroleum potential of the Lander Trough area, as gas has been found in such sediments in the depositionally and structurally similar Amadeus Basin to the south, and the Toko Syncline of the Georgina Basin to the southeast.

Tags: Earth Sciences, GA Publication, Journal, NT, Published_External
Organization: Geoscience Australia Data
Tectonic and Stratigraphic History of the Perth Basin

The tectono-stratigraphic development of the southwestern corner of Australia is illustrated in a plate reconstructed setting with a series of palaeogeographic maps based on a newly compiled structural elements map and chronostratigraphic section for the Perth Basin.

The area is complicated by at least two periods of extensional faulting, one in the Late Carboniferous Early Permian and a second in the Late Jurassic  Early Cretaceous, separated by sag basin development in the Late Permian to Middle Jurassic. Depositional centres migrated through time and appear to have suffered oblique extension, with the most structuring associated with the Late Jurassic  Early Cretaceous rifting episode. In addition, extensive volcanism leading up to breakup at about 132.5 Ma in the Valanginian has obscured the continent-ocean transition. The resulting basin structure comprises separate NS to NNW/SSE oriented rifted sub-basins, which were rotated and shifted westwards through time. Barremian/Albian oceanic crust then grew in a northwesterly direction in the Perth Abyssal Plain and was followed after ~100 Ma by fast spreading in a NNW direction in the NE Indian Ocean. Strata deposited during the Barremian to Recent sag phase of the Perth Basin are relatively thin and unstructured.

Known or inferred source rocks in this complex basin include gas and minor oil-prone coals in the Lower Permian (Irwin River Formation), Upper Permian (Sue Group), Lower Jurassic (Cattamarra Coal Measures) and Upper Jurassic (Yarragadee Formation). Marine shales, which developed anoxia at flooding surfaces in the Lower Permian (Carynginia Formation, Holmwood Shale) and basal Triassic (Kockatea Shale) became oil-prone source rocks. In addition, there is the possibility of a further speculative oil-prone source in the Bajocian (Cadda Formation) in deep water areas.

Tags: AU-WA, Earth Sciences, GA Publication, Published_External, Record, palaeogeography, plate tectonics, stratigraphy, structural geology
Organization: Geoscience Australia Data
Macrobenthic Activity and its Effects on Biogeochemical Reactions and Fluxes

Ocean margins are the transitional zones between the oceans and continents. They represent dynamic systems in which numerous processes shape the environment and result in impacting the utilization and hazard potentials for humans. These processes are influenced by a variety of steering mechanisms, from mountain building and climate on the land to tectonics and sea-level fluctuations in ocean margins. This book examines various aspects of regulation for the long-term development of ocean margins, of the impact of fluids and of the dynamics of benthic life at and below the seafloor in ocean margin systems.

Tags: Earth Sciences, External Publication, Monograph, Published_External, geochemistry, marine
Organization: Geoscience Australia Data
The relationship between sediment and water quality and riverine sediment loads in the wave-dominated estuaries of southwest Western Australia

We examine surface sediment and water column total nutrient and chlorophyll a concentrations for 12 estuaries with average water depths &lt;4 m, and calculated sediment loads ranging from 0.2 to 10.8 kg m-2 year-1. Sediment total nitrogen, phosphorus and organic carbon concentrations vary inversely with sediment loads due to: (i) the influx of more mineral-rich sediment into the estuaries; and (ii) increasing sediment sulfidation. Sediment total organic carbon (TOC) : total sulfur (TS) and TS : Fe(II) ratios correlated to sediment loads because enhanced sedimentation increases burial, hence the importance of sulfate reduction in organic matter degradation. Curvilinear relationships were found between a weathering index and organic matter 13C in sediment, and sediment load. The rising phase of the curve (increasing weathering, lighter isotopic values) at low to intermediate loads relates to soil erosion, whereas regolith or bedrock erosion probably explains the declining phase of the curve (decreasing weathering, heavier isotopic values) at higher sediment loads. The pattern of change for water column total nutrients (nitrogen and phosphorus) with sediment loads is similar to that of the weathering index. Most water quality problems occur in association with soil erosion, and at sediment loads that are intermediate for the estuaries studied. Limited evidence is presented that flushing can moderate the impact of sediment loads upon the estuaries.

Tags: AU-WA, Earth Sciences, External Publication, Published_External, Scientific Journal Paper, coasts, erosion, geochemistry, marine, water resources
Organization: Geoscience Australia Data
Beagle Marine Park bathymetry survey 2018 (GA0364)

This resource includes bathymetry data for Beagle Marine Park (Bass Strait) collected by Geoscience Australia (GA) and the Institute for Marine &amp; Antarctic Studies (University of Tasmania; UTAS) during the period 17 - 26 June 2018 on the TV Bluefin. The survey was undertaken as a collaborative project funded through the National Environmental Science Program Marine Biodiversity Hub, with co-investment by GA and UTAS. The purpose of the project was to build baseline information for benthic habitats in the Beagle Marine Park that will support ongoing environmental monitoring within the South-east Marine Park Network as part of the 10-year management plan (2013-2023). Data acquisition for the project was completed during three separate voyages: Phase 1 - Seabed mapping by multibeam sonar; Phase 2 - Seabed imagery acquisition by Autonomous Underwater Vehicle, and sediment sampling; Phase 3 - Survey of demersal fish communities using Baited Remote Underwater Video (BRUVs). This dataset from Phase 1 comprises 11 bathymetry grids derived from multibeam sonar data gridded at 1 m spatial resolution, covering a combined area of 366 km2. A detailed report on the survey is provided in: Barrett, N., Monk, J., Nichol, S.L., Falster, G., Carroll, A., Siwabessy, J., Deane, A., Picard, K., Dando, N., Hulls, J., Evans, H. 2019, Beagle Marine Park Post Survey Report: South-east Marine Park Network. Report to the National Environmental Science Program, Marine Biodiversity Hub.

This dataset is not to be used for navigational purposes.
This dataset is published with the permission of the CEO, Geoscience Australia.

Tags: AusSeabed, EARTH SCIENCES, HVC_144641, Published_External, bathymetry
Organization: Geoscience Australia Data
Illuminating the Biodiversity of the Cape Range and Cloates Canyons (FK200308/GA4859)

This resource includes bathymetry data acquired during the Submarine Cape Range Canyons bathymetry survey using Kongsberg EM302 and EM710 multibeam sonar systems. The Seamounts, Canyons and Reefs of the Coral Sea bathymetry survey was led by Dr. Rachel Przeslawski (Geoscience Australia) with a team of scientists from Geoscience Australia, Curtin University, Western Australian Museum and Scripps Institution of Oceanography aboard the Schmidt Ocean Institute (SOI) RV Falkor from the 8th of March to the 8th of April 2020. 

The primary objective of this survey was to map unexplored submarine canyons in the Gascoyne Marine Park. Submarine canyons are crucial habitats for a variety of biota and understanding their geometry, depth and species diversity is underpinned by high resolution bathymetry data. The bathymetry data collected in this survey can assist with scientific research, marine park management and understanding Australia’s marine estate.

This dataset contains a 64m and a 16m, for water depths shallower than 2560m resolution 32-bit geotiff of the Cape Range and Cloates Canyons area produced from the processed EM302 and EM710 bathymetry data combined.

This dataset is not to be used for navigational purposes.
This dataset is published with the permission of the CEO, Geoscience Australia.

Tags: AusSeabed, Bathymetry, Biodiversity, EARTH SCIENCES, HVC_144641, Multibeam Echo Sounder, Published_External, Schmidt Ocean Institute, Seabed
Organization: Geoscience Australia Data
Oldest Cretaceous sequence, Giralia Anticline, Carnarvon Basin, Western Australia: late Hauterivian-Barremian

Outcrop of the oldest Cretaceous sequence in the Giralia Anticline and the Giralia No. 1 well, penetrating the same sequence, are described and biostratigraphically assessed in detail.  The Cretaceous rocks lie on an erosion surface cut into Permian strata. A 10 m thick basal sand unit, the Birdrong Sandstone, is overlain by 56 m of carbonaceous siltstone-mudstone (Muderong Shale). The Birdrong Sandstone in the anticline belongs to the Muderongia australis Zone of late Hauterivian-Barremian age, as does the lower part of the Muderong Shale. The age of the upper Muderong Shale is uncertain, as is the age of a 10 m thick sandstone unit (probable Windalia Sand Member) which separates the Muderong Shale from the late Aptian Windalia Radiolarite. Abundant fossil conifer wood, much of it with Teredolites borings, is present in outcrop referred to the upper part of the Birdrong Sandstone. Scattered ichthyosauran bones, probable plesiosauran remains, and rare ammonites also are present at this level. A growth-ring analysis of the wood suggests that a seasonal humid meso thermal climate prevailed in the region. Changes in sediment composition, palynomorph assemblages, and foraminiferal biofacies reflect retrogradation of marine facies during deposition of the Birdrong Sandstone and lowermost Muderong Shale, followed by aggradation through most of the Muderong Shale with maximum water depths less than 50 m.  Within the sequence, the Birdrong Sandstone and the lowermost Muderong Shale represent a transgressive systems tract, whereas most of the Muderong Shale belongs to a highstand systems tract. The sequence reflects a transgressive pulse that was part of the progressive submergence of vast areas of the Australian continent during the Early Cretaceous. This late Hauterivian-Barremian transgressive pulse is recognised in widely separated basins and may represent a synchronous continent-wide sea-level rise.

Tags: Earth Sciences, GA Publication, Journal, Published_External, WA
Organization: Geoscience Australia Data
Crustal Transects of the Great Australian Bight : A Cruise Proposal in Support of the Ocean Drilling Program and the Law of the Sea

The southern margin of Australia has long been considered an example of a classic passive rifted continental margin. In recent times, it has been cited as an example of a 'lower plate' margin in the terminology describing detachment models of passive margin formation.However, despite extensive study by both industry and government since the early 1970s, some fundamental aspects of the structure and geological history of the margin remain speculative.

It is proposed here to use the AGS0 research vessel Rig Seismic to acquire 4087 km of deep-seismic data (16 s record length) in the central Great Australian Bight (GAB) and across the continental margin south of Western Australia. The survey has three principal objectives:
1. To enhance understanding of the tectonic evolution / event history of the southern margin in support of DPIE' s Acreage Release Program and thus to encourage successfulpetroleum exploration.
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To provide the necessary framework data in support of a proposal submitted to the Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) for drilling in the GAB; and 
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To provide data in the GAB that support Australia's claim to a Legal Continental Shelf beyond the 200 n.m. Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) as defmed under the 1982 UNConvention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
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</ol>

The specific scientific aims of the work include:
- Definition of the deep crustal structure of the region and the mode of margin formationacross a number of key transects. In particular, to image the key detachment surfaces which are believed to have controlled the extensional processes. Interpretation of the deepstructures will be enhanced by seismic refraction data recorded by Lamont-Doherty Geological Observatory in 1976 (Talwani et al., 1979).
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<li>

Determination of the location and structural setting of the continent-ocean boundary. In places, stratified tilt-blocks that lie oceanwards of the magnetically determined COBsuggest that either the COB identification is incorrect, old oceanic crust has been re-rifted, or the seismic data are imaging an amalgam of oceanic crust and continental slivers.
</li>
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Determination of the structure and origin of the enigmatic Diamantina Zone, west of the GAB, and its relationship, if any, to the change in seafloor spreading rate at 44 Ma. Is the crust to the north oceanic, or is it highly extended continental?
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</ul>

Tags: Earth Sciences, GA Publication, Published_External, Record, marine, marine survey, structural geology
Organization: Geoscience Australia Data
Geomorphology and Habitats of the Carnarvon Shelf

Flythrough movie showing the bathymetry of Carnarvon shelf, highlighting benthic habitats at Point Cloates. The bathymetric image is derived from multibeam sonar collected in 2008 using a 300 kHz Simrad EM3002 system on RV Solander. Key features on the shelf include a prominent ridge at 60 m water depth and a complex area of smaller ridges and mounds across the inner shelf. The ridges and mounds provide hard substrate for diverse coral and sponge communities. The Carnarvon shelf is a study site for the Marine Biodiversity Research Hub, funded through the Commonwealth Environment Research Facilities (CERF) programme. Survey work was carried out as a collaboration between Geoscience Australia and the Australian Institute of Marine Science. Further information is provided in GA Record 2009/02.

Tags: 3D model, AU-WA, CERF, Earth Sciences, Flythrough, Multimedia, Published_External, marine
Organization: Geoscience Australia Data
Ripple cross-laminated sediments on the East Antarctic Shelf: evidence for episodic bottom water production during the Holocene?

Biosiliceous sediments sampled from a submarine valley system on the continental shelf of East Antarctica contain intervals of ripple cross-lamination interspersed with massively bedded units. Based on radiocarbon dates from one core collected on the Mac.Robertson Shelf, the most intensely cross-laminated sediments were deposited between 6 000 and 3 500 years before the present, with isolated cross-laminae deposited at other times in the Holocene.

Tags: AQ, Earth Sciences, External Publication, Published_External, Scientific Journal Paper, geology, marine
Organization: Geoscience Australia Data
Seabed gravel, mud and sand content in the Petrel sub-basin in the Australian continental EEZ 2012

This dataset provides the spatially continuous data of seabed gravel (sediment fraction &gt;2000 Âµm), mud  (sediment fraction &lt; 63 Âµm) and sand content (sediment fraction 63-2000 Âµm) expressed as a weight percentage ranging from 0 to 100%, presented in 0.0025 decimal degree (dd) resolution raster grids format and ascii text file. The dataset covers the Petrel sub-basin in the Australian continental EEZ. This dataset supersedes previous predictions of sediment gravel, mud and sand content for the basin with demonstrated improvements in accuracy.  Accuracy of predictions varies based on density of underlying data and level of seabed complexity. Artefacts occur in this dataset as a result of insufficient samples in relevant regions. This dataset is intended for use at the basin scale. The dataset may not be appropriate for use at smaller scales in areas where sample density is insufficient to detect local variation in sediment properties. To obtain the most accurate interpretation of sediment distribution in these areas, it is recommended that additional samples be collected and interpolations updated.

Tags: Environmental Science and Management, GIS, GIS Dataset, Published_External, Regional, environmental, marine, seabed, sedimentology
Organization: Geoscience Australia Data
Seabed morphology and geomorphology of Flinders Reefs within the Coral Sea Marine Park, north-eastern Australia, Version 1 WFS

This OGC Web Feature Service (WFS) contains geospatial seabed morphology and geomorphology information for Flinders Reefs within the Coral Sea Marine Park and are intended for use by marine park managers, regulators, the general public and other stakeholders. This web service uses the data product published in McNeil et al. (2023); eCat Record 147998.

Tags: Geomorphology, Geomorphology and Earth Surface Processes, Mapping, Morphology, Parks Australia, Published_External, Seabed, Spatial, WFS, web service
Organization: Geoscience Australia Data
Facies Evolution of Holocene Estuaries and Deltas: A Large-sample Statistical Study from Australia

Selected geomorphic features and sedimentary facies were mapped in 283 of Australia's wave- and tide-dominated estuaries and deltas to quantitatively evaluate established evolutionary facies models that depict the evolution of estuaries into deltas during stable sea level conditions. While diagnostic facies for wave- and tide-dominated estuaries and deltas approximate those specified by the models, statistical analyses of the data also reveal two additional insights regarding the evolution of estuaries to deltas. First, there is an offshore shift in the locus of sand accumulation between tide-dominated estuaries and deltas, associated with the onset of delta development. Second, the mean surface area of intertidal environments (i.e., intertidal flats, mangroves/melaleuca, saltmarsh/salt flat facies) is greater in wave-dominated deltas than in wave-dominated estuaries. Tidal penetration associated with the river establishing a more direct and permanent connection to the sea during late-stage development presents a natural impediment to continued formation of an alluvial plain and full development of the 'classic' wave-dominated delta morphology. A notional evolutionary pathway for wave-dominated estuaries is developed from the distribution of facies that predicts the rate and susceptibility of geomorphic and habitat changes. The 'classic' deltaic geomorphology may be unattainable for wave-dominated systems, except those with significant terrigenous sediment inputs. Our study is the first published example of geomorphic and sedimentary data assembled from a large number of wave- and tide-dominated estuaries and deltas across an entire continent.

Tags: AU-EEZ, Earth Sciences, External Publication, Published_External, Scientific Journal Paper, marine
Organization: Geoscience Australia Data
MODIS Derived Sea Surface Temperature dataset: Seasonal Means

The dataset measures the long-term seasonal means of the sea surface temperature (SST) of ocean surface waters. They are derived from MODIS (aqua) images using NASA's SeaDAS image processing software. The monthly SST images between July 2002 and December 2017 are used to calculate the means of the four austral seasons: winter (June, July, and August), spring (September, October and November), summer (December, January and February) and autumn (March, April and May). The extent of the dataset covers the entire Australian EEZ and surrounding waters (including the southern ocean). The unit of the dataset is Celsius degree.

This research is supported by the National Environmental Science Program (NESP) Marine Biodiversity Hub through Project D1.

Tags: Earth Sciences, MODIS, Marine Biodiversity Hub, National Environmental Science Program, Published_External, SST
Organization: Geoscience Australia Data
Permian pelecypods and gastropods from Western Australia

The present work has been undertaken as part of a long-term project of describing the Permian pelecypod and gastropod faunas of Western Australia and western Northern Territory and of assessing their stratigraphical significance. Two portions have already appeared (Dickins, 1956; 1957). In the first paper pelecypods from earlier collections obtained from various parts of the sequence in the Carnarvon Basin were described; and in the second the earliest Permian (Sakmarian) pelecypod and gastropod fauna from the Lyons Group and the Carrandibby Formation. Other current work in palaeontology is being undertaken by B. E. Balme (pollen and microplankton), B. F. Glenister (ammonoids), G. M. Philip (crinoids and blastoids), June R. P. Ross (bryozoans), and G. A. Thomas (brachiopods). For faunal studies, the Permian rocks of the western part of Australia have the merit that the Lower Permian* has a complex of changing marine faunas which allow a detailed study of their phylogeny and range. The value of this sequence is enhanced by the presence of marine Upper Permian in the Fitzroy and Bonaparte Gulf Basins. It represents as complete a marine Permian sequence as any in Australia, if not the most complete, and is rivalled only by that of the Hunter Valley of New South Wales. The collections used have been mainly from the Geology Department of the University of Western Australia and from the Museum of the Geological Branch of the Bureau of Mineral Resources, Geology and Geophysics, Canberra. The Bureau of Mineral Resources collections include material from West Australian Petroleum Pty Limited.

Tags: AU-WA, Bulletin, Earth Sciences, GA Publication, Published_External, palaeontology
Organization: Geoscience Australia Data