AndreaBozzo/ceres-open-data-index huggingface dataset:
AHO Reference Surfaces Darwin 0.5m 2023 (20230012R)

The Darwin Reference Surfaces bathymetry survey was acquired for the Australian Hydrographic Office (AHO) on 8 Jul 2020. This surface was created from a contracted national reference survey in Darwin NT, collected for the purpose of calibrating multibeam echosounders.&nbsp;It was conducted for the Australian Hydrographic Office as part of the Hydroscheme Industry Partnership Program, acquired using R2Sonic 2026 and R2Sonic 2024, and processed using QPS Qimera. Separate grids in 0.5m resolution are provided for the two surveyed sites within this survey area in MSL, LAT and Ellipsoid vertical datum. The dataset was then exported as a 0.5m resolution, 32 bit floating point GeoTIFF grid of the survey area.

This dataset is not to be used for navigational purposes.

Tags: AusSeabed, EARTH SCIENCES, Earth Science | Oceans | Bathymetry/Seafloor Topography | Bathymetry, HVC_144641, Oceans, Published_External, bathymetric grids, bathymetry, marine, multibeam
Organization: Australian Ocean Data Network
Seabed Geomorphology Vocabularies

The International Seabed Geomorphology Mapping Working Group (ISGM-WG) developed a two-part seabed geomorphology classification scheme to facilitate standardised global seabed mapping efforts (Part 1 Morphology – Dove et al., 2020; Part 2 Geomorphology – Nanson et al., 2023). This product includes four linked vocabularies that were developed by the ISGM-WG to support the implementation of the scheme: 



Vocabulary 1. Seabed geomorphology - Method Terms. A vocabulary of general terms.



Vocabulary 2. Seabed geomorphology - Physiography. A vocabulary of physiographic terms used by Harris et al (2014) to map the macroscale shape and geology of the global seabed. 

Many of these terms have been retained in this PHYISOGRAPHY vocabulary; some terms have been shifted into either Part 1 Morphology or Part 2 Geomorphology vocabularies.



Vocabulary 3. Seabed geomorphology - Part 1 Morphology. A vocabulary of MORPHOLOGY FEATURE terms used to describe the shape of the seabed.



Vocabulary 4. Seabed geomorphology - Part 2 Geomorphology. A vocabulary of GEOMORPHIC UNIT terms that can be used to classify MORPHOLOGY FEATURES (Part 1) with their process interpretation. These UNIT terms are structured within a consistent framework design that is replicated between eleven SETTING and PROCESS categories.



These vocabularies were published by Geoscience Australia (GA) with the permission of ISGM-WG.



Dove, D., Nanson, R., Bjarnadóttir, L. R., Guinan, J., Gafeira, J., Post, A., Dolan, M. F. J., Stewart, H., Arosio, R., &amp; Scott, G. (2020). A two-part Seabed Geomorphology classification scheme (v.2); Part 1: Morphology Features Glossary. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.4071940 



Nanson, R., Arosio, R., Gafeira, J., McNeil, M., Dove, D., Bjarnadóttir, L., Dolan, M., Guinan, J., Post, A., Webb, J., &amp; Nichol, S. (2023). A two-part seabed geomorphology classification scheme; Part 2: Geomorphology classification framework and glossary (Version 1.0) (1.0). Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7804019&nbsp;&nbsp;





Tags: Geomorphology and earth surface processes, International Seabed Geomorphology Mapping Working Group, geomorphology, mapping, marine, seabed, standards, vocabulary
Organization: Australian Ocean Data Network
Seascapes for the Australian Margin and Adjacent Seabed

Seascapes describing a layer of ecologically meaningful biophysical variable that spatially represent potential seabed habitats have been derived for the Australian margin and adjacent seabed in a new analysis of existing biophysical data. A total of 13 seascapes were derived for the continental shelf and nine seascapes for regions beyond the continental shelf using the unsupervised ISOCLASS classification in the software package ERMapper. The ecological significance of the seascapes is assessed at the national, regional and local scale using existing biological data. Options and avenues for future development are also described.

Tags: AU-EEZ, Earth Sciences, GA Publication, Published_External, Record, continental margins, habitat, marine, marine zone, resource management
Organization: Australian Ocean Data Network
On the Use of Abiotic Surrogates to Describe Marine Benthic Biodiversity

A growing need to manage marine biodiversity at local, regional and global scales cannot be met by applying the limited existing biological data sets.  Abiotic surrogacy is increasingly valuable in filling the gaps in our knowledge of biodiversity hotspots, habitats needed by endangered or commercially valuable species and systems or processes important to the sustained provision of ecosystem services.

This review examines the utility of abiotic surrogates across spatial scales with particular regard to how abiotic variables are tied to processes which affect biodiversity and how easily those variables can be measured at scales relevant to resource management decisions.

Tags: AU-EEZ, Article, CERF, Earth Sciences, External Publication, Published_External, abiotic surrogates, marine, marine biodiversity
Organization: Australian Ocean Data Network
Sydney Harbour Sediment Sampling Results: Cooperative Research Centre for Coastal Zone, Estuary and Waterway - Management (Coastal CRC) - Coastal Water Habitat Mapping Project Milestone Report CG1-03 for the Coastal Geomorphology and Classification Subproject

This Milestone Report documents the results of the analysis of sediment samples collected during the survey of Sydney Harbour in August, 2003. The samples were collected by Geoscience Australia (GA) and Defence Science and Technology Organisation (DSTO). The sediment sampling programme was undertaken as part of the coastal geomorphology and classification sub-project of the Coastal CRC - Coastal Water Habitat Mapping Project. Samples were collected to assess the physical character of the sediments and map their
distribution for comparison with the geomorphology of the estuary floor using new and existing swath bathymetry data.

The analysis of the sediment samples will be used to groundtruth the areas surveyed with the Coastal CRC's Reson SeaBat 8125 multibeam sonar mapping system. Approximately one third of the targeted area was covered by the Seabat 8125 in the first survey, due to problems with the survey boat. The remaining area will be surveyed in the second Sydney Harbour survey, which is planned for September/October 2004. The sediment data will be used to assess how the physical properties of the benthos vary spatially and how they influence acoustic backscatter waveforms to classify benthic habitats. The study builds upon the existing knowledge of the geomorphology of the seabed in Sydney Harbour.

The report also discusses issues of interpretation and equipment selection for the toolkit as well as other completed work.

Tags: AU-NSW, Earth Sciences, External Publication, Published_External, Report, coasts, marine, sedimentology
Organization: Australian Ocean Data Network
Australian Marine Video and Imagery

Unlike land based environments, relatively little is known about what the seafloor around Australia looks like or has living on it. Geoscience Australia undertakes a range of marine surveys to improve the understanding and the management of Australia's marine environments. One component of the research involves the use a towed video system to directly observe coastal and deep sea environments and identify what habitats occur there and the organisms that live there. In some regions these surveys build on existing knowledge, but in many areas, particularly in deep offshore sites, these devices provide the first images of the seafloor.

This data package includes towed video and still images acquired on GA surveys from 2007 onwards. Between 2007 and 2013, this included 21 marine surveys (including Antarctic waters).

Using a winch on the ship, the video system is lowered to 1-2 metres above the seafloor and then towed along at 1-2 knots. This speed and altitude allows the video camera to record sharp images of the seafloor while covering distances of up to 1-2 km. Video footage is sent up a cable to the ship so it can be viewed in real time. The hours of footage collected on the seafloor provide a wealth of information about the geological features, habitats and life forms occurring throughout Australia's marine jurisdiction.

Tags: CERF, Data Package, Earth Sciences, HVC_144640, NERP, Published_External, marine, marine biodiversity, marine environmental baselines, marine survey
Organization: Australian Ocean Data Network
Benthic Biota of Northern Australia: 
SS2012t07 Post-survey Report

We undertook a biological data acquisition program as part of the transit of the R.V. Southern Surveyor between Darwin and Cairns 15-24 October 2012. The overarching aim of this program was to use an ROV and benthic sled to collect benthic marine information and specimens for biodiversity and biodiscovery research in areas previously mapped by Geoscience Australia during survey GA-276, including a bank (Area I) and terrace/hole feature within the proposed Wessel Islands CMR (Area II). This study focuses on sessile invertebrates such as sponges and octocorals due to their ecological importance as habitat providers and their chemical importance as sources of marine natural products and medicines.

In less than 24 hours of sampling effort, survey SS2012/t07 resulted in 261 voucher specimens which will be used for biodiversity and natural products research.  A total of 49 samples are to be lodged at the ABL, and samples with weights larger than 300 g will be sent to the NCI for screening of active compounds against cancer and HIV. Sponges were the most abundant group collected based on both biomass (~ 139 kg) and number of voucher specimens (93),  followed by cnidarians (30 kg, 73 vouchers), particularly hard corals (23 kg, 11 vouchers). As expected the top of the bank in Area I had a seemingly diverse and abundant sessile invertebrate community, with consistent patchy occurrence of sponges, octocorals, and hard corals. The terrace at in Area II supports moderate densities of sponges and octocorals, while the adjacent deep hole at ~ 100 m seems to be covered with muddy gravel and supports scattered mobile and sedentary invertebrates, of which crinoids dominate, as well as skates and numerous small demersal fish.

Tags: AU-NT, Earth Sciences, GA Publication, NERP, Published_External, Record, marine, marine survey
Organization: Australian Ocean Data Network
Ocean-floor volcanism in the Lachlan Fold Belt: new evidence from the Wyalong area, New South Wales

Geochemical data indicate that a recently recognised sequence of Ordovician volcanic rocks (the Narragudgil Volcanics) south of Wyalong (NSW) accumulated in an oceanic environment, either
in a mid-ocean ridge (MORB) or back-arc basin (BAB) setting. These volcanics occur in the same package of highly magnetic rocks with a complex magnetic signature as the Gidginbung Volcanics, host to the Temora gold deposit. They were previously considered to be part of the Gidginbung Volcanics, although Warren et al. (1995: Cootamundra 1:250 000 Sheet Explanatory Notes, Geological Survey of New South Wales) noted the presence of rocks in this area as having "...affinities
to the older Jindalee Group with which they may be correlatable.

Tags: AU-NSW, Earth Sciences, GA Publication, Published_External, Research Newslttr Paper, geology, marine
Organization: Australian Ocean Data Network
New insights into the Late Permian–Early Triassic depositional history in the southern Bonaparte Basin – Extended Abstract 2021 APPEA Conference

The upper Permian to Lower Triassic sedimentary succession in the southern Bonaparte Basin represents an extensive marginal marine depositional system that hosts several gas accumulations. Of these, the Blacktip gas field has been in production since 2009, while additional identified gas resources are under consideration for development. The sedimentary succession extends across the Permian–Triassic stratigraphic boundary, and shows a change in lithofacies changes from the carbonate dominated Dombey Formation to the siliciclastic dominated Tern and Penguin formations. The timing, duration, distribution and depositional environments of these formations in the Petrel Sub-basin and Londonderry High is the focus of this study.
The sedimentary succession extending from the Dombey to the Penguin formations is interpreted to represent marginal marine facies which accumulated during a long-lasting marine transgression that extended over previous coastal and alluvial plain sediments of the Cape Hay Formation. The overlying Mairmull Formation represents the transition fully to marine deposition in the Early Triassic. 
Regional scale well correlations and an assessment of available biostratigraphic data suggest marginal marine deposition systems were initiated outboard before the End Permian Extinction event, subsequently migrated inboard at about the Permian–Triassic stratigraphic boundary, and continued to be deposited through the faunal and floral recovery phase as Triassic species became established. The depositional history of the basin is translated to a chronostratigraphic framework which has implications for predicting the character and distribution of petroleum system elements in the Petrel Sub-basin and Londonderry High.

Appeared in The APPEA Journal 61(2) 699-706, 2 July 2021

Tags: EARTH SCIENCES, Palaeontology (incl. Palynology), Petroleum and Coal Geology, Published_External, Sedimentology, Stratigraphy (incl. Biostratigraphy and Sequence Stratigraphy)
Organization: Australian Ocean Data Network
Seismic Velocity Models of the Sediments and Upper Crust of the Capel and Faust Basins, Lord Howe Rise

This report is a description of velocity data acquired during the summer of 2006/07 on Geoscience Australia's seismic marine reflection, refraction and potential field survey GA302 over the Capel and Faust Basins, Lord Howe Rise. 

The survey was the final phase of the Australian Government's Big New Oil initiative commenced in 2003 to support acreage release in frontier basins. Previous data over the region are sparsely located, and the present survey will provide explorers with high quality data acquired and processed to modern standards.

The Lord Howe Rise is thought to be a continental fragment detached from Australia during the formation of the Tasman Sea. The Capel and Faust Basins are of interest as possible frontier petroleum provinces, and the present work is aimed at improving the confidence of sediment thickness estimation, a critical parameter in evaluating of prospectivity.

The study reviews the seismic reflection data from survey GA302, the sonobuoy refraction data acquired, and the stacking velocities from the seismic reflection processing.

Tags: Earth Sciences, GA Publication, Published_External, Record, petroleum exploration, sedimentary basins, seismic sections, seismics
Organization: Australian Ocean Data Network
Geoscience Australia Marine Survey 282 Post-Survey Report: Shallow Gas and Benthic Habitat Mapping, Arafura Sea

A range of geophysical indicators have been used to infer the presence of shallow gas in the Arafura Sea.  The existence of shallow gas has been confirmed by the analysis of core material obtained during the survey.  This sampled gas has a microbial origin related to decay of organic matter in Holocene  mud-filled channels.  However, geophysical data indicates that another source of gas exists in deeper parts of the sedimentary section and this gas appears to be migrating up from depth.  Intense pockmark fields (~350/km2) are often developed above the mud-filled channels but they have also been recorded away from these channels.  The development and density of the pockmark fields appears to be related to sea bed sediment type, microbial gas production within the mud-filled channels and supply of fluids from deeper within the sedimentary section.  Correlation of sub-bottom profile data with conventional seismic data also indicates that there are links between deep first-order Proterozoic faults, second-order Jurassic faults and third-order faults to sea bed observed in sub-bottom profiles.  

The detailed sea bed mapping carried out during the survey has also shown correlations between habitat and biodiversity of various benthic fauna.  Areas of high biodiversity and abundance generally correlated with harder substrates. In these areas, sea whips and fans, soft corals, hydroids, crinoids and octocorals were frequently identified, with sessile benthos extending up to ~50cm in height. The extensive areas of soft substrate commonly exhibited low-relief benthos which often covered less than 5% of the surface area. Such areas were also frequently noted for pockmark fields and the general uniformity of the environment.

Tags: Earth Sciences, GA Publication, Published_External, Record, environmental, geochemistry, marine, marine survey, natural gas, petroleum geology
Organization: Australian Ocean Data Network
Coastal Environment Geoscience of Cape York Peninsula

The NR14, Coastal Environment Geoscience Survey project utilises a wide variety of information and techniques to compile the basic coastal geoscientific information necessary for the development of a land use strategy for Cape York Peninsula. The report therefore provides a statement of the methodology employed, together with results of the data analyses undertaken and coastal geoscience GIS coverages completed to date.

The project was undertaken to produce a geoscientific synthesis of the evolution and character of the coastal zone of Cape York Peninsula to include:



assessment of the oceanographic and meteorological processes affecting the coastal area;

documentation of the character of coastal environments and the nature of sedimentary deposits within them;

analysis of Holocene evolution of the coastal zone;

identification of areas of significant instability; and

consideration of issues relevant to sustainable use.


Tags: AU-QLD, Earth Sciences, GA Publication, Published_External, Report, marine
Organization: Australian Ocean Data Network
Bathymetry Flythrough Bremer Commonwealth Marine Reserve

Flythrough movie of Bremer Commonwealth Marine Reserve, southwest Western Australia showing bathymetry of Bremer Canyon, Hood Canyon, Henry Canyon and Knob canyon.

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

Tags: Earth Sciences, Marine Biodiversity Hub, National Environmental Science Program, Published_External, marine
Organization: Australian Ocean Data Network
National Gravity Compilation 2019 (CSCBA)

Gravity data measure small changes in gravity due to changes in the density of rocks beneath the Earth's surface. The data collected are processed via standard methods to ensure the response recorded is that due only to the rocks in the ground. The results produce datasets that can be interpreted to reveal the geological structure of the sub-surface. The processed data is checked for quality by GA geophysicists to ensure that the final data released by GA are fit-for-purpose.
This National Gravity Compilation 2019 (CSCBA) is a complete spherical cap Bouguer anomaly grid for the 2019 Australian National Gravity Grids A series. This gravity survey was acquired under the project No. 202008. This gravity anomaly grid is derived from ground observations stored in the Australian National Gravity Database (ANGD) as at September 2019, supplemented with offshore data sourced from v28.1 of the Global Gravity grid developed using data from the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California San Diego. Out of the approximately 1.8 million gravity observations, nearly 1.4 million gravity stations in the ANGD were used to generate this grid. The grid has a cell size of 0.00417 degrees (approximately 435m). The data are given in units of um/s^2, also known as 'gravity units', or gu.

Tags: Australia, Bouguer, EARTH SCIENCES, Earth sciences, GADDS2.0, NCI, None, Published_External, complete, geophysical survey, geophysics, grav, gravity, grid, ground digital data, raster, spherical cap, survey 202008
Organization: Australian Ocean Data Network
National Base Map - Greyscale WMTS

This service is produced for the National Map project.  It provides seamless topographic greyscale mapping for the whole of Australia, including the external territories of Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Christmas Island, Norfolk Island and Lord Howe Island.  The service consists of Geoscience Australia data at smaller scales and OpenStreetMap data is used at larger scales. The service contains layer scale dependencies.

Tags: Australia, Earth Sciences, National, Published_External, WMTS, basemap, map, web map service, web service
Organization: Australian Ocean Data Network
Petroleum prospectivity and CO2 storage assessment in the offshore Browse Basin, North West Shelf, WA/AC

Under the National CO2 Infrastructure Plan (NCIP) and the National Low Emissions Coal Initiative (NLECI), Geoscience Australia undertook multi-purpose basin analysis to address dual priorities to assess long-term CO2 storage potential while simultaneously provides new insights into hydrocarbon prospectivity. The Browse Basin assessment is part of this five year program and provides better understanding of basin-scale storage potential and new insights into hydrocarbon prospectivity to manage the potential resource conflicts. 

The Browse Basin is a northeast-trending Paleozoic to Cenozoic depocentre situated offshore on Australia's North West Shelf and is being actively explored for hydrocarbons. It hosts large undeveloped gas and condensate accumulations, and is soon to become Australia's next major conventional liquefied natural gas (LNG) province. The basin was identified as potentially suitable for offshore geological storage of CO2 due to its favourable geological setting on a passive margin, and its proximity to offshore gas resources that can contain high amounts of naturally occurring CO2. 

The multi-purpose basin approach in the Browse Basin included the acquisition and integration of pre-competitive data derived from an airborne magnetic survey, two marine surveys, and the geochemical analysis of oils, gases and rocks, provided by industry through the Offshore Petroleum Titles Administrator (NOPTA)-managed repository. All of this precompetitive data had applications towards, and addressed questions relevant, to the assessment of both CO2 storage potential and hydrocarbon prospectivity. 

The concurrent basin analysis research provided a new understanding of the basin's Cretaceous succession based on an integrated sequence stratigraphic analysis of 60 wells and an extensive set of industry and government 2D and 3D seismic reflection data. The basin's tectonostratigraphic framework was updated, and the integration of revised biostratigraphic data enabled an improved understanding of variations in depositional facies and the spatial distribution of reservoir, seal, and source rock (condensed) sections. The outputs include models and maps of environments of deposition, petroleum systems and play fairways. 

Consequently, prospective CO2 storage sites throughout the succession were identified in areas that were least likely to conflict with hydrocarbon exploration. Results from this pre-competitive project will improve future storage site selection in suitable reservoirs for the commercial deployment of CCS technology, and will promote new hydrocarbon exploration opportunities.

Tags: Earth Sciences, External Publication, Published_External
Organization: Australian Ocean Data Network