Early Holocene Coral Reef Growth and Submergence in Gulf of Carpentaria

Multibeam sonar mapping and drill cores confirm a new reef province with seven coral limestone reefs mapped and up to 50 more estimated. U/Th dating shows reef growth commenced around 10.5 thousand years BP, persisted for approximately 2.0 thousand years, and ceased by about 8.0 kyr BP. The dataset includes measurements of reef growth rates from 0.95 to 4 meters per millennium and depths of Pleistocene limestone exposure at 27 and 30 meters below sea level.

Use Cases

• Analyze U/Th ages to model the timeline of reef colonization and cessation relative to sea level rise.
• Correlate reef growth rates of 0.95 to 4 m/kyr with contemporaneous rapid sea level rise (>10 m/kyr) to study 'give up' reef history.
• Use depths of Pleistocene limestone exposure at 27 and 30 m to identify phases of reef growth during sea level stillstands.
• Map the distribution of the seven confirmed reefs and estimated 50 potential reefs to understand provincial extent.

Strengths

• Includes direct U/Th age measurements pinpointing reef growth commencement to around 10.5 thousand years BP.
• Provides quantified reef growth rates ranging from 0.95 to 4 meters per millennium.
• Contains depth measurements for Pleistocene limestone exposure at 27 and 30 meters below present sea level.
• Documents a previously unknown reef province with seven confirmed reefs and an estimate of up to 50 total.

Limitations

• Sample data and column structure are unavailable, limiting immediate analytical use.
• The dataset is presented in HTML format, which is not structured for direct computational analysis.
• Data size and row counts are unknown, preventing assessment of statistical scope.

Provenance

Source

Geoscience Australia Data.

Collection Method

Multibeam sonar mapping, drill cores, and underwater video data.

Time Range

Early Holocene, approximately 10.5 to 8.0 thousand years BP.

Freshness

Last updated March 2026.

Geography

Gulf of Carpentaria, Australia.