Eumeralla Formation: Fluvial Systems in the Otway Basin

Three distinct high-energy fluvial depositional systems (A-C) are distinguished within the Lower Cretaceous Eumeralla Formation, with sandstone bodies reaching up to 70 meters thick. This dataset contains relationships, thicknesses, and palaeocurrent data from outcrops in the eastern Otway Basin, characterizing systems ranging from medial alluvial fans to distal braid plains. The model suggests volcanic detritus was sourced from infrarift complexes south of the present Aptian-Albian coastline.

Use Cases

• Reconstructing paleogeography based on palaeocurrent vectors and facies associations.
• Modeling sediment provenance using data on basement-derived versus volcaniclastic components.
• Comparing fluvial architecture (e.g., channel thickness, interchannel deposits) across different depositional systems.
• Interpreting depositional environments (e.g., braided-stream vs. braid plain) from described sedimentary features.

Strengths

• Data distinguishes three discrete depositional systems with specific lithological and architectural characteristics.
• Includes quantitative measurements such as sandstone body thicknesses up to 70 meters.
• Cross-platform presence on a government data portal suggests formal curation and importance.

Limitations

• Critical metadata is missing: row count, column names, file size, and specific license are not provided.
• The 'last updated' date is a future date (2026-04-20), indicating a potential metadata error.
• Data format is limited to document types (HTML, PDF), suggesting the core data may be embedded in reports rather than a standalone structured table.

Provenance

Source

Geoscience Australia Data

Collection Method

Field data collected from Eumeralla Formation outcrops in the eastern Otway Basin.

Time Range

Lower Cretaceous (Aptian-Albian)

Freshness

Last updated date listed as 2026-04-20 (a future date, likely a metadata error).

Geography

Eastern Otway Basin, southern Australia (locations include Cape Otway, Apollo Bay, Moonlight Head, Skenes Creek).