AGSO Cruise 210: Seafloor Swath-Mapping Survey off Eastern Tasmania, April 1997

From 10 to 17 April 1997, the Australian Geological Survey Organisation chartered the R.V. Melville to map the sea bed east and northeast of Tasmania. The cruise used a SeaBeam 2000 multibeam sonar system, a magnetometer, and a gravity meter to determine sea bed morphology and character for tectonic and sedimentological studies. Satellite gravity images and sparse existing profiles were used to plan the survey.

Use Cases

• Modeling tectonic structures based on high-resolution seafloor morphology data
• Planning future seismic profiling and geological sampling campaigns based on the mapped survey areas
• Aiding sedimentological studies through analysis of sea bed roughness and character
• Supporting the fishing industry with detailed bathymetric maps of the operational region

Strengths

• Navigation data had an accuracy of about 5 meters using military standard GPS
• The SeaBeam 2000 system mapped a swath 3.5 times as wide as the water depth
• Survey was planned using satellite gravity images and existing sparse bathymetric and seismic profiles

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment
• Data may reflect temporal bias inherent to a single cruise in April 1997

Provenance

Source

Australian Geological Survey Organisation (AGSO), chartered vessel from Scripps Institution of Oceanography

Collection Method

Marine survey using SeaBeam 2000 multibeam sonar, magnetometer, and gravity meter

Time Range

10 to 17 April 1997

Freshness

Last updated 2026-06-27 19:27:02.302208; freshness should be verified

Geography

Sea bed east and northeast of Tasmania, including the deep water part of the Gippsland Basin