Capricorn and Northern Tasman Basins: Marine Seismic and Geophysical Survey Data

A December 1989 marine multi-channel seismic reflection survey acquired 2900 km of data off southeast Queensland. The Bureau of Mineral Resources conducted the research cruise to investigate the structure, stratigraphy, and petroleum resource potential of offshore basins. The survey included seismic ties to the Aquarius-1 and Capricorn-1A wells and collected sonobuoy refraction, gravity, magnetic, and bathymetric data.

Use Cases

• Modeling basin structure and stratigraphy based on multi-channel seismic reflection data.
• Assessing petroleum resource potential based on seismic ties to deep offshore wells.
• Analyzing the tectonic evolution of a failed rift system based on syn-rift and post-rift sediment sequences.
• Correlating geophysical properties using concurrently collected gravity, magnetic, and bathymetric data.

Strengths

• Includes 2900 km of seismic data, providing substantial spatial coverage.
• Integrates multiple geophysical data types: seismic, sonobuoy refraction, gravity, magnetic, and bathymetry.
• Provides ties to key regional wells (Aquarius-1 and Capricorn-1A), enabling calibration.
• Represents the first multi-channel seismic survey in the region since 1974, offering a historical baseline.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Data freshness should be verified; the last metadata update was 2026-06-05.

Provenance

Source

Bureau of Mineral Resources (Australia), via the Australian Ocean Data Network.

Collection Method

Marine multi-channel seismic reflection survey using RV 'Rig Seismic', with concurrent collection of sonobuoy refraction, gravity, magnetic, and bathymetric data.

Time Range

Survey conducted December 1989; data interpreted from Late Cretaceous to Recent.

Freshness

Survey conducted in December 1989; metadata last updated 2026-06-05.

Geography

Offshore southeast Queensland, Australia, covering the Capricorn Basin and margins of the northern Tasman Basin.