1976 Gravity Map of Australia Based on 260,000 Observations

260,000 gravity observations from approximately 300 surveys were compiled to produce the 1976 1:5,000,000 Gravity Map of Australia. The Bureau of Mineral Resources (BMR) published the map after completing systematic reconnaissance gravity coverage of Australia, which began in 1959. The data was processed over four months using a CDC Cyber 76 computer system and Calcomp plotters.

Use Cases

• Modeling subsurface density variations based on Bouguer and free-air anomaly maps.
• Analyzing continental shelf and margin geology based on preliminary marine gravity values.
• Studying historical geophysical survey methods and data compilation techniques from the 1970s.

Strengths

• Based on approximately 260,000 gravity observations from a systematic national survey.
• Derived from about 300 individual surveys with an estimated cost of $12,000,000, indicating significant investment.
• Includes both Bouguer and free-air anomaly maps at a 1:25,000,000 scale.

Limitations

• Data is from 1976; freshness should be verified for modern applications.
• Row count and column-level documentation are absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• File formats are PDF and HTML, which may require extraction for computational analysis.

Provenance

Source

Bureau of Mineral Resources (BMR), aggregated by the Australian Ocean Data Network.

Collection Method

Compilation of gravity observations from approximately 300 surveys.

Time Range

Surveys conducted from 1959 to 1976.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-04-10 18:07:57.605338; freshness should be verified

Geography

Australia, including the continental shelf and margins.