Swath-Mapping Cruise Data off Tasmania, 1994

In early 1994, the Australian Geological Survey Organisation (AGSO) conducted a 35-day marine survey off Tasmania using the R.V. L'Atalante's multibeam sonar system. The cruise mapped 200,000 square kilometers of the continental margin and abyssal plain, recording bathymetry, acoustic imagery, seismic reflection, magnetic, and gravity data. The dataset is provided by Geoscience Australia Data.

Use Cases

• Modeling tectonic history and fault geometry based on swath-mapping imagery of the continental margin.
• Planning future seismic reflection programs using the high-accuracy bathymetric maps and structural information.
• Investigating the breakup history of Australia and Antarctica based on fracture zone patterns mapped on the abyssal plain.
• Defining the Legal Continental Shelf boundary using detailed morphology data.

Strengths

• Covers a large area of 200,000 square kilometers, approximately three times the size of Tasmania.
• Collected multiple data types including bathymetry, acoustic imagery, seismic, magnetic, and gravity profiles during a 35-day cruise.
• Data was acquired with a SIMRAD EM12D system providing real-time maps with a swath width of up to 20 km.

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 survey in 1994.

Provenance

Source

Australian Geological Survey Organisation (AGSO), now Geoscience Australia.

Collection Method

Marine survey using the French research vessel R.V. L'Atalante's SIMRAD EM12D multibeam sonar system.

Time Range

January 16 to February 27, 1994.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-25 18:19:59.981403; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Southern Otway Basin, Sorell Basin, South Tasman Rise, and adjacent abyssal plain off Tasmania, Australia.