NGS Project: 3D Geological and Hydrogeological Surfaces for Eastern Australia

18 region-wide hydrogeological units are modeled in this second iteration of 3D surfaces, covering basins from the Gulf of Carpentaria to the offshore Bight, Otway, and Gippsland basins. The dataset updates surface extents and thicknesses from a previous 2022 model, incorporating data infills for the Great Artesian Basin, Lake Eyre Basin, and Upper Darling Floodplain. It provides a unified geological framework intended to support basin-wide and national-scale groundwater resource management decisions.

Use Cases

• [Groundwater resource modeling] based on [3D hydrogeological unit surfaces and thicknesses]
• [Cross-border geological correlation] based on [unified stratigraphic nomenclature across eastern Australian basins]
• [Sustainable resource management planning] based on [precompetitive geoscience data from the Exploring for the Future program]
• [Basin-scale hydrogeological framework development] based on [updated extents for 18 region-wide units]

Strengths

• Builds on a prior 2022 model (Vizy & Rollet) with updated extents and thicknesses for 18 hydrogeological units.
• Part of an eight-year, $225 million federally funded program (Exploring for the Future), indicating institutional support and scale.
• Covers a large, defined study area spanning multiple major Australian basins from north to south.

Limitations

• Key metadata such as row count, specific file size, data license, and author are not provided across any source.
• The 'last updated' dates conflict between sources (2026-06-04 and 2026-04-28), creating uncertainty about version control.
• Column names and the precise structure of the underlying geospatial data are unknown, limiting understanding of direct usability.

Provenance

Source

Geoscience Australia's Exploring for the Future Program, National Groundwater Systems (NGS) Project.

Collection Method

Synthesis and revision of existing geological data with new infills to address knowledge gaps; an update to surfaces produced by Vizy & Rollet, 2022.

Freshness

Last updated date is listed as 2026-06-04 06:43:12.147197 on one source, but conflicts with another showing 2026-04-28.

Geography

Eastern Australia, extending from the offshore Gulf of Carpentaria in the north to the offshore Bight, Otway, and Gippsland basins in the south, and from the western edge of the Great Artesian Basin to the eastern coastline.