Great Barrier Reef Hydrodynamic Model Results at 4km Resolution

Results from version 2.0 of the 4km-resolution regional-scale hydrodynamic model of the Great Barrier Reef, forced with ocean boundary data from OceanMAPS and atmospheric data from ACCESS-R. The model incorporated tidal constituents from a global model and river data from 71 rivers, running in near-real-time until January 2024.

Use Cases

• Analyze hydrodynamic patterns using the 4km-resolution model outputs for the Great Barrier Reef region
• Study the impact of river forcing from 71 rivers, including measured data from 22 and estimates for 49, on coastal oceanography
• Investigate tidal influences on the reef system using the 22 tidal constituents derived from the global CSR model
• Examine the effects of atmospheric forcing from the ACCESS-R model on surface ocean conditions

Strengths

• Model outputs are at a 4km spatial resolution for the regional-scale Great Barrier Reef
• River forcing incorporates data from 71 rivers, providing detailed freshwater input
• Tidal forcing is derived from 22 constituents of a global tide model
• Model ran in near-real-time with daily updates until January 2024

Limitations

• Model execution was halted in January 2024 due to sensor damage, limiting temporal coverage of the near-real-time product
• The dataset includes estimated flows and loads for 49 rivers, which may introduce uncertainty compared to measured data
• Data is provided in visual and service formats (PNG, HTML, WMS) rather than raw numerical arrays, limiting direct analysis

Provenance

Source

CSIRO Marlin Data Catalogue

Collection Method

Outputs from version 2.0 of the 4km-resolution GBR4 hydrodynamic model, forced with OceanMAPS and ACCESS-R data.

Time Range

Model ran in near-real-time until January 2024.

Freshness

Last metadata update was 2026-03-20, but the near-real-time model run concluded in January 2024.

Geography

Great Barrier Reef region, Australia.