Arcturus (ARA): Atmospheric Greenhouse Gas Baseline Measurements from Queensland

Geoscience Australia and CSIRO Marine and Atmospheric Research established the Arcturus atmospheric monitoring station in July 2010 near Emerald, Queensland. The station provides continuous, high-precision measurements of baseline greenhouse gases in a region identified for geological carbon dioxide storage. Its data serves as a reference for detecting anomalies near potential storage sites.

Use Cases

• Benchmarking regional atmospheric greenhouse gas variations based on continuous monitoring data.
• Testing new greenhouse gas monitoring technology against a known baseline.
• Establishing a reference background for anomaly detection near geological CO2 storage sites.

Strengths

• Station began operation in July 2010, providing a long-term record.
• Site selection was informed by regional atmospheric modelling and stakeholder consultation.
• Station location is secure, accessible, and representative of regional agricultural and industrial activities.

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 geographic bias inherent to the specific Central Highlands, Queensland location.

Provenance

Source

Geoscience Australia (GA) and CSIRO Marine and Atmospheric Research (CMAR)

Collection Method

Continuous measurement from a fixed inland baseline station.

Time Range

From July 2010 onward.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-06-04 05:29:25.225924; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Arcturus, Queensland, Australia, approximately 50 km southeast of Emerald.