Eastern Bonaparte Gulf Seabed Physical and Geochemical Variables for Cluster Analysis

Geoscience Australia collected 124 seabed samples from the eastern Bonaparte Gulf in 2009/2010, each described by 74 physical and geochemical variables. The dataset was used to apply different clustering methods to characterize seabed properties, identify geohazards, and understand benthic habitats. Research based on this data was presented at the GEOHAB conference in May 2014.

Use Cases

• Classifying seabed habitats based on 74 physical and geochemical variables like grainsize and organic matter reactivity.
• Modeling relationships between sediment geochemistry (e.g., authigenic element enrichments) and infauna biodiversity.
• Identifying environmental controls on seabed chemistry, such as the influence of pockmarks or energy levels.
• Assessing beta-diversity patterns in benthic infauna using cluster-derived groupings.

Strengths

• Dataset comprises 124 distinct seabed samples.
• Each sample is described by 74 physical and geochemical variables.
• Data is integrated from a dedicated seabed mapping survey by a national geological survey.

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 survey area in the eastern Bonaparte Gulf.

Provenance

Source

Geoscience Australia Data

Collection Method

Seabed mapping surveys involving sample collection and laboratory analysis of physical and geochemical properties.

Time Range

Survey conducted in 2009/2010.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-25 17:33:16.539039; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Eastern Bonaparte Gulf, Australia.