MH370 Search Area: High-Resolution Seafloor Bathymetry of the Southeast Indian Ocean

A high-resolution multibeam echosounder dataset covering over 279,000 square kilometers of the remote southeast Indian Ocean. The data was acquired to assist the search for Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370, which disappeared on 8 March 2014, and provides the first large-scale coverage of its kind for the region. The dataset reveals detailed seafloor features and processes, enabling geomorphic analysis and comparison with global satellite-derived models.

Use Cases

• Comparing high-resolution bathymetric models with satellite-derived data (e.g., SRTM15_plus) to assess vertical accuracy.
• Mapping and analyzing seafloor geomorphic features such as seamounts, abyssal plains, ridges, and canyons.
• Studying modern sedimentary processes like sediment mass transport and gas/fluid discharge indicated by pockmarks.
• Investigating seafloor spreading and rifting processes, particularly along the Southeast Indian Ridge and Broken Ridge.

Strengths

• Covers a large area of over 279,000 square kilometers.
• Reveals four times more seamounts and a 20% greater extent of hills/mountains than previous global maps.
• Enables identification of fine-scale features like pockmarks and doubles the number of discrete seafloor features mapped.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count and specific file size are unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Data freshness should be verified despite the listed last update date.

Provenance

Source

Geoscience Australia Data

Collection Method

Acquired via high-resolution multibeam echosounder (MBES) surveys.

Time Range

Data acquisition was initiated following the disappearance of MH370 on 8 March 2014.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-04-20 03:18:04.125933; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Southeastern Indian Ocean, specifically the MH370 search area.