Quaternary Sediment Cores from the Southern Fairway Basin, Tasman Sea

Thirteen piston cores of nannofossil ooze sediment, collected from the Southern Fairway Basin on the Lord Howe Rise in 1999. The cores, ranging from 405 to 758 cm in length and 1250 to 2753 meters below sea level, document sediment properties, pore water chemistry, and trace gas concentrations. Data was gathered by the RV L'Atalante during the ZoNiCo 5 survey on behalf of the New Caledonian government.

Use Cases

• Modeling methane flux and anaerobic oxidation processes based on pore water sulfate and methane concentration profiles.
• Investigating sediment diagenesis and iron remobilization based on correlations between color, magnetic susceptibility, and geochemistry.
• Assessing regional petroleum potential based on the presence of thermogenic hydrocarbons like ethane and propane.
• Studying Quaternary sedimentation rates and paleoenvironments using core lithology and estimated age-depth relationships.

Strengths

• Core-specific depth and length measurements are provided (1250-2753 mbsl, 405-758 cm).
• Description includes specific analytical parameters: magnetic susceptibility, pore water SO42-, and hydrocarbon gases.
• Temporal context is provided with an estimated maximum core age of less than 800,000 years based on regional sedimentation rates.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• The description notes that longer cores with less-oxidised sediment are needed for a fuller understanding.

Provenance

Source

Geoscience Australia Data

Collection Method

Thirteen piston cores collected by the RV L'Atalante during the 1999 ZoNiCo 5 survey.

Time Range

Quaternary period, with cores estimated to be less than 800,000 years old at their base.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-04-20 03:23:57.141419; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Southern Fairway Basin on the Lord Howe Rise in the Tasman Sea.