Holocene Beach-Ridge Elevation Data for Northeastern Australia Sea-Level Reconstruction

A digital elevation model of a 36-ridge beach-ridge strandplain at Cowley Beach in tropical northeastern Australia, used to examine coastal morphology and relative sea-level changes. The dataset, published in Marine Geology in 2019, was produced by researchers including those from Geoscience Australia. It covers a period of approximately 7,000 years and is used to model patterns under stable and rising sea-level scenarios.

Use Cases

• Reconstructing regional Holocene sea-level history based on the elevation pattern of the strandplain surface.
• Modeling coastal topographic patterns resulting from stable versus rising sea levels based on the distribution of elevation classes.
• Calibrating sea-level indicator data using the elevation of preserved berm facies within beach ridges.
• Studying the sensitivity of coastal landform elevation to subtle, long-term sea-level changes (tens of cm over millennia).

Strengths

• Focuses on a distinctive 36-ridge beach-ridge strandplain, providing a detailed morphological record.
• Covers a long temporal span of approximately 7,000 years, capturing Holocene changes.
• Directly compares strandplain elevation patterns with published, robust coral sea-level indicator data for validation.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count and dataset scale are unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Data may reflect geographic bias inherent to the single study site at Cowley Beach.

Provenance

Source

Geoscience Australia Data

Collection Method

Utilized a fine-scale digital elevation model of the strandplain, combined with morphological and stratigraphic analysis.

Time Range

Approximately the past 7,000 years (Holocene epoch), with a noted highstand around 6,000 years BP.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-25 18:26:04.664700; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Cowley Beach, tropical northeastern Australia (Queensland).