Hydrocarbon Sniffer Survey Data from Southeastern Australia, 1989

Southeastern Australia's offshore sedimentary basins were surveyed for light hydrocarbon gases in the water column between February 1 and March 2, 1989. The 30-day research cruise, a cooperative project involving the Australian Bureau of Mineral Resources and Transglobal Exploration and Geoscience, collected data in the Gippsland, Bass, Otway, Stansbury Basins and the Torquay Sub-basin. Measurements were taken using a hydrocarbon 'sniffer' towed near the seafloor to analyze gas concentrations and compositions.

Use Cases

• Identify potential petroleum accumulation zones based on hydrocarbon gas anomalies in the water column.
• Assess the maturity and type of hydrocarbon source rocks in Australian offshore basins using molecular composition data.
• Evaluate the applicability of 'sniffer' survey techniques for Australian exploration contexts compared to overseas methods.

Strengths

• Data collection occurred over a defined 30-day period from February 1 to March 2, 1989.
• Survey covered multiple specific basins: Gippsland, Bass, Otway, Stansbury, and the Torquay Sub-basin.
• Project involved cooperative research between a government agency (Australian Bureau of Mineral Resources) and an international exploration company.

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 temporal bias inherent to a single survey conducted in 1989.

Provenance

Source

Geoscience Australia Data

Collection Method

Hydrocarbon 'sniffer' surveys conducted from a research vessel, with water pumped to the surface for continuous gas chromatography analysis.

Time Range

February 1 to March 2, 1989

Freshness

Last updated 2026-04-20 01:50:31.042946; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Offshore sedimentary basins of southeastern Australia: Gippsland, Bass, Otway, Stansbury Basins and Torquay Sub-basin.