Great Australian Bight Seabed Character and Geomorphology GIS Data

Geoscience Australia conducted a regional seafloor mapping study in 2000/2001 to support marine planning. The study delineated four major geomorphological features and defined five acoustic echo facies based on 3.5kHz echo-sounding records and seismic profiles. These interpretations, including key attributes for each facies, have been digitized and captured in a Geographical Information System.

Use Cases

• Support Regional Marine Planning based on the mapped geomorphological features and seabed character.
• Underpin biological assessments based on the distribution of undisturbed and disturbed sediment facies.
• Conduct environmental assessments based on the GIS layers of sedimentary basins, plateaus, terraces, and canyons.
• Analyze sedimentary processes in deep water based on the distribution of acoustic facies from the upper slope to the abyssal plain.

Strengths

• Data is derived from a dedicated regional seafloor mapping study conducted by Geoscience Australia.
• Includes digitized GIS layers for four major geomorphological features and five defined acoustic facies.
• Facies interpretation is groundtruthed against seafloor samples.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Data collection occurred in 2000/2001; freshness should be verified.

Provenance

Source

Australian Ocean Data Network

Collection Method

Regional seafloor mapping study using 3.5kHz echo-sounding records and high-resolution seismic profiles.

Time Range

2000/2001

Freshness

Last updated 2026-04-16 15:12:42.651050; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Great Australian Bight and South and Southwest (SSW) region of Australia.