Seabed Character Mapping in the Great Australian Bight, 2000-2001

Five distinct acoustic facies were defined for the Great Australian Bight based on 3.5kHz echo-sounding records and high-resolution seismic profiles. This regional seafloor mapping study was conducted by Geoscience Australia during 2000/2001 to support biological, environmental, and economic assessments. The digitized interpretation includes four major geomorphological features and their boundaries within a Geographical Information System.

Use Cases

• Supporting Regional Marine Planning based on mapped geomorphological features and seabed character.
• Underpinning biological and environmental assessments based on the distribution of acoustic facies.
• Informing economic assessments of marine resources based on the delineated sedimentary basins and terraces.
• Analyzing sedimentary processes in deep water based on the interpreted distribution of acoustic facies from slope to abyssal plain.

Strengths

• Data includes five distinct acoustic facies defined through interpretation of 3.5kHz echo-sounding records and seismic profiles.
• Four major geomorphological features (continental shelf, marine terraces, continental slope, continental rise) have been delineated and captured in a GIS.
• The GIS includes key attributes for every echo facies and the location of previously mapped sedimentary basins, plateaus, terraces, and canyons.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Freshness should be verified; the underlying study was conducted in 2000/2001.

Provenance

Source

Geoscience Australia's South and Southwest Regional Project, via Australian Ocean Data Network.

Collection Method

Regional seafloor mapping study involving interpretation of 3.5kHz echo-sounding records and high-resolution seismic profiles, groundtruthed against seafloor samples.

Time Range

2000/2001

Freshness

Last updated 2026-06-27 21:20:47.918004; freshness should be verified

Geography

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