Seabed Morphology and Geomorphology Maps for Coral Sea Marine Park

Geoscience Australia's dataset provides geospatial seabed morphology and geomorphology maps for Flinders Reefs and Cairns Seamount within the Coral Sea Marine Park. The maps were created using a two-step classification system applied to bathymetry digital elevation models (DEMs) with 8-meter resolution for Flinders Reefs and 1-meter resolution for the top of Cairns Seamount. This product integrates multibeam, LADS, LiDAR, and hydrographic data to classify seabed features for management and research purposes.

Use Cases

• Marine spatial planning based on classified seabed geomorphology polygons.
• Habitat characterization using interpreted geomorphic features from bathymetry and supplementary data.
• Monitoring seabed change by comparing morphology maps derived from multibeam and LiDAR surveys.
• Informing regulatory decisions with nationally consistent seabed classification data.

Strengths

• Uses a nationally consistent, peer-reviewed two-step classification system (Dove et al., 2020; Nanson et al., 2023).
• Integrates multiple high-resolution data sources, including 1-meter gridded multibeam data for Cairns Seamount.
• Supplements bathymetry with backscatter, seabed imagery, and sediment samples for geomorphic interpretation.

Limitations

• Key metadata attributes (row count, specific column names, license, author) are not provided in the available sources.
• The dataset's update history shows a conflict, with one entry dated 2026-05-14 and another 2026-03 25.

Provenance

Source

Geoscience Australia Data

Collection Method

Semi-automated GIS mapping (GA-SaMMT) applied to bathymetry DEMs compiled from multibeam surveys (FK200429/GA4861, FK200802/GA0365), LADS, LiDAR, and Australian Hydrographic Office data.

Time Range

Surveys referenced from 2020 (Beaman et al., 2020; Brooke et al., 2020).

Freshness

Last updated 2026-05-14 04:25:50.851203

Geography

Flinders Reefs and Cairns Seamount, Coral Sea Marine Park, north-eastern Australia.