SI 1017: Bathymetry Survey of Varzin Passage to Merkara Shoal, 2023-2024

A 30-meter resolution bathymetric grid of the Varzin Passage to Merkara Shoal area, acquired for the Australian Hydrographic Office. Fugro Australia conducted the survey using a LADS HD+ system between September 2023 and April 2024 as part of the Hydroscheme Industry Partnership Program. The processed data is provided as a 32-bit floating point GeoTIFF.

Use Cases

• Modeling seabed morphology and underwater hazards based on high-resolution bathymetry.
• Analyzing changes in seafloor depth and structure for nautical chart updates.
• Supporting marine spatial planning and environmental assessments in the survey area.

Strengths

• Data was acquired with a LADS HD+ system, a specialized airborne bathymetric lidar.
• The final product is a 30-meter resolution grid, providing a standardized spatial detail level.
• Survey was conducted under a formal contract for the national hydrographic office, suggesting a defined quality standard.

Limitations

• The dataset is explicitly not to be used for navigational purposes, limiting its operational application.
• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment for some analytical methods.

Provenance

Source

Geoscience Australia Data, sourced from the Australian Hydrographic Office.

Collection Method

Contracted survey conducted by Fugro Australia using LADS HD+ and processed with CARIS HIPS and SIPS, and QIMERA software.

Time Range

4 Sep 2023 – 12 Apr 2024

Freshness

Last updated 2026-04-30 13:07:35.728774; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Varzin Passage to Merkara Shoal, Australia