Southern Indian Ocean Seafloor Backscatter Data at 30m Resolution
Updated 1mo ago
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Description
June 2014 to February 2017 bathymetric surveys collected over 710,000 square kilometres of data in the Southern Indian Ocean. Geoscience Australia provided support to the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) for the MH370 search operation, acquiring backscatter data via multibeam sonar on multiple vessels. This dataset provides a 30m resolution view of seafloor topography across the search and transit areas.
Use Cases
Analyze seafloor sediment hardness and texture based on backscatter intensity values
Map underwater geological features like ridges and valleys based on detailed topography
Support marine navigation planning by visualizing seafloor terrain
Study regional seabed characteristics in the Southern Indian Ocean
Strengths
Over 710,000 square kilometres of coverage
Data collected from June 2014 to February 2017
30m resolution across search and transit areas
Limitations
Description metadata is limited; actual data quality requires manual inspection after download
Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download
Not to be used for navigational purposes
Provenance
Source
Australian Ocean Data Network
Collection Method
Data acquired by multibeam sonar mounted on the hull of multiple vessels (GA survey reference: GA-4421, GA-4422 & GA-4430).
Time Range
June 2014 to February 2017
Freshness
Last updated 2026-05-05 04:48:28.950728; freshness should be verified
Geography
Southern Indian Ocean, specifically the MH370 search area and transit lines
Dataset is not to be used for navigational purposes.