MH370 Phase 2 High-Resolution Seafloor Survey Data

From September 2014 to January 2017, multiple vessels collected over 121,000 square kilometres of high-resolution seafloor data in the Southern Indian Ocean to support the search for missing flight MH370. Geoscience Australia collated the raw and processed data, including multibeam sonar and side scan sonar readings, to create detailed bathymetric maps for safe underwater navigation.

Use Cases

• Analyze multibeam sonar and side scan sonar data to model detailed seafloor topography and identify potential hazards.
• Process high-resolution bathymetry data to create navigational charts for the previously unmapped Southern Indian Ocean search area.
• Correlate survey data from vessels like Fugro Equator and Go Phoenix to assess coverage consistency across the 121,000 square kilometre region.
• Use marine survey data to study geological features in a remote ocean region with previously coarse, satellite-derived maps.

Strengths

• Covers an extensive area of over 121,000 square kilometres of high-resolution seafloor data.
• Data was acquired using specialized equipment like multibeam sonar and side scan sonar for detailed mapping.
• Surveys were conducted over a sustained period from September 2014 to January 2017 by multiple professional vessels.

Limitations

• The dataset's structure and specific data fields (columns) are not described, complicating direct analytical use.
• Primary data is presented in HTML format, which is atypical for direct geospatial analysis and may require extraction.
• As a historical collation from a specific search operation, the data has a fixed temporal scope and geographic focus.

Provenance

Source

Geoscience Australia, on behalf of the Governments of Australia, Malaysia, and the People's Republic of China.

Collection Method

Acquired by survey vessels using towed and autonomous underwater vehicles equipped with multibeam sonar and side scan sonar.

Time Range

September 2014 to January 2017

Freshness

Last updated in March 2026, though the underlying data collection ended in January 2017.

Geography

Southern Indian Ocean, specifically the MH370 search area.