Ashmore Reef, a tropical marine reserve on Australia's North-west Shelf, has had its regional, lagoonal, and well water qualities observed since 1991. The dataset includes sea surface temperatures ranging from 25.48°C to 30.2°C, salinity from 34.51 to 34.75, and details on a freshwater lens yielding up to 150,000 liters per year. It was published by the Australian Ocean Data Network in The Beagle journal.
Use Cases
- Modeling freshwater lens dynamics based on well water salinity and pumping volume.
- Analyzing seasonal water temperature variations based on satellite-derived lagoonal temperature ranges.
- Studying the relationship between water chemistry and biodiversity based on long-term observation data.
- Assessing tidal influence on lagoon water exchange based on the described semi-diurnal tide and water volume.
- Investigating evaporation and rainfall balance in tropical monsoonal belts based on provided precipitation and evaporation potential figures.
Strengths
- Long-term observational data starting from 1991, with a more intensive program since 1999.
- Contains specific, measured ranges for key parameters like temperature (25.48°C to 34.5°C), salinity (0.03 to 39.6), and dissolved oxygen (27% to 51%).
- Describes a quantified freshwater resource, with up to 150,000 liters pumped annually from the West Island well.
Limitations
- Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
- Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
- The data is presented in an HTML article format, which may complicate direct machine processing.
Provenance
- Source
- Australian Ocean Data Network
- Collection Method
- Field observations and satellite-derived measurements.
- Time Range
- 1991 onwards
- Freshness
- Last updated 2026-06-23 00:55:16.247274; freshness should be verified.
- Geography
- Ashmore Reef, North-west Shelf, Australia