Topic
 

geoscientificInformation

100 record(s)
 
Type of resources
Topics
Keywords
Contact for the resource
Provided by
Years
From 1 - 10 / 100
  • Survey FK200308 on the R/V Falkor undertook detailed mapping within two significant and biologically unexplored submarine canyons (Cape Range and Cloates Canyon) in the Gascoyne Marine Park. The Gascoyne Marine Park covers 81, 766 km2 adjacent to the Ningaloo Marine Park. The canyons form part of the habitat protection and multiple use zones of the marine park and are identified as Key Ecological Features. The canyons provide an important connection between the abyssal plain environments and the Commonwealth waters adjacent to Ningaloo Reef on the continental shelf. High productivity aided by upwelling through the canyons has been related to aggregations of whale sharks, manta rays, humpback whales, sea snakes, sharks, large predatory fish and seabirds. In addition, the hard canyon walls provide habitat for a range of sessile invertebrates, while the soft sediments on the canyon floor support a range of mobile invertebrates. The data from this survey will provide a comprehensive taxonomic survey to characterise the marine biodiversity of the canyons or to understand the distribution of canyon habitats in relation to the seabed morphology. Bathymetry and acoustic reflectance (backscatter) data were acquired in the survey region using a Kongsberg 30 kHz EM 302 deep water multi-beam echo sounder with a 1° array. An area of 11,250 km2 was surveyed along 4100 line kilometres within the Gascoyne Marine Park. In addition, 2495 line kilometres was surveyed along transits between Fremantle, Exmouth and Broome. Navigation and motion were recorded with an Applanix POSMV V5, while sound speed profiles were processed with the software Sound Speed Manager to correct acoustic data.

  • Six dredges were undertaken from the RV Investigator during voyage IN2016_E01 to obtain rock and sediment samples to constrain the crustal nature, age of formation and paleo-environment through time of the Cascade Seamount, located offshore Eastern Tasmania, Australia. This record lists the sample number, weights and rock types recovered. In total we collected 713 kg of rock samples, including basalts, conglomerates, sandstones, limestones and tuffs.

  • Categories    

    The East Antarctic Ice Sheet (EAIS) is the largest source of potential sea-level rise, containing some 19 m of sea-level equivalent. One of the well-investigated regions in East Antarctica is Law Dome, which is a small independent ice cap situated to the west of Totten Ice Shelf. The ice cap is slow-moving, has a low melt-rate at the surface and moderate wind speeds, making it a useful study site for our investigations. Radar data from Investigating the Cryospheric Evolution of the Central Antarctic Plate (ICECAP) project has good coverage over this area. A new method is proposed for the estimation of attenuation rate from radar data which is mathematically modeled as a constrained regularised l2 minimization problem. In the proposed method, only radar data is required and the englacial reflectors are automatically detected from the radar data itself. A final product of 3D attenuation rates and 3D samples count is provided for the research community in this data set.

  • Categories    

    This dataset is derived from a comparative study evaluating six DNA extraction methods for their efficiency in recovering diatom sedimentary ancient DNA (sedaDNA) from Antarctic marine sediments. Sediment samples were collected from two sites: U1536C (Scotia Sea, West Antarctica) and KC02 (Sabrina Coast, Totten Glacier Region, East Antarctica). Each of the six extraction methods was applied to the same set of samples. Following shotgun metagenomic sequencing, the methods were assessed based on metrics such as diatom DNA recovery, average fragment length, and taxonomic diversity. The purpose of the study was to identify the optimal extraction approach for maximizing the yield and quality of diatom sedaDNA, thereby improving its utility for paleoenvironmental reconstruction.

  • Categories    

    This record describes a single aggregated dataset of the geomorphic habitat environment (facies) for Australia's 7 states and territories: New South Wales, Victoria, Tasmania, Queensland, Northern Territory, South Australia, Western Australia. The classification system contains 12 easily identifiable and representative environments: Barrier/back-barrier, Bedrock, Central Basin, Channel, Coral, Flood- and Ebb-tide Delta, Fluvial (bay-head) Delta, Intertidal Flats, Mangrove, Rocky Reef, Saltmarsh/Saltflat, Tidal Sand Banks (and Unassigned). These types represent habitats found across all coastal systems in Australia. For the New South Wales region, 134 coastal waterways are described. Most of the estuaries of New South Wales are under intense land use pressure with approximately 80% of the State's population living near an estuary (NSW Dept of Land and Water Conservation) For the Victorian region, 54 coastal waterways are described. Most of the 54 coastal waterways have a "Modified" environmental condition (as opposed to "Near Pristine"), according to the National Land and Water Resources Audit definition. For the Tasmanian region, 88 coastal waterways are described. The majority of near pristine estuaries in Tasmania are located in the south and west of the State and on Cape Barren Island, according to the Department of Primary Industries, Water and Environment. For the Queensland region, 213 coastal waterways are described. Southern and central Great Barrier Reef lagoon coasts have a broad spectrum of river, tide and wave- dominated estuaries. For the Northern Territory region, 63 coastal waterways are described. Estuaries on the northern Arnhem Land, Gulf of Carpentaria coasts are predominantly tide-dominated estuaries, which vary greatly in size and floodplain characteristics. For the South Australia region, 36 coastal waterways are described. Most of the 36 coastal waterways have a "Modified" environmental condition (as opposed to "Near Pristine"), according to the National Land and Water Resources Audit definition. For the Western Australia region, 103 coastal waterways are described. Western Australia has a diverse range of Estuaries due to different climates. Ranging from mostly "near pristine" and tide influenced estuaries in the north to "near pristine" wave dominated estuaries in the southwest region.

  • Time Series video to support Project C3 of the Marine Biodiversity Hub NESP programme. The video illustrates coastal change at the Murray Mouth and Lower Lakes, SA using 104 Landsat observations from within the Australian Geoscience Data Cube (AGDC) from 1988-2013.

  • The Marine Futures Project was designed to benchmark the current status of key Western Australian marine ecosystems, based on an improved understanding of the relationship between marine habitats, biodiversity and our use of these values. Approximately 1,500 km2 of seafloor were mapped using hydroacoustics (Reson 8101 Multibeam), and expected benthic habitats "ground-truthed" using towed video transects and baited remote underwater video systems. Both sources of information were then combined in a spatial predictive modelling framework to produce fine-scale habitat maps showing the extent of substrate types, biotic formations, etc. Surveys took place across 9 study areas, including Broke Inlet, a relatively remote area 400km south of Perth, between the towns of Augusta and Albany. The nearest major town, Manjimup, is situated 100km north and the small coastal settlement Windy Harbour approximately 30km west of Broke Inlet. The Inlet is entirely surrounded by the D’Entrecasteaux National Park, which is accessible via a sealed road and attracts limited ‘through-traffic’ to the area. The marine environment off Broke is one fairly untouched by major tourism pressures and thus this location was selected due to its relative inaccessibility.

  • Categories  

    Dredge rocks were recovered on scientific voyage SS2011_06 on the MNF RV Southern Surveyor, from the Perth Abyssal Plain, offshore Western Australia. Continental rocks (gneiss, granite, sandstone) were dredged from both the Batavia Knoll and the Gulden Draak Ridge (dredge sites 1, 2, and 3). A small amount of high weathered basalt was recovered from the Gulden Draak Ridge (dredge site 4). Three successful dredges were undertaken along the Dirck Hartog Ridge recovering predominantly gabbro (dredge 5) and basalts (dredge sites 6 and 7).

  • The Marine Futures Project was designed to benchmark the current status of key Western Australian marine ecosystems, based on an improved understanding of the relationship between marine habitats, biodiversity and our use of these values. Approximately 1,500 km2 of seafloor were mapped using hydroacoustics (Reson 8101 Multibeam), and expected benthic habitats "ground-truthed" using towed video transects and baited remote underwater video systems. Both sources of information were then combined in a spatial predictive modelling framework to produce fine-scale habitat maps showing the extent of substrate types, biotic formations, etc. Surveys took place across 9 study areas, including Geographe Bay in the southwest Capes region. The marine environment at this location varies from extensive seagrass meadows in protected waters, to kelp-dominated granite and limestone reefs in areas of high wave energy. A small number of corals are also found throughout the region, reflecting the influence of the southward flow of the Leeuwin Current. The fish fauna is also diverse, with a high proportion of endemic species.

  • Categories    

    The Tasman Fracture Commonwealth Reserve complements the Port Davey Marine Reserve (encompassing Port Davey, Bathurst Channel and Bathurst Harbour), which was proclaimed by the Tasmanian Government in 2005. It spans the continental shelf, continental slope and deeper water ecosystems south of Tasmania, and is scored by steep canyons. It also encloses other geological features, including steep escarpments and troughs, saddles, basins, and part of a plateau that is over 400 km long and rises up to 3 km above the sea floor. The reserve includes a number of undersea peaks rising to less than 1500 m below the sea surface that provide habitat to deepwater hard corals. These corals provide a structure and habitat for a rich diversity of marine invertebrate animals that live attached corals. This record describes a geomorphology map for the Tasman Fracture CMR that was prepared using bathymetry and backscatter data sourced from CSIRO and Geoscience Australia.