Rock samples were dredged from seamounts in the southern Tasman Sea on the RV Investigator, voyage IN2018_V08

Voyage IN2019_V04 contributed an additional 29,000 kms2 of seafloor survey data to the Coral Sea knowledge base. From this new bathymetric data individual seamounts have been extracted and have been classified to the Geoscience Australia Geomorphology Classification Scheme. This dataset contains two layers representing the classification layers- 1) Surface (Plain, Slope, Escarpment) and 2) fine scale Geomorphology of the seamount for the Cassowary Seamount. Ongoing research with this survey data will provide new insights into the detailed geomorphic shape and spatial relationships between adjacent seabed features. This information will be released in future publications to show the potential of how the scale of such seafloor data can be used for predictive habitat modelling when analysed with the biological data overlays.

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.

Voyage IN2019_V04 contributed an additional 29,000 kms2 of seafloor survey data to the Coral Sea knowledge base. From this new bathymetric data individual seamounts have been extracted and have been classified to the Geoscience Australia Geomorphology Classification Scheme. This dataset contains two layers representing the classification layers- 1) Surface (Plain, Slope, Escarpment) and 2) fine scale Geomorphology of the seamount for the Kenn Seamount. Ongoing research with this survey data will provide new insights into the detailed geomorphic shape and spatial relationships between adjacent seabed features. This information will be released in future publications to show the potential of how the scale of such seafloor data can be used for predictive habitat modelling when analysed with the biological data overlays.

Voyage IN2019_V04 contributed an additional 29,000 kms2 of seafloor survey data to the Coral Sea knowledge base. From this new bathymetric data individual seamounts have been extracted and have been classified to the Geoscience Australia Geomorphology Classification Scheme. This dataset contains two layers representing the classification layers- 1) Surface (Plain, Slope, Escarpment) and 2) fine scale Geomorphology of the seamount for the Calder Seamount. Ongoing research with this survey data will provide new insights into the detailed geomorphic shape and spatial relationships between adjacent seabed features. This information will be released in future publications to show the potential of how the scale of such seafloor data can be used for predictive habitat modelling when analysed with the biological data overlays.

Supporting geological data to accompany Halpin et al. "Ediacaran–Cambrian high-strain melt-present deformation of the Archean Charcot Province, East Antarctica” in review with AGU Tectonics. Includes tables of sample details, field observations, whole rock geochemical data, zircon U–Pb data, zircon Hf-isotope data and feldspar Pb–Pb data. These tables are uploaded separately in XLSX format. Abstract for "Ediacaran–Cambrian high-strain melt-present deformation of the Archean Charcot Province, East Antarctica” in review with AGU Tectonics: The assembly of Gondwana involved several Pan-African orogens, although their extension into ice-covered Antarctica remains contentious. Particularly problematic is our understanding of the Kuunga orogenic system in East Antarctica, including its eroded architecture and temporal evolution. The remote Charcot Province, at the easternmost extent of the Antarctic Kuunga Orogen, presents a key opportunity to test recent tectonic models. Here we investigate the geological history of Alligator Island, a rarely visited exposure of the Charcot Province. Field relationships, petrography and zircon U–Pb–Hf geochronology indicate that the Alligator Island migmatitic gneisses originated from a Mesoarchean (c. 2.97–2.95 Ga) volcano-sedimentary package. Metamorphism during the Neoarchean (c. 2.76 Ga) was characterised by channelled melt migration. An apparent tectonic quiescence followed until the Ediacaran–Cambrian (580–540 Ma) when high-strain melt-present deformation led to pervasive migmatitic textures and tight folding. Zircon Hf isotopic signatures from anatectic 580–540 Ma grains indicate that melt was sourced from crust older than 3.0 Ga. Melt metasomatism affected whole rock chemistry and feldspar Pb–Pb compositions highlighting complex interactions within the crust. Correlations within the Charcot Province suggest that Alligator Island's Mesoarchean volcano-sedimentary package was deposited on a basement complex possibly represented by Paleo-Mesoarchean gneisses exposed 40–60 km to the east at Cape Charcot and Davis Peninsula. Overall our findings are consistent with a recent model in which Charcot Province rocks formed through gravitational spreading within the Kuunga orogenic system during Gondwana assembly, and enhance our understanding of the tectonic processes shaping East Antarctica.

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.