Carnarvon Shelf reef polygons were manually digitized from multibeam echosounder datasets collected on marine survey GA0308 in August/September 2008. Reef areas were defined as exposed, hard substrate that are often raised above the surrounding seafloor. They were mapped using bathymetry and backscatter data along with bathymetric derivatives including; slope, hillshaded bathymetry and contours. Features were mapped at a scale of 1:10 000. This dataset is published with the permission of the CEO, Geoscience Australia.

This resource contains geochemistry data for the Oceanic Shoals Commonwealth Marine Reserve (CMR) in the Timor Sea collected by Geoscience Australia during September and October 2012 on RV Solander (survey GA0339/SOL5650). This resource comprise organic carbon and nitrogen concetrations and isotopes and specifi surface areas of the mud fraction (<63 um) of the upper 2 cm of seabed sediments . The Oceanic Shoals Commonwealth Marine Reserve survey was undertaken as an activity within the Australian Government's National Environmental Research Program Marine Biodiversity Hub and was the key component of Research Theme 4 - Regional Biodiversity Discovery to Support Marine Bioregional Plans. Hub partners involved in the survey included the Australian Institute of Marine Science, Geoscience Australia, the University of Western Australia, Museum Victoria and the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory. Data acquired during the survey included: multibeam sonar bathymetry and acoustic backscatter; sub-bottom acoustic profiles; physical samples of seabed sediments, infauna and epibenthic biota; towed underwater video and still camera observations of seabed habitats; baited video observations of demersal and pelagic fish, and; oceanographic measurements of the water column from CTD (conductivity, temperature, depth) casts and from deployment of sea surface drifters. Further information on the survey is available in the post-survey report published as Geoscience Australia Record 2013/38: Nichol, S.L., Howard, F.J.F., Kool, J., Stowar, M., Bouchet, P., Radke, L., Siwabessy, J., Przeslawski, R., Picard, K., Alvarez de Glasby, B., Colquhoun, J., Letessier, T. & Heyward, A. 2013. Oceanic Shoals Commonwealth Marine Reserve (Timor Sea) Biodiversity Survey: GA0339/SOL5650 - Post Survey Report. Record 2013/38. Geoscience Australia: Canberra. (GEOCAT #76658).

In March and April, 2012, Geoscience Australia undertook a seabed characterisation survey, aimed at supporting the assessment of CO2 storage potential of the Vlaming Sub-basin, Western Australia. The survey, undertaken as part of the National CO2 Infrastructure Plan program was targeted to provide an understanding of the link between the deep geological features of the area and the seabed, and connectivity between them as possible evidence for seal integrity. Data was acquired in two sections of the Rottnest Shelf lying above the regional seal - the South Perth Shale - and the underlying potentially CO2-suitable reservoir, the Gage Sandstone. Seabed samples were taken from 43 stations, and included 89 seabed grab samples. A total of 653 km2 of multibeam and backscatter data was obtained. Chirper shallow sub-bottom profile data was acquired concurrently. 6.65 km2 of side-scan sonar imagery was also obtained. The two surveyed areas, (Area 1 and Area 2), are set within a shallow sediment starved shelf setting. Area 2, situated to the southwest of Rottnest Island, is characterised by coralline red algal (rhodolith) beds, with ridges and mounds having significant rhodolith accumulations. The geomorphic expression of structural discontinuities outcropping at the seabed is evident by the presence of linear fault-like structures notable in Area 1, and north-south trending lineaments in Area 2. North-south trending structural lineaments on the outer section of Area 2 have in places, mounds standing 4-5 m above the seafloor in water depths of 80-85 m. Although there are apparent spatial correlations between seabed geomorphology and the structural geology of the basin, the precise relationship between ridges and mounds that are overlain by rhodolith accumulations, fluid seepage, and Vlaming Sub-basin geology is uncertain, and requires further work to elucidate any links.

Multibeam sonar mapping, drill cores and underwater video data have confirmed the existence of a previously unknown reef province in the Gulf of Carpentaria, Australia. Seven reefs, comprised of coral limestone that support living corals have been mapped so far and as many as 50 other reefs may exist in the region. U/Th ages show that reef growth commenced shortly after limestone pedestals were submerged by rising sea level around 10.5 kyr BP, making them the oldest reefs known in Australia. Reef growth persisted for ~2.0 kyr but it had ceased at most locations by ~8.0 kyr BP. Measurements of reef growth rates (0.95 to 4 m kyr-1), indicate that the reefs were unable to keep pace with contemporaneous rapid sea level rise (>10 m kyr-1), which is consistent with a 'give up' reef growth history. Core samples from reef platforms demonstrate that Pleistocene limestone is exposed in depths of 27 and 30 m below present mean sea level. These depths represent regionally significant phases of reef growth during a prolonged sea level still stand. We conclude that the reefs are therefore mostly relict features, whose major phase of growth and development relates to an earlier, pre-Holocene sea level stillstand.

Dense hydrocoral-sponge communities have been identified on the upper continental slope of George V Land, East Antarctica and declared Vulnerable Marine Ecosystems. Analysis of physical and biological datasets collected during the 2007/08 CEAMARC survey identified that the richest communities are found in the heads of canyons which receive Antarctic Bottom Water formed on the George V shelf, and the canyons harbouring rich benthos are also those that cut the shelf break. This led to several hypotheses regarding their distribution and three main factors were identified. These hypotheses were tested during a recent marine science voyage in January 2011 to the same region. Initial analysis of the new data supports the hypotheses regarding the physical controls on hydrocoral-sponge community distribution.

Australia is increasingly recognised as a global hotspot for sponge biodiversity, with sponges playing key roles in habitat provision, water quality, bioerosion, and biodiscovery. Despite the intense focus on marine resource management in northern Australia, there is a large knowledge gap about sponge communities in this region. This study focuses on shelf environments of the Timor Sea, in particular the Van Diemen Rise and Londonderry Rise which are characterised by extensive carbonate terraces, banks and reefs, separated by soft sediment plains and deeply incised valleys. These carbonate terraces and banks are recognised as a Key Ecological Feature (KEF) in the marine region plans for northern Australia (North and Northwest Marine Regions) and are in part incorporated into the Oceanic Shoals Commonwealth Marine Reserve. To support the management of this marine reserve and its associated KEF, we use new datasets to investigate regional patterns in sponge assemblages and their relationships to seabed geomorphology. To do this, we use sponge assemblage data and multibeam-derived variables (depth, backscatter, slope, geomorphic feature) from seven survey areas located on the Van Diemen Rise (four sites) and Londonderry Rise (three sites), spanning approximately 320 km in an east-west direction. The dataset was collected during three collaborative surveys undertaken in 2009, 2010 and 2012 by Geoscience Australia, the Australian Institute of Marine Science and the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory as part of the Australian Government's Offshore Energy Security Initiative and the National Environmental Research Program Marine Biodiversity Hub. All surveys returned geophysical, biological, geochemical, and sedimentological data. Benthic biota were collected with a benthic sled across a range of geomorphic features (bank, terrace, ridge, plain, valley) identified from high-resolution multibeam sonar. Sponges were then taxonomically identified to 350 species, with the species accumulation curve indicating there may be over 900 sponge species in the region. Sponge assemblages were different between the Van Diemen Rise and Londonderry Rise, as well as between individual banks in the same area, indicating that different suites of species occurred at regional (east-west) and local (between banks) scales. Relationships between sponges and other multibeam-derived variables are more complex and warrant further research. The current study will help: i) facilitate integrated marine management by providing a baseline species inventory; ii) support the listing of carbonate banks of the Timor Sea shelf as a Key Ecological Feature, and; iii) inform future monitoring of marine protected area performance, particularly for areas of complex seabed geomorphology.

Geoscience Australia undertook a marine survey of the Leveque Shelf (survey number SOL5754/GA0340), a sub-basin of the Browse Basin, in May 2013. This survey provides seabed and shallow geological information to support an assessment of the CO2 storage potential of the Browse sedimentary basin. The basin, located on the Northwest Shelf, Western Australia, was previously identified by the Carbon Storage Taskforce (2009) as potentially suitable for CO2 storage. The survey was undertaken under the Australian Government's National CO2 Infrastructure Plan (NCIP) to help identify sites suitable for the long term storage of CO2 within reasonable distances of major sources of CO2 emissions. The principal aim of the Leveque Shelf marine survey was to look for evidence of any past or current gas or fluid seepage at the seabed, and to determine whether these features are related to structures (e.g. faults) in the Leveque Shelf area that may extend to the seabed. The survey also mapped seabed habitats and biota to provide information on communities and biophysical features that may be associated with seepage. This research, combined with deeper geological studies undertaken concurrently, addresses key questions on the potential for containment of CO2 in the basin's proposed CO2 storage unit, i.e. the basal sedimentary section (Late Jurassic and Early Cretaceous), and the regional integrity of the Jamieson Formation (the seal unit overlying the main reservoir). This dataset comprises total chlorin concentrations and chlorin indices from the upper 2cm of seabed sediments.

Geoscience Australia undertook a marine survey of the Leveque Shelf (survey number SOL5754/GA0340), a sub-basin of the Browse Basin, in May 2013. This survey provides seabed and shallow geological information to support an assessment of the CO2 storage potential of the Browse sedimentary basin. The basin, located on the Northwest Shelf, Western Australia, was previously identified by the Carbon Storage Taskforce (2009) as potentially suitable for CO2 storage. The survey was undertaken under the Australian Government's National CO2 Infrastructure Plan (NCIP) to help identify sites suitable for the long term storage of CO2 within reasonable distances of major sources of CO2 emissions. The principal aim of the Leveque Shelf marine survey was to look for evidence of any past or current gas or fluid seepage at the seabed, and to determine whether these features are related to structures (e.g. faults) in the Leveque Shelf area that may extend to the seabed. The survey also mapped seabed habitats and biota to provide information on communities and biophysical features that may be associated with seepage. This research, combined with deeper geological studies undertaken concurrently, addresses key questions on the potential for containment of CO2 in the basin's proposed CO2 storage unit, i.e. the basal sedimentary section (Late Jurassic and Early Cretaceous), and the regional integrity of the Jamieson Formation (the seal unit overlying the main reservoir). This dataset comprises total chlorin concentrations and chlorin indices from the upper 2cm of seabed sediments.

Geoscience Australia undertook a marine survey of the Leveque Shelf (survey number SOL5754/GA0340), a sub-basin of the Browse Basin, in May 2013. This survey provides seabed and shallow geological information to support an assessment of the CO2 storage potential of the Browse sedimentary basin. The basin, located on the Northwest Shelf, Western Australia, was previously identified by the Carbon Storage Taskforce (2009) as potentially suitable for CO2 storage. The survey was undertaken under the Australian Government's National CO2 Infrastructure Plan (NCIP) to help identify sites suitable for the long term storage of CO2 within reasonable distances of major sources of CO2 emissions. The principal aim of the Leveque Shelf marine survey was to look for evidence of any past or current gas or fluid seepage at the seabed, and to determine whether these features are related to structures (e.g. faults) in the Leveque Shelf area that may extend to the seabed. The survey also mapped seabed habitats and biota to provide information on communities and biophysical features that may be associated with seepage. This research, combined with deeper geological studies undertaken concurrently, addresses key questions on the potential for containment of CO2 in the basin's proposed CO2 storage unit, i.e. the basal sedimentary section (Late Jurassic and Early Cretaceous), and the regional integrity of the Jamieson Formation (the seal unit overlying the main reservoir). This dataset comprises total chlorin concentrations and chlorin indices from the upper 2cm of seabed sediments.

Geoscience Australia undertook a marine survey of the Leveque Shelf (survey number SOL5754/GA0340), a sub-basin of the Browse Basin, in May 2013. This survey provides seabed and shallow geological information to support an assessment of the CO2 storage potential of the Browse sedimentary basin. The basin, located on the Northwest Shelf, Western Australia, was previously identified by the Carbon Storage Taskforce (2009) as potentially suitable for CO2 storage. The survey was undertaken under the Australian Government's National CO2 Infrastructure Plan (NCIP) to help identify sites suitable for the long term storage of CO2 within reasonable distances of major sources of CO2 emissions. The principal aim of the Leveque Shelf marine survey was to look for evidence of any past or current gas or fluid seepage at the seabed, and to determine whether these features are related to structures (e.g. faults) in the Leveque Shelf area that may extend to the seabed. The survey also mapped seabed habitats and biota to provide information on communities and biophysical features that may be associated with seepage. This research, combined with deeper geological studies undertaken concurrently, addresses key questions on the potential for containment of CO2 in the basin's proposed CO2 storage unit, i.e. the basal sedimentary section (Late Jurassic and Early Cretaceous), and the regional integrity of the Jamieson Formation (the seal unit overlying the main reservoir). This dataset comprises total chlorin concentrations and chlorin indices from the upper 2cm of seabed sediments.