The Historical Bushfire Boundaries service represents the aggregation of jurisdictional supplied burnt areas polygons stemming from the early 1900's through to 2022 (excluding the Northern Territory). The burnt area data represents curated jurisdictional owned polygons of both bushfires and prescribed (planned) burns. To ensure the dataset adhered to the nationally approved and agreed data dictionary for fire history Geoscience Australia had to modify some of the attributes presented. The information provided within this service is reflective only of data supplied by participating authoritative agencies and may or may not represent all fire history within a state.

<p>A methane (CH4) and carbon dioxide (CO2) release experiment was held from April – June 2015 at the Ginninderra Controlled Release Facility in Canberra, Australia. The experiment provided an opportunity to compare different emission quantification techniques against a simulated CH4 and CO2 point source release, where the actual release rates were unknown to the participants. This dataset contains quality controlled 5 minute averaged CH4 concentration and meteorlogical data from 21 May to 12 June for 4 Eddy Covariance towers, 1 scanning Boreal laser, 2 scanning FTIR instruments and 2 Picarro towers. <p>This dataset accompanies the article: Cartwright, L., Zammit-Mangion, A., Bhatia, S., Schroder, I., Phillips, F., Coates, T., Neghandhi, K., Naylor, T., Kennedy, M., Zegelin, S., Wokker, N., Deutscher, N. and Feitz, A. (2019) Bayesian atmospheric tomography for detection and estimation of methane sources: Application to data from the Ginninderra 2015 release experiment, Atmospheric Measurement Techniques (submitted) <p>Dataset citation: <p>Feitz, A., Schroder, I., Phillips, F., Coates, T., Neghandhi, K., Bhatia, S., Naylor, T., Kennedy, M,. Zegelin, S., Wokker, N., Deutscher, N.M., Cartwright, L. and Zammit-Mangion, A. (2019) The 2015 Ginninderra CH4 and CO2 release experiment: Fixed and scanning sensor dataset, Geoscience Australia, DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.26186/5cb7f14abd710

This Carpentaria Basin dataset contains descriptive attribute information for the areas bounded by the relevant spatial groundwater feature in the associated Hydrogeology Index map. Descriptive topics are grouped into the following themes: Location and administration; Demographics; Physical geography; Surface water; Geology; Hydrogeology; Groundwater; Groundwater management and use; Environment; Land use and industry types; and Scientific stimulus. The Carpentaria Basin is a vast intra-cratonic sedimentary basin situated on and offshore in north-eastern Australia, covering around 550,000 square kilometres across Queensland and the Northern Territory. It comprises predominantly sandstone-rich rock units deposited during sea level highs from the Late Jurassic to Mid Cretaceous. The basin overlies a heterogeneous Proterozoic basement and is separated from contemporaneous sedimentary structures by basement highs and inliers. Four main depocentres within the larger Carpentaria Basin form four major sub-basins: the Western Gulf Sub-basin, Staaten Sub-basin, Weipa Sub-basin, and Boomara Sub-basin. While the basin is extensive and continuous in Queensland, it becomes more heterogeneous and discontinuous in the Northern Territory. Remnants of the basin's stratigraphy, referred to as the Dunmarra Basin, are found along the Northern Territory coast and inland. The depositional history commenced during the Jurassic with down warping near Cape York Peninsula, resulting in the Helby beds and Albany Pass beds' concurrent deposition. The basin experienced marine transgressions during the Cretaceous, with the Gilbert River Formation widespread and the Wallumbilla Formation occurring during sea level highs. The Carpentaria Basin's strata are relatively undeformed and unmetamorphosed. The Northern Territory sequence displays slightly different stratigraphy, limited to the height of the Aptian marine transgression above the Georgina Basin. The Walker River Formation and Yirrkala Formation represent key units in this area, outcropping as tablelands and mesas largely unaffected by tectonism.

This Western Australian Fractured Rock Province dataset contains descriptive attribute information for the areas bounded by the relevant spatial groundwater feature in the associated Hydrogeology Index map. Descriptive topics are grouped into the following themes: Location and administration; Demographics; Physical geography; Surface water; Geology; Hydrogeology; Groundwater; Groundwater management and use; Environment; Land use and industry types; and Scientific stimulus. The geological evolution of Australia can be summarised as a west-to-east growth pattern, resulting from the assembly and disintegration of several supercontinents since the Archean era. The oldest rocks are found in Western Australia, specifically within the Western Australia fractured rock province, which consists of two crustal elements: the West Australian Element and the Pinjarra Element. The Yilgarn and Pilbara cratons in the West Australian Element host the oldest rocks in continental Australia, featuring high-grade gneiss belts, granite-greenstone belts, and significant gold and iron ore deposits. The Yilgarn Craton is older in the west and can be divided into several terranes, with the eastern regions hosting world-class gold deposits. The Pilbara Craton, on the other hand, consists of granitoid-greenstone terrain and is rich in banded iron formations, leading to the world's richest iron ore deposits in the Hamersley Basin. The Gascoyne Province forms the medium- to high-grade metamorphic core of the orogeny in the West Australian Element. The Albany-Fraser Orogen and Paterson Orogen joined the West Australian Element with the South Australian and North Australian Elements, respectively, and are characterised by metamorphosed rocks of various facies. The Pinjarra Orogen, situated to the west of the Yilgarn-Pilbara block, contains granulite and amphibolite facies orthogneisses. In the Phanerozoic era, sedimentary cover occurred in various large and smaller basins in Western Australia. The West Australian Element, along with the adjoining orogens, is treated as the West Australian fractured rock province, primarily reliant on weathered and fractured zones for groundwater storage due to low permeability. These cratons and orogens have been exposed since the Precambrian or Late Palaeozoic era, experiencing substantial weathering and river valley development. Modern palaeovalleys are mainly infilled with Cenozoic sediments, while arid conditions have reduced active watercourses, leading to an abundance of Aeolian sand cover. Many of these palaeovalleys are no longer active as rivers but can still be identified topographically. Overall, the geological history of Australia reveals a complex and diverse landscape, with Western Australia playing a significant role in hosting some of the continent's oldest rocks and valuable mineral deposits.

This McArthur Basin dataset contains descriptive attribute information for the areas bounded by the relevant spatial groundwater feature in the associated Hydrogeology Index map. Descriptive topics are grouped into the following themes: Location and administration; Demographics; Physical geography; Surface water; Geology; Hydrogeology; Groundwater; Groundwater management and use; Environment; Land use and industry types; and Scientific stimulus. The McArthur Basin, located in the north-east of the Northern Territory, is a Paleoproterozoic to Mesoproterozoic geological formation containing relatively undisturbed siliclastic and carbonate rocks, as well as minor volcanic and intrusive rocks. These sediments were primarily deposited in shallow marine environments, with some lacustrine and fluvial influences. The basin's thickness is estimated to be around 10,000 m to 12,000 m, potentially reaching 15,000 m in certain areas. It is known for hosting elements of at least two Proterozoic petroleum systems, making it a target for petroleum exploration, especially in the Beetaloo Sub-basin. Researchers have divided the McArthur Basin into five depositional packages based on similarities in age, lithofacies composition, stratigraphic position, and basin-fill geometry. These packages, listed from oldest to youngest, are the Wilton, Favenc, Glyde, Goyder, and Redback packages. The McArthur Basin is part of the broader Proterozoic basin system on the North Australian Craton, bounded by various inliers and extending under sedimentary cover in areas like the Arafura, Georgina, and Carpentaria basins. It is divided into northern and southern sections by the Urapunga Fault Zone, with significant structural features being the Walker Fault Zone in the north and the Batten Fault Zone in the south. The basin's southeastern extension connects with the Isa Superbasin in Queensland, forming the world's largest lead-zinc province. Overall, the McArthur Basin is an essential geological formation with potential petroleum resources, and its division into distinct packages helps in understanding its complex stratigraphy and geological history. Additionally, its connection with other basins contributes to a broader understanding of the region's geological evolution and resource potential.

This Sydney Basin dataset contains descriptive attribute information for the areas bounded by the relevant spatial groundwater feature in the associated Hydrogeology Index map. Descriptive topics are grouped into the following themes: Location and administration; Demographics; Physical geography; Surface water; Geology; Hydrogeology; Groundwater; Groundwater management and use; Environment; Land use and industry types; and Scientific stimulus. The Sydney Basin, part of the Sydney–Gunnedah–Bowen basin system, consists of rocks dating from the Late Carboniferous to Middle Triassic periods. The basin's formation began with extensional rifting during the Late Carboniferous and Early Permian, leading to the creation of north-oriented half-grabens along Australia's eastern coast. A period of thermal relaxation in the mid Permian caused subsidence in the Bowen–Gunnedah–Sydney basin system, followed by thrusting of the New England Orogen from the Late Permian through the Triassic, forming a foreland basin. Deposition in the basin occurred in shallow marine, alluvial, and deltaic environments, resulting in a stratigraphic succession with syn-depositional folds and faults, mostly trending north to north-east. The Lapstone Monocline and Kurrajong Fault separate the Blue Mountains in the west from the Cumberland Plain in the central part of the basin. The Sydney Basin contains widespread coal deposits classified into geographic coalfield areas, including the Southern, Central, Western, Newcastle, and Hunter coalfields. These coalfields are primarily hosted within late Permian strata consisting of interbedded sandstone, coal, siltstone, and claystone units. The coal-bearing formations are grouped based on sub-basins, namely the Illawarra, Tomago, Newcastle, and Wittingham coal measures, underlain by volcanic and marine sedimentary rocks. Deposition within the basin ceased during the Triassic, and post-depositional igneous intrusions (commonly of Jurassic age) formed sills and laccoliths in various parts of the basin. The maximum burial depths for the basin's strata occurred during the early Cretaceous, reaching around 2,000 to 3,000 metres. Subsequent tectonic activity associated with the Tasman Rift extension in the Late Cretaceous and compressional events associated with the convergence between Australia and Indonesia in the Neogene led to uplift and erosion across the basin. These processes have allowed modern depositional environments to create small overlying sedimentary basins within major river valleys and estuaries, along the coast and offshore, and in several topographic depressions such as the Penrith, Fairfield and Botany basins in the area of the Cumberland Plain.

This Canning Basin dataset contains descriptive attribute information for the areas bounded by the relevant spatial groundwater feature in the associated Hydrogeology Index map. Descriptive topics are grouped into the following themes: Location and administration; Demographics; Physical geography; Surface water; Geology; Hydrogeology; Groundwater; Groundwater management and use; Environment; Land use and industry types; and Scientific stimulus. The Canning Basin, characterized by mostly Paleozoic sedimentary rocks with a maximum thickness of over 15,000 m, went through four major depositional phases from Early Ordovician to Early Cretaceous. The basin contains two main depocenters, the Fitzroy Trough-Gregory Sub-basin in the north and the Willara Sub-basin-Kidson Sub-basin in the south. The depositional history includes marine, evaporite, fluvial, deltaic, glacial, and non-marine environments. The basin's evolution began with extension and rapid subsidence in the Early Ordovician, followed by a sag stage with evaporite and playa conditions in the Late Ordovician and Silurian. The Devonian to Early Carboniferous phase involved marine, reef, fluvio-deltaic, and terrestrial sedimentation in the north and marginal marine to terrestrial systems in the south. The Late Carboniferous to mid-Triassic period saw non-marine and marine settings, including glacial environments. The basin then experienced mid-Jurassic to Early Cretaceous deposition, mainly in deltaic and non-marine environments. Throughout its history, the Canning Basin encountered multiple tectonic phases, including extension, compression, inversion, and wrench movements, leading to various depositional settings and sediment types. Around 250 petroleum wells have been drilled in the basin, with production mainly from Permo-Carboniferous sandstones and Devonian carbonates. Several proven and untested plays, such as draped bioherms, anticlinal closures, and fault blocks, provide potential for hydrocarbon exploration. Late Carboniferous and Jurassic mafic sills intersected in wells indicate additional geological complexity. Additionally, some areas of the Canning Basin are considered suitable for CO2 storage.

This Officer Basin dataset contains descriptive attribute information for the areas bounded by the relevant spatial groundwater feature in the associated Hydrogeology Index map. Descriptive topics are grouped into the following themes: Location and administration; Demographics; Physical geography; Surface water; Geology; Hydrogeology; Groundwater; Groundwater management and use; Environment; Land use and industry types; and Scientific stimulus. The Officer Basin is one of Australia's largest intra-cratonic sedimentary basins, spanning approximately 525,000 square kilometres. It contains a thick sedimentary sequence, ranging up to 10,000 m in depth, composed of rocks from the Neoproterozoic to Late Devonian periods. The basin features diverse depositional environments, including marine and non-marine siliclastic and carbonate units, evaporites, and minor volcanic deposits. The Neoproterozoic succession exhibits a range of depositional settings, including pro-delta to shelf, fluvial to shallow marine, lagoonal, glacial, and aeolian systems. The Cambrian to Ordovician sequence reveals evidence of fluvial, shallow marine, aeolian, sabkha to playa, and lacustrine settings. Volcanic rocks occur sporadically within the sequence, like the Cambrian Table Hill Volcanics in WA and the Neoproterozoic Cadlareena Volcanics in SA. The Officer Basin is considered a remnant of the larger Centralian Superbasin that formed during the Neoproterozoic, covering a vast region in central Australia. The Centralian Superbasin formed as a sag basin during the Tonian, accumulating fluvial, marine, and evaporitic sediments, followed by Neoproterozoic glacial deposits. The long-lasting Petermann Orogeny affected the earlier depositional systems, with extensive uplift along the northern margin of the basin leading to deposition of widespread fluvial and marine siliciclastic and carbonate sediments spanning the terminal Proterozoic to Late Cambrian. The Delamerian Orogeny renewed deposition and reactivated existing structures, and promoted extensive basaltic volcanism in the central and western regions of the basin. Later events are a poorly understood stage, though probably involved continued deposition until the Alice Springs Orogeny uplifted the region, terminating sedimentation in the Late Ordovician or Silurian. A suspected Late Devonian extensional event provided space for fluvial siliciclastic sediment deposition in the north-east. Today, the Officer Basin features four distinct structural zones: a marginal overthrust zone along the northern margin, a zone with rupturing by salt diapirs across the main depositional centre, a central thrusted zone, and a broad gently dipping shelf zone that shallows to the south.

This Arafura Basin dataset contains descriptive attribute information for the areas bounded by the relevant spatial groundwater feature in the associated Hydrogeology Index map. Descriptive topics are grouped into the following themes: Location and administration; Demographics; Physical geography; Surface water; Geology; Hydrogeology; Groundwater; Groundwater management and use; Environment; Land use and industry types; and Scientific stimulus. The Arafura Basin is a large intracratonic sedimentary basin along the northern continental margin of Australia. Over 90% of the basin occurs offshore in relatively shallow marine waters of the Arafura Sea, with the basin extending northwards beyond Australia's territorial claim. The southern part of the basin is onshore in northern Arnhem Land. Older Paleo- to Mesoproterozoic rocks of the northern Macarthur Basin underlie most of the onshore basin, whereas Mesozoic and Cenozoic sediments of the Money Shoal Basin unconformably overlie the offshore basin. The sedimentary record of the Arafura Basin spans greater than 250 million years, from the late Neoproterozoic to the early Permian. However, subsidence was episodic and restricted to four main phases of regional subsidence interspersed with relatively long periods of tectonic quiescence. Consequently, the entire sedimentary succession of the basin is relatively structurally conformable. The oldest rocks are the Neoproterozoic to Cambrian Wessel Group. These are overlain by the Middle Cambrian to early Ordovician Goulburn Group, followed by the Late Devonian Arafura Group. The uppermost sequence is Late Carboniferous to early Permian (an equivalent of the Kulshill Group from the neighbouring Bonaparte Basin). The sedimentary rocks of the Arafura Basin are clastic-dominated and include sandstone, shale, limestone, dolostone and minor coal and glacial deposits. Most of the Arafura Basin formed within shallow marine environments, with evidence for fluvial conditions largely restricted to the Carboniferous to Permian rocks. There are no detailed basin-scale studies on the hydrogeology and groundwater systems of the Arafura Basin. Previous hydrogeological investigations by the Northern Territory Government during the 1980s and 1990s focused on groundwater supplies for remote communities such as Maningrida, Galiwinku and Millingimbi. Groundwater for these communities is sourced from fractured rock sandstone aquifers, most likely units of the Arafura Basin such as the Marchinbar Sandstone and Elcho Island Formation of the Wessel Group. The aquifers are fractured and extensively weathered up to 100 metres below surface.

This Geoscience Australia Record documents the scientific analysis undertaken, and results obtained from geodetic monitoring during the Camden Environmental Monitoring Project (CEMP); a collaborative project undertaken with the New South Wales Department of Planning, Industry and Environment. The aim of the CEMP was to determine the environmental impacts, if any, of active coal seam gas extraction projects in New South Wales. Geodetic monitoring, using satellite radar interferometry (InSAR) and Global Positioning System (GPS) measurements, was used to specifically assess if subsidence (downward vertical land movement) is occurring at the Camden Gas Project; at the time the State’s only actively producing coal seam gas project. To address this question, Geoscience Australia undertook a comprehensive InSAR analysis using data sets from three orbiting radar satellites (ALOS, Envisat and Radarsat-2) covering two periods of time (2006 to 2010, and 2015 to 2019). The outputs of this InSAR analysis are vertical and horizontal ground surface displacement and velocity map products, together with a quantification of the uncertainty of these measurements. Furthermore, a new network of 20 ground geodetic monitoring sites was established in May and June 2016 for the purpose of validating measurements made using InSAR. GPS data was collected at these monitoring sites between July 2016 and June 2019 and processed to obtain 3-dimensional ground surface displacement and velocity measurements. From the analysis of independent InSAR and GPS data sets undertaken during the CEMP, we conclude that no measurable subsidence (i.e. a land movement velocity not greater than 10 mm/yr) has occurred as a result of coal seam gas production in the Camden Gas Project during the time periods of monitoring. However, decimetre-scale horizontal and vertical surface movements have occurred in the Southern Coalfields at the locations of subsurface longwall coal mines. Comparison of the measurements made by InSAR and GPS across the 20-site geodetic monitoring network shows that the two independent geodetic techniques agree within 10 millimetres, even when decimetre-scale movement is occurring. This demonstrates the potential for utilising InSAR for accurate remote monitoring of ground surface movements (including subsidence) at large scales and in the absence of sufficient ground geodetic monitoring infrastructure. The conclusions drawn and the measurements made in this work are specific to the area covered by the CEMP geodetic monitoring project, and are therefore not applicable to other resource extraction activities in other areas because of operational and geological differences from site to site. However, the methods described herein would be applicable to monitoring other resource extraction activities.