This resource includes bathymetry data acquired during the Northern Depths of the Great Barrier Reef survey on RV Falkor using its Kongsberg EM302 multibeam sonar system. The EM710 data acquired on this survey will be included in a future release. The primary objective of the survey was to explore the Cape York Peninsula region, through geophysical mapping of the shelf edge and continental slope adjacent to the barrier reefs and around the seven detached reefs lying north of Cape Weymouth, including within the large Wreck Bay. The offshore Cape York area is considered a frontier marine region with very little multibeam data collected previously in this far northern section of the Great Barrier Reef. The survey aimed to reveal the full inventory of submarine canyons, drowned reefs and any other significant seabed features in the region. A secondary objective was to conduct geophysical mapping of the Swain slide, an underwater landslide on the slope adjacent to the Swain Reefs in the southern Great Barrier Reef, with a headscarp about 10 km wide and a debris field extending ~20 km from the headscarp. The mapping aimed to reveal the full extent of the debris field and nature of the debris material proximal to the headscarp. Another objective was to conduct geophysical mapping around the steeper slopes around reefs in the eastern Coral Sea Marine Park, including the Saumarez, Frederick, Kenn, Wreck and Cato Reefs. The mapping aimed to fill data gaps between existing airborne LIDAR bathymetry over the shallow reefs and previously collected multibeam data around the steeper flanks. To achieve these objectives, the survey extended over 47 days, leaving Brisbane, Australia on September 30, 2020 and returning to Brisbane, Australia on November 17, 2020. The voyage was split into three legs, with port calls made at Cairns and Horn Island in the Torres Strait. Geophysical mapping involved the use of both Kongsberg EM302 and EM710 multibeam systems on the RV Falkor, typically operated in Dual Swath mode. In depths deeper than ~1200 m, the EM710 was turned off. Backscatter and water column data were also collected on both multibeam systems. This V1 dataset contains two 64m resolution 32-bit geotiff files of the FK200930 survey area produced from the processed EM302 only bathymetry data. This dataset is not to be used for navigational purposes. This dataset is published with the permission of the CEO, Geoscience Australia.

​​The Port Fairy to Portland bathymetry survey was acquired by Deakin University Marine Mapping lab onboard the M/V Yolla over 6 days in 2020 using a Kongsberg EM2040C. This survey was part of the Victorian Coastal Monitoring Program, which requires bathymetry data to understand offshore sediment dynamics within Victorian coastal waters. This dataset contains a 2m-resolution 32-bit floating point GeoTIFF file of the bathymetry in the study area, derived from the bathymetry data processed using CARIS HIPS and SIPS software. This dataset is not to be used for navigational purposes.

This resource includes backscatter data for Arafura Marine Park (Arafura Sea) collected by Geoscience Australia (GA) and the Australian Institute of Marine Science during the period 2 – 15 November 2020 on the RV Solander. The survey was undertaken as a collaborative project funded through the National Environmental Science Program Marine Biodiversity Hub, with co-investment by GA and AIMS. The purpose of the project was to build baseline information for benthic habitats in Arafura Marine Park that will support ongoing environmental monitoring within the North Marine Park Network as part of the 10-year management plan (2018-2028). Data acquisition for the project included multibeam bathymetry and backscatter for two areas (Money Shoal and Pillar Bank), seabed samples and underwater imagery of benthic communities and demersal fish. This backscatter dataset contains two 32-bit geotiff files of the backscatter mosaic for two survey areas produced from the processed EM2040C Dual Head system using the CMST-GA MB Process v15.04.04.0 (x64) toolbox software co-developed by the Centre for Marine Science and Technology at Curtin University and Geoscience Australia. A detailed report on the survey is provided in: Picard, K. Stowar, M., Roberts, N., Siwabessy, J., Abdul Wahab, M.A., Galaiduk, R., Miller, K., Nichol, S. 2021. Arafura Marine Park Post Survey Report. Report to the National Environmental Science Program, Marine Biodiversity Hub (https://www.nespmarine.edu.au/node/4505).

This resource includes bathymetry data acquired during the Bunurong Marine National Park bathymetry survey acquired by Deakin University Marine Mapping Lab during the period of 14 – 16 June and 21 – 22 September 2017 onboard the MV Yolla using a Kongsberg Maritime EM2040C multibeam sonar. The Bunurong Marine National Park bathymetry survey was led by Dr. Daniel Ierodiaconou (Deakin University). The survey was part of a Parks Victoria project to better understand the habitats and associated biodiversity of Bunurong Marine National Park. This dataset contains a 2m-resolution 32-bit floating point geotiff file of the bathymetry in the study area, derived from the processed EM2040C bathymetry data, using CARIS HIPS and SIPS software. A detailed report on the survey is provided in: Young M, Porskamp P, Murfitt S, Wines S, Tinkler P, Bursic, J., Allan B, Howe S, Whitmarsh S, Pocklington J, Ierodiaconou D 2021. Baseline habitat mapping and enhanced monitoring trials of subtidal and intertidal reef habitats in Victoria’s marine national parks and sanctuaries. Parks Victoria Technical Series 116. This dataset is not to be used for navigational purposes. This dataset is published with the permission of the CEO, Geoscience Australia.

This resource includes bathymetry data acquired during the HMAS Canberra bathymetry survey (GA-4880). Data was acquired by Deakin University on the 3rd of November 2020 onboard the M/V Yolla using a Kongsberg EM2040c sonar system. The objective of this survey was to map the HMAS Canberra wreck. The HMAS Canberra wreck is in Bass Strait between Port Lonsdale and Barwon Heads, Victoria, Australia. This dataset contains a 0.5 m resolution 32-bit geotiff of the HMAS Canberra shipwreck survey area produced from the processed EM2040c bathymetry data of the survey area using CARIS HIPS and SIPS software. This dataset is not to be used for navigational purposes. This dataset is published with the permission of the CEO, Geoscience Australia.

The source code for the AusSeabed Survey Coordination Tool. Code is located at: https://github.com/ausseabed/survey-request-and-planning-tool The AusSeabed Survey Coordination tool (ASB SCT) is a tool designed by GA and FrontierSI in collaboration with the AusSeabed Steering Committee and broader community. Its intent is to provide a location for, and consistency in specification of bathymetric data acquisition for scientific research purposes. As of March 2022, the ASB SCT supports three key functions: 1) Survey Planning: the ASB SCT allows the community to publicise their plans to survey in the Austrlian Marine Estate. The tool ingests a spatial outline of the intended location as well as the target data types and focus for the survey. The tool also collects the contact details for the chief investigator and anticipated survey dates. Once published, the survey plan is visible on the upcoming surveys spatial layer on the AusSeabed portal. 2) Hydroscheme Industry Partnership Program Requests: the ASB SCT hosts the online form for submitting survey requests to the Australian Hydrographic Office (AHO) for consideration by the HydroScheme Industry Partnership Programme. 3) Areas of Interest submission: the ASB SCT ingests submissions that describe a users seabed mapping or biodiversity characterisation data needs and location. This information is useful in identifying regions of mutual interest and boosting collaborative multi-disciplinary surveys. Understanding regions with high levels of overlapping data needs can also help inform high-value survey activities and legacy data release priorities.

Detailed seabed bathymetric data are needed to better understand our marine environment because models of seabed morphology derived from these data provide useful insights into physical processes that act on the seabed and the location of different types of seabed habitats. Lord Howe Island lies approximately 450km off the northern coast of New South Wales. It is a volcanic island with a fringing coral reef on its western shore, and a shallow (20 - 120 m) shelf surrounds the island. Bathymetry data are required in this area to help identify major seabed processes and habitats, especially relict reef structures, and to measure how well physical seabed properties act as surrogates of patterns of biodiversity on this mid-ocean carbonate shelf. The data are also required to enable modelling of tsunami as they interact with the shelf around the island and the coast. This report describes the methodology employed in creating detailed bathymetry data grids of the Lord Howe Island region. It covers data collection, quality control and gridding. Descriptions are provided of each dataset employed, the methods used to integrate the different datasets and the attributes of the new bathymetry models. Four new bathymetry grids are presented, including grids that integrate bathymetry with the island's topography.

A high-resolution multibeam echosounder (MBES) dataset covering over 279,000 km2 was acquired in the southeastern Indian Ocean to assist the search for Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 (MH370) that disappeared on 8 March 2014. The data provided an essential geospatial framework for the search and is the first large-scale coverage of MBES data in this region. Here we report on geomorphic analyses of the new MBES data, including a comparison with the Global Seafloor Geomorphic Features Map (GSFM) that is based on coarser resolution satellite altimetry data, and the insights the new data provide into geological processes that have formed and are currently shaping this remote deepsea area. Our comparison between the new MBES bathymetric model and the latest global topographic/bathymetric model (SRTM15_plus) reveals that 62% of the satellite-derived data points for the study area are comparable with MBES measurements within the estimated vertical uncertainty of the SRTM15_plus model (± 100 m). However, > 38% of the SRTM15_plus depth estimates disagree with the MBES data by > 100 m, in places by up to 1900 m. The new MBES data show that abyssal plains and basins in the study area are significantly more rugged than their representation in the GSFM, with a 20% increase in the extent of hills and mountains. The new model also reveals four times more seamounts than presented in the GSFM, suggesting more of these features than previously estimated for the broader region. This is important considering the ecological significance of high-relief structures on the seabed, such as hosting high levels of biodiversity. Analyses of the new data also enabled sea knolls, fans, valleys, canyons, troughs, and holes to be identified, doubling the number of discrete features mapped. Importantly, mapping the study area using MBES data improves our understanding of the geological evolution of the region and reveals a range of modern sedimentary processes. For example, a large series of ridges extending over approximately 20% of the mapped area, in places capped by sea knolls, highlight the preserved seafloor spreading fabric and provide valuable insights into Southeast Indian Ridge seafloor spreading processes, especially volcanism. Rifting is also recorded along the Broken Ridge – Diamantina Escarpment, with rift blocks and well-bedded sedimentary bedrock outcrops discernible down to 2400 m water depth. Modern ocean floor sedimentary processes are documented by sediment mass transport features, especially along the northern margin of Broken Ridge, and in pockmarks (the finest-scale features mapped), which are numerous south of Diamantina Trench and appear to record gas and/or fluid discharge from underlying marine sediments. The new MBES data highlight the complexity of the search area and serve to demonstrate how little we know about the vast areas of the ocean that have not been mapped with MBES. The availability of high-resolution and accurate maps of the ocean floor can clearly provide new insights into the Earth's geological evolution, modern ocean floor processes, and the location of sites that are likely to have relatively high biodiversity. <b>Citation:</b> Kim Picard, Brendan P. Brooke, Peter T. Harris, Paulus J.W. Siwabessy, Millard F. Coffin, Maggie Tran, Michele Spinoccia, Jonathan Weales, Miles Macmillan-Lawler, Jonah Sullivan, Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 search data reveal geomorphology and seafloor processes in the remote southeast Indian Ocean, <i>Marine Geology</i>, Volume 395, 2018, Pages 301-319, ISSN 0025-3227, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.margeo.2017.10.014.

The Approaches to Darwin, Beagle Gulf bathymetry survey was acquired for the Australian Hydrographic Office (AHO) onboard the M/V Limitless and PHS Zephyr during the period 26 June – 30 August 2020. This was a contracted survey conducted as part of the HydroScheme Industry Partnership Program (HIPP). The survey area lies North-West of Cox Peninsula, encompassing South Gutter and is bounded by North Gutter, Fenton Patches and Fish Reef. Bathymetry data was acquired using a Kongsberg R2Sonic 2026 and R2Sonic 2024 and processed using QPS Qimera V2.0.1. The dataset was then exported to GeoTIFF using CARIS HIPS and SIPS software. This dataset contains a 30m-resolution 32-bit floating point GeoTIFF file. This dataset is not to be used for navigation.

<b>This record was superseded on 11/11/2022 with approval from Director, National Seabed Mapping as it has been superseded by eCat 147191</b> Seabed mapping data collected using a Kongsberg 2040C multibeam sonar system aboard research vessel MVYolla including bathymetry (2 metre resolution), backscatter (1metre resolution), watercolumn and preliminary hard bottom classification. Seabed mapping in Apollo Marine Park with 114 square kilometres of continuous seabed mapping conducted by Deakin University in partnership with iXblue for Parks Australia.