Wollongong seabed landforms derived from multibeam echosounder data 2022

Multibeam echosounder (MBES) bathymetry data were collected offshore of Wollongong, NSW in 2016-17. Bathymetry data coverage extends from Bellambi Point to Port Kembla, and ranges from 4 to 62 m depth. This dataset represents a classification of seabed landforms derived from this MBES, which delineates the prominent seabed features observed. This classification defines areas of reefs, peaks, plains, scarps, depressions and channels. Features were classified using the Seabed Landforms Classification Toolset developed for ArcGIS by the Coastal and Marine Unit, DPE (Linklater and Morris, 2022). These classification tools will be made publicly available in due course.

A preliminary classification of this Wollongong survey was presented in Linklater et al. (2019), and this classification represents the final interpreted product for this survey. This dataset contributes toward an understanding of the distribution of submerged reefs along the NSW coast, which provides fundamental baseline information for managers, users and custodians of the marine environment.

The source MBES dataset for this classification is available on the Australian Ocean Data Network portal: https://portal.aodn.org.au/

Linklater, M. and Morris, B. (2022), Classification of seabed landforms on continental and island shelves. Manuscript in preparation.

Linklater, M., Ingleton, T. C., Kinsela, M. A., Morris, B. D., Allen, K. M., Sutherland, M. D., & Hanslow, D. J. 2019. Techniques for classifying seabed morphology and composition on a subtropical-temperate continental shelf. Geosciences, 9(3), 141.