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Mapping the ocean floor

Created 26/03/2026

Updated 26/03/2026

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Have you ever wondered how we know the depth of the ocean? Sonar is the main technology used investigate the location of submarine canyons, seamounts, abyssal plains and if the seafloor is sand or rock. This activity builds understanding of sonar technique and applications through a) processing and plotting provided data to discover a seafloor feature or shipwreck, and b) bouncing balls on different surfaces and analysing rebound, relating this to ground hardness then extend understanding to ‘backscatter’ in bathymetry surveys. It is suitable for middle secondary students, but could be extended for senior students of Earth science, marine science/oceanography, and physics.

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Additional Info

Field Value
Title Mapping the ocean floor
Language eng
Licence Not Specified
Landing Page https://data.gov.au/data/dataset/2c27cb7f-a464-48a0-823b-6dcde177114e
Contact Point
Geoscience Australia Data
clientservices@ga.gov.au
Reference Period 07/08/2025
Geospatial Coverage
Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors
{
  "coordinates": [
    [
      [
        112.0,
        -44.0
      ],
      [
        154.0,
        -44.0
      ],
      [
        154.0,
        -9.0
      ],
      [
        112.0,
        -9.0
      ],
      [
        112.0,
        -44.0
      ]
    ]
  ],
  "type": "Polygon"
}
Data Portal Data.gov.au