Wallaby Plateau

The Wallaby Plateau, which is also known as the Cuvier Plateau, is a large bathymetric high that is located about 450 kilometres (280 mi) west of Carnarvon, Western Australia. The Wallaby Plateau covers approximately 100,000 km2 (39,000 sq mi) and lies in water depths of 2,200 meters (7,200 ft) to greater than 5,000 meters (16,000 ft). In the west, the Wallaby Plateau is separated from the Zenith Plateau by a 100–150-kilometre (62–93 mi) wide, north to northeast-trending bathymetric trough.[1][2] Wallaby Plateau is the name used by the Australian geologists and government for this undersea plateau.[2] This name was first used in a Hartog AGSO bathymetric map and formally recognized in a peer-reviewed paper by Symonds and Cameron in 1977.[3] In contrast, the internationally recognized name for it is Cuvier Plateau. Cuvier is a historical name that is presumably derived from the adjacent Cape Cuvier. Cape Cuvier was named for Georges Cuvier, zoologist and statesman, by a French expedition led by Baudin in 1800 – 1803.[4] The Wallaby Plateau lies inside the Australian Exclusive Economic Zone.[2]

The Wallaby Plateau largely lies within the Australia’s extended continental shelf. It apparently consists of attenuated continental crust which is buried beneath a thick sequence of volcanic rocks that are blanketed by marine sediments.[2][5]

References

  1. ↑ British Oceanographic Data Centre, 2003, GEBCO Digital Atlas. British Oceanographic Data Centre, National Environment Research Council, United Kingdom.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Geoscience Australia, 2012, Wallaby Plateau. Offshore Southwest Australia. Geoscience Australia, Canberra, Australia.
  3. ↑ Symonds, P.A., and P. J. Cameron, 1977, The structure and stratigraphy of the Carnarvon Terrace and Wallaby Plateau. The APEA Journal. vol. 17, pp. 30–41.
  4. ↑ British Oceanographic Data Centre, 2010, IHO-IOC GEBCO Gazetteer of Undersea Feature Names, August 2010 version. British Oceanographic Data Centre, National Environment Research Council, United Kingdom.
  5. ↑ Nelson, G., M. Hughes, R. Przeslawski, S. Nichol, B. Lewis, and K. Rawsthorn, 2006, Revealing the Wallaby Plateau. AusGeo News. no. 94, pp. 1-4.

Coordinates: 24°18′S 108°24′E / 24.300°S 108.400°E / -24.300; 108.400

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