Australian Stratigraphic Units Database

Please send completed definition cards to:

By Email: 	stratnames@ga.gov.au

By Mail:	Cathy Brown
		Convenor - Australian Stratigraphy Commission
		c/- Geoscience Australia
GPO Box 378
CANBERRA ACT 2601
Australia

Please note all unit definitions should be approved by your State Subcommission Convenor.

For assistance completing definition cards please contact the ASC convenor on the above email address or phone (02) 6249 9111, or contact your state Stratigraphy Subcommission Convenor 
(https://www.ga.gov.au/data-pubs/datastandards/stratigraphic-units/stratigraphy-commission)

Not all fields will relate to every unit being defined. The criteria and notes below will give you a general guide of the criteria required for your unit.

All fields have a maximum size limit of 3000 characters, including spaces.

Notes on Essential Criteria for Definition of Lithostratigraphic Units

1.	Essential for all units
2.	Essential only for formation and members
3.	Essential only for groups, subgroups, supergroups, formations, supersuites and suites which have named constituent units at the time of definition. Note: no unit above the rank of ‘formation’ should be established without having constituent units.

All other criteria, though not essential, are highly desirable if relevant and known.
	
HELP FOR COMPLETING THE
 LITHOSTRATIGRAPHIC UNIT DEFINITION CARD	
NAME OF UNIT 1: ensure that the geographic part of the unit name has not been used for another unit before naming this unit. Check availability here: https://asud.ga.gov.au/
 Reserve the name before you write the definition.	
STATE(S)1: in which state(s) or territories of Australia does this unit occur?	
STATUS OF UNIT 1: New name; variation of published name; redefinition of unit 	
RANK1: Stratigraphic rank: Supergroup, group, subgroup, formation, member, bed
	  Chemical rank: Supersuite, suite	
PROPOSER (or Definition author, if not a new name) 1: Name and organisation	DEFINITION DATE: preferred format is dd-mmm-yyyy	
RESERVED IN AUSTRALIAN STRATIGRAPHIC UNITS DATABASE: YES/NO
(see https://asud.ga.gov.au/unit-reservation)	
PROPOSED PUBLICATION: Where do you intend to publish this lithostratigraphic unit definition?	

DEFINITION	
DERIVATION OF NAME 1: the geographic feature (or other source) from which the name is taken, giving geographic co-ordinates where possible.	
SYNONYMY, UNIT NAME HISTORY (if any) 1: any variations on the name, or other names used that include descriptions of this unit, prior to this definition, i.e. history of recognition and description of this unit	
CONSTITUENT UNITS: essential only for groups, suites, subgroups, supergroups, supersuites and formations which have named members at the time of definition. Note: no unit above the rank of ‘formation’ should be established without having constituent units. This includes Suites and Supersuites.	
PARENT UNIT: if a unit is part of another higher ranking unit, this is the ‘parent’, eg a Formation may be part of a parent Group, a Granite part of a parent Suite. Essential for units which have a named stratigraphic and/or chemical parent at the time of definition.	
TYPE LOCALITY (including Lat. & Long.) 2: geographic and geological designation of type section (stratotype) or type locality. Geographic co-ordinates, or GDA94 grid co-ordinates, plus an indication of the means of access to the site. 	
CONFIDENTIAL TYPE LOCALITY? 2: Yes / No.  If Yes, give reasons.  Designed to protect important sites threatened by overuse or vandalism.  Not to be used for concealment of private research.  Confidential type locations will not be made public.	
DESCRIPTION AT TYPE LOCALITY 2:  The International Stratigraphic Guide requires “a statement summarizing the total content of a lithostratigraphic unit”.  May include a type section illustration.  Use the fields provided below for Lithology, Thickness, Fossils, Diastems, Relationships & Boundary Criteria, and Distinguishing or Identifying Features. While it is only required to use these fields to describe a unit at the type locality, it is highly desirable to extend the use of these fields to also describe any additional features that are not found at the type locality.	
LITHOLOGY 2: what rock types are present in this unit at the type locality?  In what proportions? Relationships between them, eg banding, lenses? May be extended to also describe the lithology of the unit as a whole. 	
THICKNESS 2: at type locality/type section. If not known, this should be stated. Not relevant for intrusive igneous units. See also THICKNESS VARIATIONS below.	
FOSSILS (if relevant ): at type locality.  Essential only if fossils are a diagnostic or noteworthy component.  Detailed species lists are not required (but may be given).  The degree of detail necessary will vary from only giving the phylums present to naming particular species which have a crucial stratigraphic significance. May be extended to also describe significant fossils found elsewhere in the unit.	
DIASTEMS OR HIATUSES (if relevant): at type locality.  Minor interruptions in deposition that may be of limited lateral extent or interruptions in the continuity of the geological record indicating a period of no deposition or erosion. May be extended to also describe significant diastems or hiatuses found elsewhere in the unit.	
RELATIONSHIPS & BOUNDARY CRITERIA 2: at type locality.  How are the unit boundaries identified? What kinds of boundaries are there (sharp, transitional, unconformable, intrusive, etc.), and with which other units? If boundaries not exposed, this should be stated. May be extended to also describe relationships found elsewhere at unit boundaries.	
DISTINGUISHING OR IDENTIFYING FEATURES 1:  at type locality.  Any particularly identifying features of the unit which differentiate it from its surrounding units. May be extended to also describe any distinguishing features found elsewhere in the unit.	
AGE & EVIDENCE 2:  the age range of the unit, and how that age was determined (eg, fossils in this unit or surrounding units, numerical age determinations made by isotopic or other means, age inferred from relationships with other units, or by correlation with other units, of known age).	
CORRELATION WITH OTHER UNITS 2:  correlated or equivalent units and the reasons for relating them (eg, fossils, lithology, geochronology, structural style). 	
REGIONAL ASPECTS/GENERAL GEOLOGICAL DESCRIPTION:  criteria to be used in identifying and extending the unit geographically away from the type section or type locality. Should include any distinctive regional aspects not found at the type locality.  Use other specific fields where available.	
GEOGRAPHIC EXTENT:  a description of the geographic extent or distribution of the unit.	
GEOMORPHIC EXPRESSION: a description of the geomorphology (ie: outcrop character, land forms) of this unit, especially if distinctive compared with that of adjacent units.	
THICKNESS VARIATIONS: maximum, minimum and typical thickness of unit; regional variations in thickness 	
STRUCTURE AND METAMORPHISM:  primary structures, textures, structural attitude, characteristic deformation styles, metamorphic grade of the unit	
ALTERATION AND MINERALISATION:  description of significant alteration and mineralisation present in the unit.	
GEOPHYSICAL EXPRESSION:  a summary description of the geophysical character of the unit, particularly if the unit is predominantly concealed.	
GEOCHEMISTRY: a summary description of the geochemical composition of the unit	
GENESIS/DEPOSITIONAL ENVIRONMENT or setting: if appropriate, and how determined eg sedimentary structures, composition, grainsize, crystallinity, cooling history, geochemical analyses	
COMMENTS:  anything else significant about the unit, such as geological or environmental hazards, or about this definition	
REFERENCES 1:  if published articles, reports or maps exist, give full bibliographic reference details, or author, year and article number from a Geoscience Australia database, if known.	

(for subcommittee use only)
Definition approved by: 

QLD / NSW / ACT / VIC / TAS / SA / WA  / NT  Stratigraphic Names Subcommittee 
(delete where inapplicable)	
Date: 	

(for registry use only)
Name first published by: 	
Definition by: