Ground Penetrating Radar of Paleoblowouts and Transgressive Dunes, Younghusband Peninsula, South Australia

Abstract

Warner, A.L.; Hesp, P.A.; Keane, R., and Gontz, A.M., 2022. Ground penetrating radar of paleoblowouts and transgressive dunes, Younghusband Peninsula, South Australia. Journal of Coastal Research, 38(5), 885–895. Coconut Creek (Florida), ISSN 0749-0208. Ground penetrating radar (GPR) can be used to elucidate the spatial and temporal relationships of paleoshorelines and dunefield evolution and aid in understanding past landscapes in order to help predict future evolutionary pathways of barrier development. GPR was used on the Younghusband Peninsula coast of Southern Australia at a location known as 42 Mile Crossing. The barrier is on the longest beach in Australia and hosts a Holocene transgressive dunefield system. The site also contains many active, modern, and stabilized blowouts. This study aimed to image buried (paleo) blowouts, analyze the subsurface strata of the area, and attempt to relate these findings to the past transgressive dunefield processes, phases, and architecture. The study was able to characterize the buried blowout's shape, size, and dominant wind direction, and the site's stratigraphic evolution.