First Australian computer-drafted map of Southern Cross region

The Southern Cross region has scored a first in Australia with a map of the area being drafted totally by computer.

It was mapped by the Mines Department's Geological Survey Division and computer drafted by the Surveys and Mapping Division.

Mines Minister Gordon Hill said the CHERITONS FIND map, on a scale of 1:100,000, showed that state-of-the-art technology was now available in cartography.

"Although the production of geological maps is extremely difficult to do fully by computer, the division has managed to solve a series of complex problems and produce a first for Australia," he said.

"Already CHERITONS FIND is being regarded as a major success in cartographic circles and has put the Mines Department's success at the forefront of cartography."

He said the achievement meant that future maps would be produced much more quickly and the information made available in both hard copy and digital format.

The map was produced with the co-operation of the Department of Land Administration, the West Australian Water Authority and the Bureau of Mineral Resources in Canberra.

The BMR provided final plate plotting facilities as an exercise for the National Geoscience Mapping Accord.

Copies of the map can be bought from the Mines Department's head office at Mineral House, corner Plain Street and Adelaide Terrace, East Perth.