Late Pleistocene and Holocene depositional systems and the palaeogeography of the Dogger Bank, North Sea

Abstract

Abstract3D seismic data from the Dogger Bank, North Sea, allow the mapping of Late Pleistocene and Holocene depositional systems in unprecedented detail. The data demonstrate that glacial processes resulted in the development of incised tunnel valley systems during the Weichselian and that these were subsequently modified by fluvial processes in a pro-glacial setting. Subsequently, the Dogger Bank formed an emergent plain during the Holocene with a complex meandering river system, associated tributary or distributary channels and lakes, dominating the region. Prior to the sea level rising sufficiently to submerge the Dogger Bank around 7500 yr ago, the meandering river system was replaced by a dendritic channel network of potential fluvial, estuarine or intertidal origin. As the Holocene depositional features bear no systematic relationship to the bathymetry this study demonstrates that previously published bathymetry-based models for the Holocene palaeogeographic development of the North Sea require modification.

The catastrophic final flooding of Doggerland by the Storegga Slide tsunami

“…sandbanks, slopes, smaller and larger water channels). As documented for the 1992 Indonesian tsunami, this combination of major 'runin' and locally extreme 'runup' effects could also be expected for the Storegga Slide tsunami in the southern North Sea, and here most likely in the fjords of Jutland, or in the tunnel valleys found by 3D-seismic surveying in Late Holocene Doggerland (Fitch et al 2005). In search of these areas, a closer look at Figure 4 reveals that quite a number of the red areas indeed put focus on such coastal sections (recognisable by the bending-in of the red areas), where underwater bathymetry would magnify the incoming waves.…”

“…Recent work has taken an entirely different approach to reconstructing the history of Doggerland, building on the unique opportunities offered by 3D seismic analysis of submerged North Sea sediments, as made available by petroleum-exploration companies (Fitch et al 2005;Gaffney et al 2007). …”

“…in the submerged North Sea of complex meandering river systems, with major and secondary channel belts, tunnel valleys, possible estuarine or intertidal settings, sand banks, and lakes, as revealed at high vertical and horizontal resolution at different depths, times, and stratigraphic settings, for the Early Holocene deposits (Fitch et al 2005;Gaffney et al 2007). However, before integrating the bathymetric and 3D seismic data, we must await additional information, especially concerning the precise timing of the different stratigraphic settings.…”

Phytolith aided paleoenvironmental studies fromthe Dutch Neolithic

“…Our study material comes from the site of Swifterbant S4 (Swifterbant Culture as the first farming groups in the area) [2,3,5,6,11,12,20,21]. During the Late Pleistocene the site was located deep in the heart of the continent several hundred kms away from the seashore southeast of the Doggerland Peninsula, which occupied the North Sea at the time [22]. Certain researchers connected the inundation of the area of Doggerland to a catastrophic event: the Storega Slide tsunami (8200 cal BC) [23].…”

3D geology in a 2D country: perspectives for geological surveying in the Netherlands

“…Although useful in providing the overall geological setting of sites or transects, they could not provide the detail required by the modern end user. In recent years, dense 2D seismic grids, particularly near the coast, and 3D seismic time slices have allowed us to zoom in to the sub-km scale (Rieu et al, 2005;Fitch et al, 2005;Fig. 11).…”