A storm-related origin for the Jurassic Brentskardhaugen Bed of Spitsbergen, Norway

• Published in: Polar Research
• Main Author: Maher Jr., Harmon D.
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Norwegian Polar Institute 1989
• Subjects: Norway; Brentskardhaugen; Polar Research; Spitsbergen
• Online Access: https://polarresearch.net/index.php/polar/article/view/2404; https://doi.org/10.3402/polar.v7i1.6831

The laterally persistent but thin, Jurassic age (Bathonian-Callovian) Brentskardhaugen bed is poorly sorted (often with mud to cobble size), and is crudely normally and/or reversely graded without internal discontinuities. These traits may indicate a short-lived depositional event, and are inconsistent with an origin as a basal, transgressive gravel lag formed in a terrestrial or shoreline setting. Mega-storm events on a shallow marine shelf with an underlying condensed section may account for the poor sorting, grading, stratigraphic position and remanie character of the bed.