Geomorphic diversity and complexity of the inner shelf, Canadian Arctic Archipelago, based on LiDAR and multibeam sonar surveys

• Main Authors: Shaw, John, Potter, D. Patrick, Wu, Yongsheng
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: unknown
• Published: NRC Research Press (a division of Canadian Science Publishing) 2019
• Subjects: Arctic; Canada; Canadian Arctic Archipelago; Gjoa Haven; King William Island; Nunavut; William Island; Arctic Archipelago; Iceberg*; Sea ice
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/1807/98744; http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/doi/abs/10.1139/cjes-2018-0312

Data from two surveys by multibeam sonar and two by marine/terrestrial LiDAR are used to evaluate the geomorphology of the seafloor in littoral areas of the Canadian Arctic Channels, near King William Island, Nunavut. Submarine terrains show well-preserved glacial landforms (drumlins, mega-scale glacial lineations, iceberg-turbated terrain, recessional moraines, and glaciofluvial landforms) with only slight modification by modern processes (wave action and sea-ice activity). At Gjoa Haven the seafloor is imprinted by fields of pits 2 m-wide and 0.15 m-deep. They may result from gas hydrate dissolution triggered by falling relative sea levels. The Arctic Archipelago displays what might be termed â inverted terrainsâ : marine terrains, chiefly beach ridge complexes, exist above modern sea level and well-preserved glacial terrains are present below modern sea level. This is the inverse of the submerging regimes of Atlantic Canada, where glacial terrains exist on land, but below sea level they have been effaced and modified by marine processes down to the lowstand depth. The accepted manuscript in pdf format is listed with the files at the bottom of this page. The presentation of the authors' names and (or) special characters in the title of the manuscript may differ slightly between what is listed on this page and what is listed in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript; that in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript is what was submitted by the author.