Paleoproterozoic sedimentary successions are important archives of the redox evolution of Earth’s atmosphere and oceans. Efforts to unravel the dynamics of our planet’s early oxygenation from this archive rely on various geochemical proxies, including stable carbon and sulfur isotopes. However, ancient metasedimentary rocks often experienced early- and late-stage (bio)geochemical processes making ...

<p><i>Background - </i>High primary productivity in the midst of high toxicity defines hydrocarbon seeps; this feature usually results in significantly higher biomass, but in lower diversity communities at seeps rather than in the surrounding non-seep benthos. Qualitative estimates indicate that this dichotomy does not necessarily hold true in high latitude regions with respect to megafauna. Instead, ...

The aim of this study is to identify the environmental impact of drill cuttings (DC) released around three wells drilled in 1992, 2000 and 2012 in the SW Barents Sea. Foraminiferal assemblages are studied in cores taken along transects <250 m from wells. Well E-1992 shows no impact of DC on foraminifera indicating that low amounts of released DC limit environmental impact. Impact at wells G-2000 and ...

<p>Modern sediment deposits on continental margins form a vast reservoir of particulate matter that is regularly affected by resuspension processes. Resuspension by bottom trawling on shelves with strong fishing activity can modify the scale of natural disturbance by waves and currents. Recent field data show that the impact of bottom trawls on fine sediment resuspension per unit surface is comparable ...

Sub-sea Arctic methane and gas hydrate reservoirs are expected to be severely impacted by ocean temperature increase and sea-level rise. Our understanding of the gas emission phenomenon in the Arctic is however partial, especially in deep environments where the access is difficult and hydro-acoustic surveys are sporadic. Here, we report on the first continuous pore-pressure and temperature measurements ...

Despite more than a century of investigation, the relationship between basement rocks throughout the Svalbard Archipelago is still a mystery. Though these rocks display similar geochronological ages, they show significantly different metamorphic grades and structures. Thus far, Svalbard was believed to be composed of three terranes of rocks formed hundreds–thousands of kilometers apart and accreted ...

During expedition MARIA S. MERIAN MSM57/2 to the Svalbard margin offshore Prins Karls Forland, the seafloor drill rig MARUM‐MeBo70 was used to assess the landward termination of the gas hydrate system in water depths between 340 and 446 m. The study region shows abundant seafloor gas vents, clustered at a water depth of ∼400 m. The sedimentary environment within the upper 100 m below seafloor (mbsf) ...

The Caledonian evolution of the low–medium grade Balsfjord Series (Troms, Northern Norway) is characterized by four sets of deformation structures that developed progressively during burial and exhumation from underneath the high-grade Nakkedal and Tromsø nappe complexes. The Balsfjord Series commonly displays top-to-the SSE–SE directed movement during the development of the main metamorphic fabric ...

Fossil benthic foraminifera are used to trace past methane release linked to climate change. However, it is still debated whether isotopic signatures of living foraminifera from methane-charged sediments refect incorporation of methane-derived carbon. A deeper understanding of isotopic signatures of living benthic foraminifera from methane-rich environments will help to improve reconstructions of ...

Displacement rates of mountain slope deformations that can affect entire valley mountain flanks are often measured spatially distributed in‐situ without spatial significance. The spatially explicit measurement and recording of time series of slope deformations is a challenge, as the unstable slopes are often disintegrated into several subdomains, which move with different deformation rates. The ...