Zhelenov, Alexey M. (2009) Modern Evolution of Seabed Conditios of Northern Baffin Bay and Adjacent Areas. (Master thesis), University of Bremen ; [St. Petersburg State University], Bremen ; St. Petersburg, Russia, 49 pp.

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Abstract

The purpose of research work is to analyze indicators of geological, geographical and climatological processes of evolution of seabed conditions of Northern Baffin Bay and adjacent areas in the Last Glacial Maximum to Holocene.
Baffin Bay is the northwestern extension and terminus of the North Atlantic-Labrador Sea rift system. Geophysical and geologic observations in Baffin Bay indicate that the origin of the bay may be ascribed to sea-floor spreading.
Author participated in “IMAGES-International Polar Year-Canada expedition for the study of Climate and Ocean changes in eastern Canadian Arctic (Baffin Bay, Davies Strait)” (“Baffin Bay-2008”) onboard of CCGS “Hudson”. The “Baffin Bay-2008” cruise in the Baffin Bay, funded by the CFCAS and NSERC of Canada was a great success. Hudson expedition 2008-029 was a joint effort undertaken by the Geological Survey of Canada (GSC) and an academic group led by Geochemistry and Geodynamic Research Center (GEOTOP) and a number of other national and international research groups (herein referred to as the GEOTOP group). The 27 day mission left from Nain, NL on August 28th and returned to the Bedford Institute of Oceanography in Dartmouth, NS on September 23rd 2008. Both groups have a shared interest in conducting marine geological research in Baffin Bay and adjacent areas. Due to joint effort of Canadian and international scientists, the cruise permitted to collect high quality piston and box cores, plankton tows, physical and chemical water column data.
Northern Baffin Bay includes the North Water Polynya where the high biogenic fluxes should allow establishment of high resolution records of productivity vs. sea-surface condition changes. But a major depocentre is present at the northern end of the Baffin shelf opposite the mouth of Lancaster Sound. Sedimentation has been characterized by the influx of coarse elastic material across the rifted and rapidly foundering margin of Baffin Island. The sediments were derived from the surrounding highlands of the Baffin coast and by clastics brought from the lower Paleozoic hinterland of the Canadian Arctic Islands by major rift controlled drainage systems. Lancaster Sound is an area of competing interests with potential future hydrocarbon exploration, marine transport through the Northwest Passage, and the proposed establishment of a marine park within the area.
The nature of the recent sediments in this region, and their geochemical properties relative to water depth, bottom configuration, and the agents responsible for their transport were studied by analyzing samples from 2 expeditions: samples from box-corers from “Baffin Bay-2008” cruise, and gravity core PS72-287/3 from “ARK-XXIII/3” cruise (RV „Polarstern“, 2008). Samples from box-corers were compared for 8 locations from different parts of northern Baffin Bay. Samples from gravity core have big importance for better understanding of climate conditions and sedimentation processes from previous 10,000 years.

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