Quaternary Coastal Landscape Evolution and Sea-Level Rise: An Example from South-East Sicily

Coastal depositional environments are the site of complex interactions between continental and marine processes. Barrier islands are highly dynamic coastal systems, typical of these transitional environments, and are affected by sea level changes and the accumulation of transgressive deposits with the landwards migration of the coast. The offshore of Marzamemi (Syracuse Province, Sicily), in the south-eastern portion of the Hyblean foreland, represents an excellent site for the study of transgressive deposits and their connection with the sea-level changes. The available dataset consisted of new high-resolution bathymetry (Multibeam), whose description and interpretation through a Digital Elevation Model (DEM) was integrated with a grid of eighteen seismic profiles (SPARKER). In the investigated bathymetric range, from about −5 m to −60 m, a sensibly different morphological setting between the northern and southern sectors was evident. Within the whole study area, three bathymetric contours (−45 m, −35 m and −20) were identified and assumed as the markers of the main locations of the paleo-coastlines during the recent changes in the sea level. Along the northern sector, three submerged barrier-lagoon systems developed on a calcarenite substratum, marking important steps of the Late Quaternary sea-level rise. They coexisted with numerous karst forms (poljes and dolines). In the southern sector the transgressive environmental evolution was significantly different and submerged lagoons did not form. Here the outcropping calcarenite substratum was affected by the development of paleo-rivers and karsts structures, a tract in common along with many Mediterranean carbonate coastal areas.

High-resolution bathymetry models for the Lena Delta and Kolyma Gulf coastal zones

Arctic river deltas and deltaic near-shore zones represent important land-ocean transition zones influencing sediment dynamics and nutrient fluxes from permafrost-affected terrestrial ecosystems into the coastal Arctic Ocean. To accurately model fluvial carbon and freshwater export from rapidly changing river catchments, as well assessing impacts of future change on the Arctic shelf and coastal ecosystems, we need to understand the sea floor characteristics and topographic variety of the coastal zones. To date, digital bathymetrical data from the poorly accessible, shallow and large areas of the eastern Siberian Arctic shelves are sparse. We have digitized bathymetrical information for nearly 75,000 locations from large-scale current and historical nautical maps of the Lena Delta and the Kolyma Gulf Region in Northeast Siberia. We present the first detailed and seamless digital models of coastal zone bathymetry for both delta/gulf regions. We validated the resulting bathymetry layers using a combination of our own water depth measurements and a collection of available depth measurements, which showed a strong correlation (r > 0.9). Our bathymetrical models will serve as an input for a high-resolution coupled hydrodynamic-ecosystem model to better quantify fluvial and coastal carbon fluxes to the Arctic Ocean but may be useful for a range of other studies related to Arctic delta and near-shore dynamics such as modelling of submarine permafrost, near-shore sea ice, or shelf sediment transport. The new digital high-resolution bathymetry products are available on the PANGAEA data set repository (Fuchs et al. 2021a, b). Likewise the depth validation data is available on PANGAEA as well (Fuchs et al., 2021c).

PREDICTING BOTTOM CURRENT DEPOSITION AND EROSION ON THE OCEAN FLOOR

Three types of oceanographic data are integrated in this study to predict thermohaline geostrophic bottom current deposition and erosion on the ocean floor. These data types are, 1) high-resolution bathymetry, 2) numerical model data of bottom current shear stress and 3) model data of the distribution and amount of sediment on the ocean floor. Intervals of thermohaline geostrophic bottom current deposition and erosion can be quantified from this information, which are then be extrapolated across the ocean floor in 4.5 x 9.3 km grid-size resolution. The results of this analysis are displayed on a map that shows the distribution of zones of bottom current erosion and deposition. This map is then cross-referenced for accuracy using documented examples of mapped erosional and depositional bottom current systems, which demonstrates this study’s approach has strong predictive capabilities. The model developed herein is used to derive boundaries for depositional bottom current regimes and formulate generalized patterns that contribute to bottom current erosion and deposition, and then discuss the importance of these interpretations for resource extraction and ocean floor mapping.

A bathymetric compilation of the Cape Darnley region, East Antarctica

The Cape Darnley region in East Antarctica has been an area of scientific interest for a variety of disciplines over the last three decades. The recent acquisition of several high-resolution bathymetry datasets enabled the compilation of a detailed regional bathymetry grid. We present a high-resolution bathymetric compilation of the Cape Darnley region in East Antarctica, including areas of the Mac.Robertson Land shelf, slope and adjacent deep sea. A variety of data, single-beam and multibeam swath bathymetry and digitized depths from nautical charts were sourced from numerous institutions. The 100 m-resolution gridded bathymetric dataset improves previous bathymetric representations of the region and enables visualization of the seafloor morphology in unprecedented detail. The bathymetry grid has been constructed using a layered hierarchy approach based on the source of each dataset. This data compilation forms important baseline information for a range of scientific applications and end users including oceanographers, glacial modellers, biologists and geologists. The compilation will aid numerical modelling of ocean circulation, reconstruction of palaeo-ice streams and refinement of ice-sheet models.

Towards a regional high-resolution bathymetry of the North West Shelf of Australia based on Sentinel-2 satellite images, 3D seismic surveys and historical datasets

High-resolution bathymetry is a critical dataset for marine geoscientists. It can be used to characterize the seafloor and its marine habitats, to understand past sedimentary records and even to support the development of offshore engineering projects. Most methods to acquire bathymetry data are costly and can only be practically deployed on relatively small areas. It is therefore critical to develop cost-effective and advanced techniques to produce large-scale bathymetry datasets. This paper presents an integrated workflow that builds on satellites images and 3D seismic surveys, integrated with historical depth soundings, to generate a regional high-resolution digital elevation model. The method was applied to the southern half of Australia's North West Shelf and led to the creation of a new high-resolution bathymetry, with a resolution of 10 × 10 m in nearshore areas and 30 × 30 m elsewhere. The vertical and spatial accuracy of the datasets have been thoroughly assessed using open source Laser Airborne Depth Sounder (LADS) and Multi Beam Echo Sounder (MBES) surveys as a reference. The comparison of the datasets indicates that the seismic-derived bathymetry has a vertical accuracy better than 1 m + 2 % of the absolute water depths, while the satellite-derived bathymetry has a depth accuracy better than 1 m + 5 % of the absolute water depths. This dataset constitutes a significant improvement of the pre-existing regional 250 × 250 m grid and will support the onset of research projects on costal morphologies, marine habitats, archaeology, and sedimentology. All datasets used as inputs are publicly available and the method is fully integrated in Python scripts making it readily applicable elsewhere in Australia and around the world. The workflow as well as the resulting bathymetry have been independently reviewed and approved for release by a technical committee from the AusSeabed Community (Geoscience Australia). The regional digital elevation model as well as the underlying datasets can be accessed at: https://doi.org/10.26186/144600.

13 million years of seafloor spreading throughout the Red Sea Basin

The crustal and tectonic structure of the Red Sea and especially the maximum northward extent of the (ultra)slow Red Sea spreading centre has been debated—mainly due to a lack of detailed data. Here, we use a compilation of earthquake and vertical gravity gradient data together with high-resolution bathymetry to show that ocean spreading is occurring throughout the entire basin and is similar in style to that at other (ultra)slow spreading mid-ocean ridges globally, with only one first-order offset along the axis. Off-axis traces of axial volcanic highs, typical features of (ultra)slow-spreading ridges, are clearly visible in gravity data although buried under thick salt and sediments. This allows us to define a minimum off-axis extent of oceanic crust of <55 km off the coast along the complete basin. Hence, the Red Sea is a mature ocean basin in which spreading began along its entire length 13 Ma ago.

Fluid pathways identified beneath Narlı Lake (Central Anatolia) show the geothermal potential of former volcanoes

We investigated the volcanic Narlı Lake in Central Anatolia combining high-resolution bathymetry and geochemical measurements. In this study, we present it as proof of a new concept to verify fluid pathways beneath lakes integrating the structure of the geothermal reservoir into the surrounding tectonic frame. We recognized dextral faults fracturing inherited volcanic formations and thus generating highly permeable zones beneath the lake. At intersection points of faults, reservoir fluids discharge from deep holes as imaged by the high-resolution bathymetry at the bottom of the Narlı Lake. Onshore, the tectonic setting also generates both extensional and compressional structures. Extensional structures result in extensive fluid discharge through hot springs while compressional structures do not discharge any fluid. The water of the lake as well as in the hot springs is highly saline and has relatively high concentrations of Cl, HCO3, SO4, Na, Ca, Mg, and Si. In several hot springs, we observed mixtures of high-saline fluids having a deep origin and low-saline shallow groundwater. We observed discharge into the lake by gas bubbles, which contain probably CO2 or H2S. Mineral precipitation indicates a carbonatic source at the lake bottom and along the shoreline. Extensive travertine precipitation also occurs near hot springs along the nearby extensional zone of Ihlara Valley. In summary, the composition of fluids and minerals is controlled by water–rock interaction through the volcanic and carbonatic rocks beneath this volcanic lake.