The Last Glacial Maximum in The North Sea Basin

JOURNAL OF QUATERNARY SCIENCE (2006) 21(2) 131153
Copyright 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Published online 6 January 2006 in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI: 10.1002/jqs.950
The Last Glacial Maximum in the North Sea

Basin: micromorphological evidence of
extensive glaciation
S. J. CARR,1* R. HOLMES,2 J. J. M. VAN DER MEER3 and J. ROSE4
1
Department of Geography, Oxford Brookes University, Gipsy Lane, Oxford OX3 0BP, UK
2
British Geological Survey, Murchison House, West Mains Road, Edinburgh EH9 3LA, UK
3
Department of Geography, Queen Mary and Westeld College, University of London, Mile End, London, UK
4
Department of Geography, Royal Holloway, University of London, Egham, Surrey TW20 0EX, UK
Carr, S. J., Holmes, R., van der Meer, J. J. M. and Rose, J. 2006. The Last Glacial Maximum in the North Sea Basin: micromorphological evidence of extensive glaciation.
J. Quaternary Sci., Vol. 21 pp. 131153. ISSN 0267-8179.
Received 1 October 2004; Revised 24 April 2005; Accepted 3 May 2005
ABSTRACT: Despite a long history of investigation, critical issues regarding the last glacial cycle in
northwest Europe remain unresolved. One of these refers to the extent, timing and dynamics of Late
Devensian/Weichselian glaciation of the North Sea Basin, and whether the British and Scandinavian
ice sheets were conuent at any time during this period. This has been the result of the lack of the
detailed sedimentological data required to reconstruct processes and environment of sediments
recovered through coring. This study presents the results of seismic, sedimentological and micromorphological evidence used to reconstruct the depositional processes of regionally extensive seismic
units across the North Sea Basin. Thin section micromorphology is used here to provide an effective
means of discriminating between subglacial and glacimarine sediments from cored samples and
deriving process-based interpretations from sediment cores. On the basis of micromorphology, critical formations from the basin have been reinterpreted, with consequent stratigraphic implications.
Within the current stratigraphic understanding of the North Sea Basin, a complex reconstruction is
suggested, with a minimum of three major glacial episodes inferred. On at least two occasions during
the Weichselian/Devensian, the British and Scandinavian ice sheets were conuent in the central
North Sea. Whilst micromorphology can provide much greater condence in the interpretation of
Late Quaternary offshore stratigraphic sequences, it is noted that a much better geochronology is
required to resolve key stratigraphic issues between the onshore and offshore stratigraphic records.
KEYWORDS: micromorphology; microfabric; Last Glacial Maximum; North Sea.
Introduction
The nature of Quaternary glaciation of the North Sea Basin
(NSB) has been the subject of speculation since the earliest
recognition of lowland glaciation in Britain and Scandinavia
(Geikie, 1873). While onshore ice limits have been dened
with some condence in the British Isles (Rose, 1985; Clark
et al., 2004) and northern Europe (Ehlers et al., 1984) for different Quaternary glacial periods, the offshore limits of the same
ice sheets remain poorly understood. This is especially the case
for the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), for which there is considerable confusion relating to the conguration, ow geometry
* Correspondence to: S. J. Carr, Department of Geography, Oxford Brookes University, Gipsy Lane, Oxford OX3 0BP, UK. E-mail: [email protected]
and dynamics of the British and Scandinavian ice sheets (Ehlers

et al., 1991; Laban, 1995; McCabe, 1996; Peacock, 1997;
Bowen et al., 2002).
Initially, evidence for glaciation of the NSB was based on inference from coastal sections in Britain and Denmark (Wood and
Rome, 1868; Geikie, 1873) or rare seabed sediment samples
trawled up in shing nets (Tesch, 1942). The development of seismic proling in the 1950s and 1960s allowed substantial expansion in the analysis of the bathymetry and the subsurface
sediment geometry of the NSB (Valentin, 1957; Kent, 1967;
Caston, 1977; Fannin, 1989), resulting in more precisely dened
ice-sheet limits for the NSB during the LGM (Valentin, 1957;
Hansen and Nielsen, 1960; Flinn, 1967; Jansen, 1976; Jansen
et al., 1979; Long and Stoker, 1986; Wingeld, 1989, 1990;
Ehlers and Wingeld, 1991; Laban, 1995; Huuse and
Lykke-Andersen, 2000) (Fig. 1). The reconstructed ice sheet limits
have been primarily based on two seismic approaches: the spatial extent of sediment packages ascribed seismostratigraphic
132
JOURNAL OF QUATERNARY SCIENCE
formation status (Cameron et al., 1987; Cameron and Holmes,

1999), and the extent and limits of elongate, sometimes inlled
depressions, termed tunnel valleys (Wingeld, 1990; Ehlers and
Wingeld, 1991; Huuse and Lykke-Andersen, 2000). Much controversy exists regarding the origin and signicance of tunnel valleys as indicators of former ice sheet margins (OCofaigh, 1996).
Whilst it is accepted that tunnel valleys reect processes associated with Quaternary ice sheets (Boulton, 1996) there is little
agreement on the mode of origin of such features (Boulton and
Hindmarsh, 1987; Wingeld, 1989; Ehlers and Wingeld,
1991; OCofaigh, 1996; Huuse and Lykke-Andersen, 2000;
Kluiving et al., 2003).
Additional evidence for Quaternary glaciation of the NSB
has been obtained from both deep (Sha, 1991) and shallow
boreholes and long and short cores (Holmes, 1977; Flinn,
1978; Rise and Rokoengen, 1984; Rise et al., 1984; Long and
Skinner, 1985; Stoker et al., 1985; Stoker and Bent 1985; Bent,
1986; Skinner et al., 1986; Cameron et al., 1987, 1992; Sejrup
et al., 1987, 1991, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1998, 2000; Long et al.,
1988; Wingeld, 1989, 1990; Andrews et al., 1990; Balson and
Jeffrey, 1991; Johnson et al., 1993; Gatliff et al., 1994; Laban,
1995; Peacock, 1997; Carr, 1998, 1999; Cameron and
Holmes, 1999; Carr et al., 2000).
Existing models of ice sheet conguration during the LGM
vary, and there is no consensus on whether the British and
Scandinavian ice sheets were conuent during one or more
stages of the Weichselian (Fig. 1). These contrasts arise from
signicant problems associated with the interpretation of seismic data and limited investigation of sediments recovered in
cores and boreholes.
The limited sample size available from sediment cores
restricts the analytical procedures available for interpreting glacigenic sediments recovered from the NSB. This has resulted in
fundamental problems in discriminating between in situ waterlaid marine or glacimarine sediments from subglacially
deformed sediments that have been reworked to produce tills
(van der Meer and Laban, 1990; Carr et al., 2000; Carr, 2001).
Recently, debate has focused on the timing and dynamics
of the LGM within the NSB. In the British Isles and Scandinavia,
the LGM is traditionally attributed to the Dimlington Stadial
of the Late Devensian/Weichselian, with a single phase of glaciation culminating at around 18 k 14C yr BP (Penny et al.,
1969; Rose, 1985; Lundqvist, 1986). This one-stage model
has been criticised by Sejrup et al. (1994, 2000), who propose
a more complex two-stage glaciation of the NSB during
the equivalent period of Late Devensian/Weichselian. Sejrup
et al. (1994, 2000) suggest that the earlier phase of the LGM
(22 k 14C yr BP) reects glaciation of the NSB by conuent
British and Scandinavian ice with a subsequent re-advance at
around 18 k14C yr BP of separate ice sheets.
This paper presents the results of applying thin-section micromorphology to the sediments that constitute the established seismostratigraphic records from the North Sea Basin. This analysis
aims to provide a more secure sedimentological framework by
which the palaeogeography of the region during the Devensian/
Weichselian glaciation may be established. This paper does not
attempt to revise the current regional Late Quaternary stratigraphy of the North Sea, although discussion of the stratigraphic
implications of the research ndings will be noted.
Material and methods

Critical localities were selected for detailed investigation, each
testing previous models of ice-sheet conguration in the NSB
(Fig. 1). Re-examination of BGS shallow reection seismic

records was used to check the existing Quaternary offshore
stratigraphy for the locations under study (Fig. 2) to conrm
the character of seismostratigraphic units of interpreted Weichselian age. This allowed regional correlation of each study
locality, permitting reconstruction of glacial episodes across
the entire NSB. Within each area, all available BGS vibrocores
and shallow boreholes were examined and used to tie seismic
analysis to specic lithofacies. On the basis of this reconnaissance, cores were selected for further analysis and sampling for
thin sections (Table 1, Fig. 1). Cores and boreholes were
selected to provide representative samples from different sedimentary facies constituting specic formations. In most cases,
multiple cores within each seismostratigraphic formation were
sampled to ensure representative micromorphological characterisation.
Fifty-seven undisturbed samples were collected from BGS
cores and boreholes for thin-section production using the
approach of Lee and Kemp (1992) and Carr and Lee (1998),
producing approximately 30-micrometre thickness thin sections (80 60 mm). The majority of samples were aligned vertically in relation to the cores, although a few horizontal thin
sections were prepared from selected samples. All prepared
thin sections, as well as nine mammoth (150 80 mm) thin
sections obtained from the Dutch sector (see van der Meer
and Laban, 1990) and 14 samples obtained from the Norwegian sector of the NSB (Carr et al., 2000) were examined using
a petroscope and petrological microscope under plane- and
cross-polarised light, using the terms outlined by van der Meer
(1993) and Carr (2004a).
The structures dened by van der Meer (1993, 1997) are considered to be representative of deformation under high stress
conditions typically found within a subglacial setting, with
some features, such as in situ crushed quartz grains, possibly
diagnostic of specic subglacial environments (Hiemstra and
van der Meer, 1997). The identication of reoriented domains
of ne silts and clays (plasmic fabric) under cross-polarised
light is of importance in the investigation of ne-grained sediments, in identifying evidence for deformation associated with
pervasive or discrete shear (van der Meer, 1993).
Analysis of structures indicative of glacimarine conditions
follows the scheme of Carr (2001, 2004a). Graded bedding
associated with dropstone structures and the widespread presence of marine microfossils provide the strongest evidence
of glacimarine conditions (van der Meer, 1995), but Carr
(2001) identies associations of coarse, winnowed matrix textures, absence of associated deformation structures and a lack
of plasmic fabric development as good supportive indicators of
such conditions, although Carr (2001) expresses caution at
basing interpretations on individual features. Observation of
apparently in situ, undistributed marine microfossils alone
may be an unreliable indicator of marine conditions, owing
to the potential for glacitectonic reworking, and their
presence is extensively noted in glacial deposits (Boulton
et al., 1996).
Figure 3 summarises the key micro-scale features of subglacial and glacimarine sediments that form the bulk of material in
this study; however, as noted by Carr (1998, 1999, 2001) interpretation of all thin sections in terms of processes and environments requires the identication of an association of features,
rather than dependence on a single diagnostic feature.
In this study, a simplied approach is used to present micromorphological data. The relevant micromorphology of physical components, deformation structures, marine indicators,
and plasmic fabric are plotted on a summary table allowing
rapid comparison of a number of samples (Tables 24). This
approach is effective for discriminating well-developed and
J. Quaternary Sci., Vol. 21(2) 131153 (2006)
LAST GLACIATION IN THE NORTH SEA
133
Figure 1 Overview of the different models of the extent of the LGM British and Scandinavian ice sheets in the North Sea Basin. The ve study areas
are highlighted. The scale of the map precludes showing the locations of individual cores and boreholes (see Table 1 for details)
common structures from rare or weakly developed features and

has been successfully applied to micromorphological data for
regional stratigraphic and sedimentological reconstruction
(Carr, 1999). It is also useful for providing a secure basis from
which more detailed analysis may be undertaken (Carr, 1999,
2001; Carr et al., 2000; Lloyd Davies, 2004).
The orientation of elongate quartz grains (microfabric) was
measured using a projection macroscope. Like larger clast fabrics, microfabric is an excellent indicator of directional stress
within a sediment. Work on till fabric has occasionally used
microfabric to demonstrate the stresses imparted (Glen et al.,
1957; Ostry and Deane, 1963; Evenson, 1970; Johnson,
1983; Carr and Rose, 2003). Within the current study, microfabric was primarily analysed in a vertical plane, with subglacially derived microfabrics expected to possess a unidirectional
or bimodal orientation pattern reecting a lateral stress eld
(Carr, 1999; Carr et al., 2000), and distinct vertical patterns
of grains deposited through suspension rain-out in proximal
to distal glacimarine sediments (Carr et al., 2000; Carr, 2001;

Lee, 2001). Data were plotted using an Excel spreadsheet as
half polar plots (right-hand side) of grain orientation in the vertical plane.
The stratigraphy of the North Sea

during the last glacial cycle
As stated above, the purpose of this paper is not to revise the
Late Quaternary subdivision of the NSB, but to test the interpretation of critical sediment bodies within the established stratigraphic sequence. Accordingly, discussion here is restricted to
a critique of the basis of the stratigraphy, highlighting some of
the key issues relevant to this study. More general reviews of
the Quaternary stratigraphy of the NSB may be found in
134
Figure 2 (A) Extracts of shallow seismic reection data from the North Sea. Left: detail of seismic line 80, Dogger Bank area. This extract highlights
the two-tier internal structure of the Dogger Bank Formation, with a lower, sub-horizontally layered unit overlain by a more chaotic unit preserving
only sporadic layering. Right: examples of Boomer and Sparker seismic lines from the same location, Fladen, central North Sea. (B) Interpreted seismic
lines, Fladen area, Northern North Sea. In general, the original BGS interpretations were validated during the current research, allowing condence in
the regional interpretation of the extent and geometry of key formations
Andrews et al. (1990); Cameron et al. (1992); Johnson et al.

(1993); Gatliff et al. (1994) and Sejrup et al. (1991, 1994,
2000).
The bathymetry of the NSB is such that the region may be
divided into three sectors. The southern NSB, south of 56 N,
is shallow, with present-day water depths typically less than
40 m. So it is likely that throughout much of the last glacial
cycle, this region would have been above global eustatic sea
level, and thus was dry land. Conversely, in the central NSB,
between 56 N and 59 N, water depths currently reach an
average of 100140 m, with the present seaoor close to the
likely global eustatic sea level at the LGM (Fairbanks, 1989).
North of approximately 59 N, the NSB is around 140
200 m depth, placing this part of the basin below global
eustatic sea level even at the peak of glaciation, implying
extensive and exclusively marine or glacimarine environments.
135
Table 1 List of cores and boreholes sampled in this study, and the depths of specic samples within each core. The cores examined and sampled
were considered representative of specic facies of seismostratigraphic formations, and were selected after much broader examination of the BGS
core and borehole archive
Core/borehole
Latitude
53
53
53
54
54
ve 54 02 218
54 410 3000 N
02 080 2600 E
ve 54 02 216
54 380 5400 N
02 090 1400 E
ve 54 02 223
54 570 5900 N
02 370 5800 E
ve 54 02 220
54 520 5800 N
02 170 3900 E
ve 90 DW 542
ve 90 DW 534
ve 90 DW 547
ve 90 DW 548
ve 90 DW 550
ve 90 DW 552
ve 90 DW 556
ve 94 DW 08
ve 94 DW 09
0300
5700
2000
1600
4200
N
N
N
N
N
02
02
02
02
02
020
070
250
250
100
3800
5300
4400
5200
5800
Depth below seabed (m)
ve 53 02 203
ve 53 02 186
BH 79/08
ve 54 02 135
ve 54 02 153
ve 90 DW 538
ve 90 DW 540
240
220
210
140
140
Longitude
E
E
E
E
E
8
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
< All cores sampled in proximity to 54 150 N/03
150 E
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
:
54 420 500 N
54 400 160 N
03 130 0500 E
03 140 5300 E
BH 72/14
56 270 2800 N
01 460 5000 W
BH 81/27
56 320 4100 N
00 240 0100 W
BH 81/24
58 180 4200 N
00 590 2900 W
BH 82/16
58 290 2800 N
00 500 1600 W
BH 81/26
58 080 2000 N
00 100 4600 W
BH 77/02
58 290 3200 N
00 300 2400 E
BH 78/09
61 300 4000 N
00 490 4700 E
BH 80/01
61 060 2100 N
00 210 2800 E
BH 81/17
61 220 2900 N
00 100 0900 W
BH 84/08
61 040 1200 N
00 320 1500 W
ve 61 01 069
ve 61 01 161
ve 61 01 170
ve 61 01 174
61
61
61
61
00
01
01
01
Sleipner B2001a
120
290
400
270
3800
0200
1600
4000
N
N
N
N
310
430
040
120
5900
3900
5200
3100
W
E
E
E
9
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
=
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
;
Sample
2.90
1.05
21.8
3.82
0.56
2.09
3.09
2.20
3.69
2.57
1.47
5.00
4.16
2.79
1.66
2.75
1.20
2.70
3.06
1.30
1.97
IND 1v/h
IND 2
IND 3
BGS 1
BGS 2
BGS 3
BGS 4
BGS 5a/b
BGS 6
BGS 7
BGS8
BGS 9
BGS 10
BGS 11
BGS 12
BGS 13
Mi 839
Mi 840
Mi 841
Mi 842
Mi 843
1.00
1.00
0.60
1.55
1.00
3.90
1.49
2.00
21.80
18.40
12.90
19.75
15.10
24.60
18.40
22.80
26.75
34.10
30.80
25.12
12.24
18.02
22.14
24.30
19.80
14.45
13.20
8.85
11.40
22.55
11.75
22.74
18.02
4.90
8.60
4.65
6.96
0.70
0.70
n/a
n/a
Mi 844
Mi 846
Mi 848
Mi 849
Mi 852
C.65
C.66
C.67
MAR 1
MAR 2
MAR 3
MAR 4
FLA 11
FLA 12
FLA 1
FLA 2
FLA 3
FLA 4
FLA 5/5a
FLA 6
FLA 7
FLA 8
FLA 9
FLA 10
BER 9
BER 10
BER 11
BER 12
SHE 1
SHE 2
SHE 3
SHE 4
SHE 5
SHE 6
SHE 7
SHE 8
SHE 9
SHE 10
SHE 11
SHE 13
SHE 12
Figure 3 Schematic cartoon of the characteristic micromorphological features identied in subglacial, proximal and distal glacimarine environments. This has been synthesised from data obtained from modern, recent
and Late Quaternary sites of known origin
136
The northern margin of the NSB is delimited by the continental

shelf edge, where water depths rapidly increase from ca. 200 m
to > 1500 m.
The Quaternary subdivision of the NSB is primarily based on
seismic stratigraphy, using the approach of Mitchum et al.
(1977) and Vail (1987) to divide the offshore deposits into seismostratigraphic units, each bounded by unconformities, and
assigned formation status (Cameron et al., 1987; Cameron
and Holmes, 1999). This seismostratigraphic framework is constrained where possible by sedimentological and biostratigraphic data from cores and boreholes, although the spatial
and temporal quality of this data is extremely heterogeneous,
as noted earlier. A generalised Late Quaternary seismic stratigraphy is presented in Fig. 4, based upon a review of the BGS
and related Regional Mapping Programmes (Andrews et al.,
1990; Cameron et al., 1992; Johnson et al., 1993; Gatliff
et al., 1994; Holmes, 1997; Cameron and Holmes, 1999).
Whilst seismostratigraphy may be an effective tool for discriminating the deposits associated with major environmental
shifts during the Quaternary, it is far from ideal at subdividing
the relatively thin and highly complex suites of glacigenic
deposits associated with the MidLate Quaternary of the
NSB. Seismic proling registers contrasts in acoustic impedance that may, or may not reect lithostratigraphic boundaries (Laban, 1995). This issue becomes more problematic
given the inherent variability of glacigenic sediments, and that
there is no simple stratigraphic sequence model associated
with glaciation that can be applied on the scale of the NSB.
Finally, the quality of seismic records from the NSB is highly
variable, with environmental conditions at the time of survey
a signicant control over the quality of the resulting seismic
proles obtained (Laban, 1995). This results in thinner seismostratigraphic formations (such as many of those in the southern
NSB) being close to the practical resolution limits of the equipment being deployed.
In Fig. 4, the key seismostratigraphic formations from the
NSB are loosely associated with marine isotope stages during
the last glacialinterglacial cycle; however, the basis for this
is highly equivocal, derived from a limited and variably reliable
radiometric dating of in situ or reworked marine bivalves or foraminifera, and the speculative interpretation of palaeomagnetic horizons within formations as events such as the Blake
Event (0.12 Ma) (e.g. Skinner and Gregory, 1983). As a consequence, many formations have been interpreted to represent
more than one stage of the Last Glaciation and in some cases
are thought to reect deposition through more than one glacialinterglacial cycle, which, given the range of potential
sedimentary processes operating over this cycle, is highly
improbable.
Up to three major episodes of glaciation have been interpreted for the NSB during the last glacial cycle reected in
the stratigraphy summarised in Fig. 4. During the early part of
the Weichselian, tentatively associated with MIS 4, there is evidence of extensive glaciation of the North Sea within the Ferder
Formation (Skinner et al., 1986; Sejrup et al., 1989; Johnson
et al., 1993), during which time ice is considered to have
extended to the continental shelf break north and west of the
Shetland Isles. Much more controversial, however, is the evidence relating to Mid- and Late Weichselian/Devensian glaciation of the NSB. For this period, there are proponents of a onestage LGM peaking at or around 18 k 14C yr BP (Cameron et al.,
1987; Long et al., 1988) during which Scandinavian and British
ice sheets were separated by an ice-free corridor, and a constrasting model for a two-stage LGM, with ice-sheet growth
between 30 k and 22 k 14 C yr BP, peaking in conuent British
and Scandinavian ice sheets, with retreat and a subsequent
re-advance of separate ice masses after 18 k 14C yr BP (Sejrup
137
et al., 1994; Holmes, 1997; Sejrup et al., 2000; Wilson et al.,

2002). These conicting models each result in problems associated with the onshore lithostratigraphy of the British Isles during this period, where ice-free conditions persisted in Scotland
until ca. 26 k 14C yr BP (Rose, 1985; Boulton et al., 1991), and
with a distinct two-stage glaciation of western Scandinavia
(Mangerud et al., 1991; Sejrup et al., 2000). While it is beyond
the scope of this paper, resolution of these stratigraphic issues
may partly depend on the reliable genetic interpretations of
the sediments comprising the interpreted seismostratigraphic
formations.
Description of the micromorphology of key

sediments in the North Sea Basin
Within the context of the regional stratigraphy outlined above,
there are considered to be up to three major phases of glaciation in the NSB during the Last Glacial cycle. This is primarily
based on the evidence from the northern NSB, in which three
clear glacial episodes of either subglacial or glacimarine events
have been identied by previous research (Table 4).
Early Weichselian glaciation: the Ferder glacial

episode
There is patchy evidence to support glacigenic sedimentation
in the NSB during the early Weichselian, possibly at or around
MIS 4, approximately 70 k yr BP (Stoker et al., 1985; Skinner
et al., 1986; Sejrup et al., 1989). The evidence for regional glaciation during this time is primarily preserved in the Ferder Formation, although it is likely that to the south, at least part of the
Coal Pit Formation also reects this period, and is laterally contiguous with the Ferder Formation.
The Ferder Formation is thought to reect sedimentation
from the Eemian through to the Mid-Weichselian (Skinner
et al., 1986; Sejrup et al., 1989), although it is likely that such
sedimentation was concentrated in a few signicant events,
rather than being continuous throughout the period. Seismic
lines identify that this formation extends from the Norwegian
Channel to the continental shelf margin west of the Shetland
Isles as a continuous unit, up to 80 m in thickness, which in
cores consists of ne-grained matrix supported diamictons,
typically containing shell fragments (Johnson et al., 1993). In
seismic lines, the lower part of the Ferder Formation is characterised by subparallel layered reectors, possibly indicating
sedimentary bedding; however, this has not been sampled
directly from cores or boreholes in this study. The micromorphology of the Ferder Formation is presented in Table 2. All
samples preserve a suite of associated deformation features
(rotation structures, crushed quartz grains, rotational plasmic
fabrics; Fig. 6(A),(B)) and most preserve evidence for the cannibalisation of pre-existing sediments to produce rounded soft
sediment intraclasts. In samples SHE4 and SHE5 distinct graded
laminations are identied within some intraclasts (Fig. 6(C)),
possibly reecting sediments derived from the lower, layered
part of the formation (Table 2). Microfabric analysis of
both vertical and horizontal sections indicates the applied
stress was unidirectional in nature (Fig. 5). On the basis of
this micromorphological evidence and the spatial extent and
geometry of the formation, it is suggested that the Ferder Formation reects extensive glaciation across the northern NSB,
with conuence of British and Scandinavian ice sheets, with
Figure 4 Summary of stratigraphic units discussed in this study, largely based on BGS Regional Mapping Programme (Andrews et al., 1990; Cameron et al., 1992; Johnson et al., 1993; Gatliff et al., 1994). The stratigraphic sequence for the Late Quaternary in the NSB is highly complex, and precise stratigraphic relationships have not been rmly established in many cases (see Discussion)
138

Ba/F
Be
L/Bo
Ba/S
Ba/S
Ba
Ba
Ba
Ba
F
F
F
F
F
F
F
F
F/P
F
F
F
F
F
F
F
F/P
L
L
L
L
L
L
L
L
M
L
L
M
H
L
L
L
M
SA
SR
A
SA
A
SA
SA
A
SR
SA
SA
SA
SA
SA
SA
SA
A
Ling Bank Formation
Coal Pit Formation
SHE 4
SHE 5
SHE 6
SHE 7
SHE 9
MAR 4
FLA 2
FLA 3
FLA 6
FLA 9h
FLA 9v
FLA 10
FLA 11
FLA 12
FLA 4
FLA 5
FLA 5a
Ferder Formation
250
250
<250
<250
<250
250
<250
250
500
250
250
500
<250
500
500
250
250
SR
SA
SA
SR
SR
SR
SR
SR
R
R
R
SR
SR
R
SR
SR
SA
C
M
M
M
M
M
M
M
C
C
M
M
M
M
M
M
M
Void
ratio
<500 mm
Sample
no.
Formation
Grain
size
>500 mm
Texture

Pressure
shadow
Void Section
type elements
Rotation
Crushed
grains
Pebble
I

Pebble
II

Dropstones
Pebble
III
Water Lineations
escape

Lattisepic Omnisepic Masepic Unistrial

Microfossils Skelsepic
Plasmic fabric
Marine features
Deformation structures
Voids
Matrix
Shape
Skeleton
Micromorphological features
Table 2 Micromorphological characteristics of samples suggested to represent the Ferder glacial episode. The presence of a single dot identies the presence of a specic feature, whilst two or three dots indicate greater
development or more common structures. Key to void types: F laboratory-induced ssures, P packing void. Key to section elements: BA banding, BE true sedimentary bedding, S shear, F ow, BO
boudinage, L lamination (sedimentary or tectonic)
139
the ice front terminating in a marine environment during

advance.
The Coal Pit Formation is an extensive seismostratigraphic
unit that is found across much of the central North Sea. In stratigraphic terms, the age of the Coal Pit Formation is unclear,
although Stoker et al. (1985) suggest that it may span much
of the last glacialinterglacial cycle and is thought to be the
southern equivalent of the Ferder Formation. Seismically, the
Coal Pit Formation is complex, with reectors indicating a melange of chaotic and subparallel layering, as well as distinctive
intra-formational channel features, possibly representing a network of tunnel valleys. The sediments of the Coal Pit Formation have been sampled in many locations within the central
North Sea, focusing on the upper part of the formation, which
is typically identied as a shelly, ne-grained, dark olive-grey
matrix supported diamicton (6Y 3/1), often displaying some
evidence of stratication, as well as augen-shaped intraclasts.
What is evident from all the thin sections of the Coal Pit Formation (Table 2) is that the sediment has undergone a signicant degree of deformation under high conning stress
regimes, with structures reecting both planar and rotational
deformation evident, and in situ crushed quartz grains (with
evidence of displacement) present in all samples (Fig. 6(D)).
Structural features indicating stratication (MAR4, FLA9v, 11
and 12) are interpreted as pseudo-laminae or shear structures,
displaying no internal grading or evidence of other primary
sedimentary structures. The pseudo-laminae are typically associated with grain lineations, unistrial or masepic plasmic fabrics (Fig. 6(E)), further demonstrating association with planar
deformation. Microfabrics (Fig. 5) identify a unidirectional lateral applied stress eld. This body of data strongly supports the
interpretation that at least the upper facies of the Coal Pit Formation is a subglacial till, reecting signicant cannibalisation
of pre-existing marine or glacimarine sediments. The evidence
for such cannibalisation of pre-existing sediments is particularly clear in borehole 81/26, where the upper contact between
the Saalian age Ling Bank Formation (Stoker et al., 1985) and
the Coal Pit Formation is heavily deformed, with signicant disturbance of the upper 9 m of the Ling Bank Formation (Table 2).
As the Coal Pit Formation is widespread across the central NSB,
it is evident that this glacial event was widespread across the
NSB.
On the basis of the interpretation of a subglacial origin for
both the Ferder and Coal Pit Formations, it is possible to suggest
extensive glaciation of the NSB during an early event within the
Weichselian, possibly coinciding with MIS 4. Assuming that
both the glacial evidence from each formation reects the same
period of glaciation, the likely conguration of this ice sheet is
demonstrated in Fig. 7. During advance and at its maxima, it is
likely that this ice sheet terminated in marine conditions to the
north. It should be noted that as the stratigraphic status of the
Coal Pit Formation is somewhat ambiguous, this reconstruction
should be considered tentative at best.
Mid- to Late Weichselian glaciation: the Cape

Shore glacial episode
It is increasingly likely that the growth of the LGM ice sheets in
Scandinavia and the British Isles is more complex than has
been previously considered. In this paper, a two-stage glaciation model is favoured, based on the discussion presented by
Carr (2004b).
The Cape Shore Formation extends across much of the northern NSB, from the Norwegian Channel to, and just beyond, the
continental shelf edge, and typically directly overlies the Ferder
140
Figure 5 Representative vertical microfabrics from samples in this study, highlighting the dips of individual sand-sized particles. The grey line in each
sample reects a 0 dip. Each sample is based on a random sampling of a minimum of 50 apparently elongate (a:b axes ratio > 1.5:1) sand-sized
quartz grains (250 micron metres to 1 mm a axis)
Formation. It is suggested by Johnson et al. (1993) that this formation is at least partly the lateral equivalent of the Swatchway
Formation in the central NSB. Whilst predominantly consisting
of olive-grey (5Y 4/2) ne-grained massive or stratied shelly
diamictons, observed in cores, it is evident from seismic
records that the lower part of the Cape Shore Formation is distinguished by sub-horizontal reectors possibly indicative of
sedimentary bedding. The two-tier structure of the Cape Shore
Formation is evident in borehole 78/09, where the lower
1015 m is a stratied facies, which in thin section (SHE2,
Table 3) preserves some very faint sub-horizontal graded bedding (Fig. 8(A)), and a distinctly vertical microfabric arrangement (Fig. 5), suggestive of waterlain conditions, probably
marine given the presence of numerous marine bivalve shellfragments. The upper facies of the formation (SHE1 and 3,
Table 3) appears to be largely similar in macro-scale to the
lower facies, albeit with less well-dened stratication. However, in thin section, the upper facies of the Cape Shore Formation is typied by evidence of both planar and rotational
deformation processes (notably associations of rotation structures, pressure shadows, grain lineations), and related plasmic
fabric development (Table 3). Once again, the presence
of crushed quartz grains and water escape structures in
SHE1 imply a high conning pressure during deformation
(Fig. 8(B)), suggestive of a subglacial glacitectonic origin. The
microfabric of the upper facies of the Cape Shore Formation
(Fig. 5) demonstrates a particle response to a unidirectional lateral stress eld, rather than sediment settling out from suspension. This combination of macro- and micro-scale analysis of
the Cape Shore Formation suggests that the majority of the sediments were laid down under marine conditions, with the upper
part of the deposit subsequently reworked and deformed under
141
Figure 6 Photomicrographs from samples related to the Ferder glacial episode. Each image is paired with an original and annotated version, and the
black bar reects 5 mm in each image. (A) Rotational pressure shadow, SHE9, Ferder Formation (plane-polarised light). (B) Skelsepic and lattisepic
plasmic fabric, SHE9, Ferder Formation (cross-polarised light). (C) Laminated intraclast within deformed diamicton, SHE4, Ferder Formation (crosspolarised light). (D) Crushed quartz grains, FLA11, Coal Pit Formation (cross-polarised light). Samples outlined in a solid line reect crushing that
occurred during deposition/deformation, and reect displacement of fractured grains and the ingress of interstitial plasma material, while those outlined in dashed lines reect crushing during the polishing process during thin-section production, with no interstitial plasma or evidence of displacement. (E) Grain lineation and associated unistrial plasmic fabric, FLA12, Coal Pit Formation (cross-polarised light)


Bo
Ba
Be
Ba
S/Bo
Be
S
L/S
L/S
Ba
Be
Ba
Ba
Ba/Be
Be
F
F
P
F
F
F
F
F
F
F
F
F
F
F
F
F
F
F
F
F
F
F
L
L
H
L
L
H
L
L
M
L
L
L
H
L
H
L
L
L
M
L
L
L
M
M
M
F
M
M
C
M
C
M
M
C
M
C
M
M
M
M
M
M
M
M
SA
SA
SR
SA
SA
SA
SA
SR
SA
A
A
SA
A
SA
SA
SA
SA
SA
SA
SR
SA
SA
SR
R
SR
SR
SR
R
R
SA
R
SR
R
R
SR
SR
SR
SR
R
SR
Tampen Formation
Cape Shore Formation
Swatchway Fm
BGS 4
BGS 5a
BGS 5b
BGS 6
BGS 7
BGS 8
BGS 9
BGS 10
BGS 12
BGS 13
C. 65
C. 66
C.67
FLA 7
FLA 8
SHE 3
SHE 1
SHE 2
BER 9
BER 10
BER 11
BER 12
Dogger Bank Formation
<250
250
250
250
500
500
250
250
<250
<250
250
<250
<2500
250
250
<250
250
<250
250
<250
250
500
<500 mm
>500 mm
Grain
size
Sample
no.
Formation
Shape
Skeleton
Matrix
Texture
Void
ratio
Voids
Void Section
type elements
Rotation
Pressure
shadow
Crushed
grains
Pebble
I
Pebble
II
Pebble
III
Water Lineations
escape
Dropstones
Marine features
subglacial conditions, during extensive glaciation across the

entire northern NSB.
Across much of the central NSB the Swatchway Formation
overlies the Coal Pit Formation, and is thought to be partly contiguous with the Cape Shore Formation (Johnson et al., 1993).
The Swatchway Formation consists of an olive-grey (5Y 4/2)
silty, matrix-supported diamicton with isolated, discontinuous
bands of sorted silts and sands. Clast analysis reported from
borehole 77/02 by King (1991) identies primarily subangular
to sub-rounded igneous and metamorphic clasts, some of
which are striated, as well as less common sandstones, all of
which may be Scottish or Scandinavian in provenance. In borehole 77/02, a lower facies of the Swatchway Formation is identied as a laminated silty-clay, in which complete marine
bivalve shells are preserved (FLA8, Table 3). Elsewhere within
the formation, there are very common marine shell-fragments,
and occasional complete (though not paired) bivalve shells. On
seismic lines, the Swatchway Formation is identied as a series
of transparent to chaotic reectors, with a highly irregular
upper surface, possibly reecting the surface of a till sheet, or
disturbance through iceberg scour (Stoker and Long, 1984). To
the east, the Swatchway Formation can be traced as a lateral
equivalent of part of the Tampen Formation (Sejrup et al.,
1991). The micromorphology of the Swatchway Formation
(Table 3) identies well-developed planar plasmic fabrics, rotation features and symmetrical pressure shadows in both samples, as well as in situ crushed quartz grains, implying that
the sediment has undergone deformation in a high conning
stress regime, under conditions of dilation and stiffening of
the sediment body, resulting in brittle failure (Hiemstra and
van der Meer, 1997). In FLA8 (Table 3), it appears that shearing
along pre-existing boundaries of laminae has occurred, resulting in the development of rotation features around complete
shells and shell-fragments (Fig. 8(C)). The preservation of complete bivalve shells does not initially conform to the presence of
Table 3 Micromorphological characteristics of samples suggested to represent the Cape Shore glacial episode. See heading of Table 2 for details
Figure 7 Palaeogeographic reconstruction of the Ferder glacial episode in the North Sea Basin. This is based on the revised interpretations
of the relevant formations from this study in coordination with previously published stratigraphic studies (for references see main text)

Plasmic fabric
142
143
144
fractured quartz grains, but it is likely from the suite of deformation structures that deformation often occurred along discrete
shear planes, rather than pervading through the entire sediment
pile, thus permitting complete shells to be preserved. Microfabric observations from both samples identify unidirectional vertical microfabrics, indicating the presence of a directional
lateral stress eld during deformation (Fig. 5). The consistency
of deformation between samples more than 60 km apart, as
well as the presence of features indicating deformation under
high strain conditions would suggest a subglacial origin to
the Swatchway Formation.
A similar tabular seismostratigraphic formation may be
traced within the Norwegian sector of the North Sea to the east
of the Swatchway Formation. This unit, known as the Tampen
Formation appears to be at least partly the lateral continuation
of the Swatchway Formation. In borehole B2001a, the Tampen
Formation consists of two grey (2.5Y 5/1) ne grained matrixsupported diamictons, separated by a thin band of ne-grained
laminated silts and clays. Whether the layer of laminated silts
and clays is stratigraphically signicant is unclear, although
Carr et al. (2000) suggest that this may imply the two diamictons reect separate events, although the extent and geometry
of the possible two units is not known, and the Tampen Formation is typically mapped as one seismostratigraphic unit across
much of the eastern part of the northern North Sea. The two
diamictons each preserve common sand and gravel lenses
and intraclasts, and a moderate clast content, of which a number of striated clasts may be identied, primarily of Norwegian
origin (Sejrup et al., 1987; Andrews et al., 1990). The micromorphology of the Tampen Formation in the central North
Sea (Table 3) is dominated by rotation structures and skelsepic
plasmic fabrics in all samples, while the rarity of crushed quartz
grains or unistrial plasmic fabrics suggests that deformation was
pervasive through the entire sediment body, with little evidence for stress concentration under discrete shear sufcient
to cause grain fracture. Microfabrics of both vertical and horizontal thin sections indicate well-developed unidirectional
particle orientations, suggestive of a clear unidirectional lateral
stress eld (Fig. 5). It is notable, however, that the suite of deformation features in BER9 (lower diamict) differs slightly from
that identied in the samples in the upper diamict, with a
higher presence of rotation structures and pressure shadows,
and poorer plasmic fabric development in BER9 compared to
BER11 and 12. This may support the suggestion that the conditions during deformation of the lower diamict were different to
those of the upper, reecting stratigraphically discrete events.
Sample BER10 differs signicantly from the other Tampen
Formation sediments, in that it was sampled from a thin unit
of silty-clay between two main diamicton facies. BER10 preserves sedimentary bedding, and rare, contorted dropstone
structures, associated with the formation of localised pressure
shadows (Table 3). Throughout the sample, a well-developed
masepic plasmic fabric suggests pervasive re-orientation of
the plasma through planar shear (Fig. 8(D)). This sample was
interpreted by Carr et al. (2000) as reecting initial glacimarine
deposition that was subsequently deformed through glacitectonic processes. However, the stratigraphic signicance of this
is unclear: it is possible that the Tampen Formation reects two
stages of glaciation preserved within, separated by a short period of glacimarine conditions; alternatively sample BER10 may
have simply been recovered from a larger raft or intraclast of
glacimarine material during a single depositional/deformational phase. The investigation of the Tampen Formation in
borehole B2001a strongly supports the interpretation of Carr
et al. (2000) that the evidence reects the extension of ice
beyond the constraints of the Norwegian Channel during the
LGM, and that this may possibly have occurred during more
than one phase.
In the southern NSB, the Dogger Bank Formation may at least
partly equate to the Swatchway Formation (Fig. 4). The Dogger
Bank Formation comprises mainly dark-grey to reddish-brown
(10YR 6/4 to 7.5YR 6/4) ne-grained matrix supported diamictons, often containing pods and intraclasts of ne sands, and a
chalk and int dominated clast content. Lower proportions of
clasts, and a generally ner grain-size, as well as the presence
of common shell fragments helps to discriminate the Dogger
Bank Formation from the Bolders Bank Formation, which it
underlies, or in part interdigitates with (Cameron et al.,
1992). In seismic lines, the Dogger Bank Formation has a distinctive structure, with layered seismic reectors in the lower
portion of the formation becoming progressively more disturbed and acoustically chaotic in the top 10 m of the formation
(Fig. 9). At a regional scale, the Dogger Bank Formation forms a
positive seaoor feature, and is analogous in geometry and
scale to Denmark (Carr, 1998). Furthermore, Laban (1995)
and the late Dr Robin Wingeld (pers. comm.) suggest that
some seismic lines in the Dutch sector of the NSB identify
large-scale thrusting of the Dogger Bank Formation occurring
from the north. In thin section (Table 3), all samples display
at least some evidence of rotational deformation (Fig. 8(E)),
Figure 8 Photomicrographs from samples relating to the Cape Shore

glacial episode. Each image is paired with an original and annotated
version, and the black bar reects 5 mm in each image (all images
are in plane-polarised light). (A) Sands in glacimarine sediments making up the lower part of the Cape Shore Formation, SHE2, Cape Shore
Formation. (B) In situ crushed quartz grains, SHE1, Cape Shore Formation. (C) Pressure shadow, FLA8, Swatchway Formation. (D) Rotation
structure, BGS5, Dogger Bank Formation. (E) Pebble Type III (see van
der Meer, 1993), BGS8, Dogger Bank Formation
Figure 9 Palaeogeographic reconstruction of the Cape Shore glacial

episode in the North Sea Basin. The dashed lines reect a suggested
retreat phase of this episode, during which Scandinavian ice retreats
to the Norwegian Channel, and Scottish ice terminates east of Buchan
at the Bosies Bank moraine (Bent, 1986)
and many display plasmic fabrics that indicate discrete or

pervasive shear of the sediment body. Microfabrics (Fig. 5) suggest that a unidirectional stress eld with a signicant lateral
component inuenced almost all samples during deposition/
deformation. However, some samples (BGS5b, BGS10, C.65,
Table 3) display few deformation features, and preserve many
indications of true sedimentary bedding and abundant marine
microfossils, and reect waterlain deposition in a shallow glacimarine environment. Intraclasts (Pebble Type III in the
scheme of van der Meer (1993)) of stratied sediments with
some sand-sized dropstone structures in BGS9 and BGS12
(Fig. 8(F)) indicate the cannibalisation of pre-existing waterlaid
sediments during the deposition of the Dogger Bank Formation.
Carr (1999) suggests that these intraclasts, as well as the relatively undeformed samples noted above probably reect the
sediment characterising the lower (acoustically layered) facies
of the formation being progressively incorporated and homogenised during a subsequent deformation event.
From the combination of the seismic, sedimentological and
micromorphological evidence, it is suggested that the Dogger
Bank Formation is in part shallow glacimarine in origin and
that, subsequent to deposition, at least the upper 10 m of the
formation underwent glacitectonic deformation. This involved
the reworking of the in situ waterlain sediment as well as the
addition of allochthonous sediments. This conforms well to
the structure of the Dogger Bank itself, which Carr (1998,
2004b) interprets as a large moraine belt comparable with
the Main Stationary Line of Denmark.
The detailed stratigraphic status of the formations outlined
above is highly ambiguous, given the lack of reliable radiometric ages for the region, although a broad classication of
these formations as MidLate Weichselian is relatively secure.
However, it is apparent from the micromorphology of the formations outlined above that during the Middle to Late Weichselian, extensive glaciation occurred across much of the NSB,
with conuent ice from Scotland and Scandinavia extending
northwards and westwards to the continental shelf edge, and
southwards to produce the Dogger Bank (Fig. 9). Limited
AMS 14C dates from the central NSB (Sejrup et al., 1994) suggest that if the events identied in each of the formations were
contemporaneous, the peak of this glaciation was reached
soon after 22 k 14C yr BP.
Late Weichselian glaciation: the Bolders

Bank glacial episode
Subsequent to the Cape Shore glacial episode, there is signicant evidence of a third major advance of Scottish and Scandinavian ice into the NSB. The evidence for this episode is
primarily in the form of diamictons with close association with
recognised tills from the onshore record of the east coast of
Britain.
The Bolders Bank Formation consists of a dark reddishbrown (7.5YR 4/2) over-consolidated ne-grained diamicton,
with sub-rounded and subangular clasts mainly comprising
chalk, black ints and red sandstones. It has a massive structure, with only occasional sand interbeds and intraclasts present, and has been mapped by Long et al. (1988) as a large
lobe that extends up to 50 km offshore from the east coast of
northern England, before spreading across a large area of
the southern North Sea, as far east as the Dutch Sector (see
Fig. 1). Cameron et al. (1992) suggest that the Bolders Bank
Formation is the extension of the Skipsea and Withernsea Tills
of East Yorkshire (Catt, 1991), with which it shares many
macroscale similarities.
145
The micromorphology of the Bolders Bank Formation has

been described in detail by Carr (1999), and a summary is presented in Table 4. All the samples investigated display many
similar features, reecting both planar and rotational deformation regimes, with crushed quartz grains indicating a high
degree of normal stress exerted during sediment strain in many
samples (see Hiemstra and van der Meer, 1997). Microfabric
analysis (Fig. 5) illustrates that sand grains responded to a
strong unidirectional lateral stress eld. The micromorphological evidence, in combination with the macroscale descriptions
of cores suggests that the Bolders Bank Formation is a till of subglacial origin, reecting an ice sheet extending from the east
coast of Britain across the southern North Sea.
The Wee Bankie Formation is a seismically chaotic formation that is laterally contiguous with the Bolders Bank Formation to the south, and the Red Series tills in the Firth of Forth and
onshore Scotland (Gostelow and Browne, 1986; Gatliff et al.,
1994). The Wee Bankie Formation consists of dark reddishbrown (5YR 3/3), ne-grained, matrix-supported diamictons,
with a high proportion of subangular and sub-rounded clasts
reecting a sediment source from the Midland Valley and
Highlands of Scotland. The micromorphology of the Wee
Bankie Formation (Table 4, Fig. 5) includes a number of
small-scale deformation features, including boudins and intraclasts, as well as moderately developed plasmic fabrics reecting both rotational and planar mechanisms of deformation
(Fig. 10(A)). It is apparent that as with the Bolders Bank Formation, with which it is closely associated (Andrews et al.,
1990), the Wee Bankie Formation is clearly a subglacial till,
reecting ice extending eastwards from the Midland Valley of
Scotland.
The eastern limit of the Wee Bankie Formation is distinctive,
with previous researchers interpreting a sequence of stacked
moraine ridges 50 km offshore (Stewart, 1991; Gatliff et al.,
1994), interdigitating with an acoustically well-layered seismostratigraphic formation, termed the Marr Bank Formation.
The sediments comprising the Marr Bank Formation range from
reddish-brown (5YR 4/3), moderately well-sorted sands in the
west to greyish-brown (10YR 5/2), well-sorted silts and clays in
the east, and have been interpreted by Holmes (1977) as
reecting glacimarine sedimentation contiguous with an ice
sheet terminating in a calving margin at the limit of the Wee
Bankie Formation. Micromorphological analysis of the Marr
Bank Formation (Table 4) indicates that there is signicant spatial variation within the sediments that is not immediately
obvious in macroscale. The suite of structures identied in
MAR2 (Table 4) indicate a complex sediment evolution, in
which laminated sediments were subsequently deformed
through planar shear and rotation to produce a number of intraclasts (Pebble Types II and III). These were nally reworked
under aqueous conditions, producing a number of ow structures (Carr, 1998; Fig. 10(B)). This suite of associated structures
and processes is consistent with sediment production in shallow glacimarine or glacilacustrine conditions, associated with
a uctuating ice margin. To the east, the Marr Bank Formation
changes to a laminated silty-clay, within which lamination can
clearly be seen in thin section (Table 4, Fig. 10(C)). This would
seem to conrm the interpretation of Holmes (1977) of a significant ice sheet margin some 50 km from the east coast of Scotland during the Devensian.
In the west of the northern North Sea, two seismostratigraphic sequences are associated with renewed glaciation
of the Shetland Isles. The Otter Bank sequence forms an arcuate
band of mounded sediments with chaotic internal reectors
around the northern and eastern ank of the Shetland Ridge,
whilst the Stormy Bank sequence appears to locally form a
more seismically layered inll of topographic basins within
146
the Otter Bank Sequence. The Otter Bank sequence consists of

ne-grained diamictons with clasts of a largely Shetland provenance, whilst the Stormy Bank sequence is typied by ne
shelly sands and silts, with a tendency to ne upwards. Single
thin sections were produced of the sediments making up each
sequence (Table 4). Both samples preserve a range of deformation structures, including rotation structures (Fig. 10(D)) and
pressure shadows indicative of rotational deformation, associated with rotational plasmic fabric development. It is apparent that such deformation occurred under high-stress
conditions, with fracture of individual quartz grains. Sample
SHE10, from the Otter Bank Formation also preserves welldeveloped grain lineations, indicating an element of planar
shear during deformation, supported by the development of a
weak masepic plasmic fabric. Development of boudinage
structures in SHE8 (Fig. 10(E)) indicates tensional stress applied
to the sediment during deformation. Microfabric analysis of
both samples (Fig. 5) indicates the presence of a unidirectional
lateral stress eld during sediment deposition and deformation
and, notably in SHE8, there is no evidence of deposition
through rain-out from suspension. Given that only one sample
from each formation was investigated in thin section, it is
unclear how representative these samples are of each
sequence, but the data appears to conrm the previously
reported presence of a local Shetland ice cap during a nal
phase of glaciation of the northern North Sea (Ross, 1997).
Whilst the overall seismic geometry of the Stormy Bank
sequence is suggestive of waterlaid deposition in shallow glacimarine conditions (Johnson et al., 1993), this is not conrmed
by micromorphological analysis at this location.
The Sperus Formation is a seismically layered unit that forms
an eastwards thickening wedge, beyond the limit of the Otter
Bank sequence, and is truncated in the east by the Norwegian
Channel. The sediments of the Sperus Formation are dark grey
(2.5Y 4/1), ne-grained, matrix-supported diamictons, commonly containing complete bivalve shells. In thin section, the
Sperus Formation is generally structureless (Table 4), and there
is a notable absence of associated deformation features. Rare,
isolated rotation structures, representing the rolling of individual grains, have produced weak skelsepic fabrics in SHE12,
but reect very localised deformation, probably produced during disturbance during a settling-out process. Microfabric analysis of both samples identies a well-developed vertical
microfabric (Fig. 5), suggesting the absence of a unidirectional
lateral stress eld (Carr, 2001). These data suggest that the
Sperus Formation reects deposition in low-energy conditions,
probably within a glacimarine environment.
147
To the east, and partly overlying the Sperus Formation, a

sequence of diamictons, interpreted as the Norwegian Trench
and Tampen Formations (Rise et al., 1984) have been classically associated with the Late Weichselian Scandinavian ice
sheet (Sejrup et al., 1987, 1991, 1995). The Norwegian Trench
Formation partly forms the lateral equivalent of the Tampen
Formation, and is found as a diamicton up to 40 m thick, suggested to perhaps reect up to three episodes of MidLate
Weichselian glaciation (Sejrup et al., 1995, 2000) within the
Norwegian Channel. At the northern edge of the Norwegian
Channel, a series of glacimarine debris ow lobes have been
described by Carr et al. (2000) as the shelf-marginal equivalent
of the Norwegian Trench Formation, reecting sediment supply at the grounding line of a tidewater calving ice sheet margin. The micromorphology of the Tampen Formation in the
northern North Sea (Table 4) is very similar to the upper part
of the same formation further south (BER 11 and 12, Table 3),
with rotation features, pressure shadows and crushed quartz
grains, as well as a distinct skelsepic and masepic plasmic fabrics (Fig. 10(F)) and unidirectional microfabric (Fig. 5) supporting a subglacial origin for the formation. However, as noted
earlier, Carr (1998) suggests that the Tampen Formation may
reect more than one stratigraphically signicant glacial episode, and it may be that these samples reect earlier glaciation
during the Cape Shore Episode. However, it is clear from the
sediments of the Norwegian Channel Formation and the
related debris ow deposits of the upper North Sea fan that
there was clearly glaciation of the Norwegian Channel during
this time, and potentially some extension of ice beyond, on to
the North Sea Plateau.
The relative absence of post-depositional reworking of these
Late Weichselian formations by subsequent glaciation permits
quite detailed reconstruction of the palaeogeography of the
NSB during the Bolders Bank glacial episode (Fig. 11). While
the quality of 14C AMS dating from the region is generally poor,
the consensus view is that the Bolders Bank episode reects readvance of both the British and Scandinavian ice sheets after
approximately 18 k 14C yr BP (Holmes, 1977; Rokoengen
et al., 1982; Sejrup et al., 1994; Ross, 1997), and correlates
with the lithostratigraphic evidence of the Dimlington Stadial
identied in eastern Britain (Catt and Penny, 1966; Rose,
1985; Boulton et al., 1991). However, this event is characterised by an ice-free shallow glacimarine corridor between
both ice sheets in the central and northern NSB, and terrestrial
in the southern NSB.
Discussion
3
Figure 10 Photomicrographs from sediments reecting the Bolders

Bank glacial episode. Each image is paired with an original and annotated version, and the black bar reects 5 mm in each image. (A) Rotation structures and small pressure shadows around a micro-granite
pebble, MAR 2, Marr Bank Formation (cross-polarised light) Note the
strong birefringence from a well-developed skelsepic plasmic fabric.
(B) Water escape structure, MAR2, Marr Bank Formation (planepolarised light). The arrow identies the apparent initiation point of
the structure. (C) True sedimentary lamination, MAR3, Marr Bank Formation (cross-polarised light). (D) Rotation structures, SHE10, Otter
Bank Sequence (plane-polarised light). (E) Formation of boudins,
SHE8, Stormy Bank Sequence (cross-polarised light) Note the welldeveloped unistrial plasmic fabric that identies the developing boudins. (F) Development of masepic plasmic fabric, SHE11, Tampen Formation (cross-polarised light). Rather than the discrete shearing
identied in 10(E), this masepic plasmic fabric reects more pervasive
shear through the sediment body
The role of micromorphology in examining offshore

Quaternary sediment sequences
The results of this research indicate that thin-section micromorphology has a signicant role to play in the examination of offshore sediment sequences within Quaternary science. The data
outlined above (Tables 2, 3 and 4) present a signicant development in the level and quality of information that can be
applied in providing a genetic interpretation of the sedimentary
and deformational history of samples recovered from cores and
boreholes. This permits rigorous testing of previous interpretations, leading to some signicant revision of the evolution of
critical seismostratigraphic formations in the NSB (Table 5). It
has been demonstrated that the identication of a suite of
associated deformation structures in thin section can be
used to identify subglacial conditions, and most importantly
Sample
no.
Bolders Bank Formation IND 1(H)

IND 1(V)
IND 2
BGS 1
BGS 2
BGS 3
Mi 840
Mi 841
Mi 842
Mi 844
Mi 846
Mi 848
Marr Bank Formation
MAR 1
MAR 2
Wee Bankie
MAR 3
Stormy Bank
SHE 8
Otter Bank
SHE 10
Sperus Formation
SHE 12
SHE 13
Tampen Formation
SHE 11
Norwegian Channel
BER 1
Formation
BER 2
BER 3
BER 4
Formation
SR
SR
R
R
R
SR
R
R
SR
SR
R
R
SR
SR
SR
R
R
SA
R
SR
SR
250
<250
<250
>500 mm
250
250
250
250
500
500
<250
250
1 mm
500
250
250
250
<250
<250
250
250
<250
250
250
<500
Grain
size
SA
A
A
SA
SA
SA
SA
A
A
SR
SA
SA
SA
A
SA
SA
SA
SA
SA
SA
SA
A
SA
A
<500 mm
Shape
Skeleton
M
F
M
M
M
M
M
M
M
C
C
F
M
M
M
C
M
M
M
M
M
M
M
M
Texture
Matrix
L
L
L
M
M
L
L
L
L
L
L
L
L
L
L
L
L
L
L
L
M
L
M
L
Void
ratio
F
F
F
F
F
F
F
F
F
P/B
F
F
F
F
F
F
F
F
F
F
F
F
F
F
F/S
F
F
F
Ba
S
Ba
Ba
Ba
Ba/S
L/Be
L
Bo
Void Section
type elements
Voids

Pressure
shadow
Rotation

Pebble
II

Pebble
I
Crushed
grains

Pebble
III

Water Lineations
escape
Table 4 Micromorphological characteristics of samples suggested to represent the Bolders Bank episode. See heading of Table 2 for details
Dropstones

Marine features

Plasmic fabric
148
149
Wee Bankie
Ferder
Marr Bank
Norwegian Trench
Otter Bank sequence
Sperus
Stormy Bank sequence
Swatchway
Tampen
Glacimarine sediments and subglacial till

Shallow glacimarine sediments
Subglacial till
Submarine end-moraine ridges and subglacial till
Shallowing glacimarine sediments
Cold marine sediments (no sea-ice)
Subglacial tilllateral moraine on margin of Norwegian
Channel ice-stream
Lodgement till
Subglacial till
Glacitectonised (subglacial) marine sediments and subglacial till
Glacimarine sediments
Glacitectonised (subglacial) shallow marine sediments and subglacial till. Geometry of feature
represents large thrust block moraine, with ice owing northsouth
Proximal to distal shallow glacimarine sediments
Subglacial till
Subglacial till
Subglacial till?
Subglacial till
Subglacial till reecting possibly two stratigraphically distinct glacial episodes separated
by glacimarine sediments
Subglacial till
Revised interpretation
Lodgement till
Cold marine sediments (moderate depth)
Cold marine grading into glacimarine sediments
One of the key developments in this paper is the revision of the

processes and environments of deposition of key sedimentary
formations within the NSB. It has proved possible to effectively
discriminate primary glacimarine sediments from those that
have been reworked or disturbed through processes of subglacial glacitectonism. This permits a robust interpretation and
Bolders Bank
Cape Shore
Coal Pit (upper)
Coal Pit (lower)
Dogger Bank
Regional reconstruction of glaciation
Previous interpretation (see Fig. 4)
discriminate between characteristics that can identify proximal

and distal glacimarine environments. These data can be closely
related to the micromorphological structures identied in
recently deposited glacimarine and subglacial tills in reliable
analogue regions such as Svalbard and Alaska (Carr, 2001;
Hiemstra, 2001) and provide an unprecedented degree of condence in the interpretation of Quaternary glacial and glacimarine sediments.
From the present study, the identication of a series of associated deformation features, unidirectional microfabrics and
indications of deformation under high conning stress (crushed
quartz grains) are used to infer subglacial conditions. However,
it is currently unclear what the signature of iceberg ploughing
could be on pre-existing sediments. This may be of considerable signicance, given that formations such as the Swatchway
Formation have previously been interpreted as glacimarine
sediments disturbed by extensive iceberg scour (Stoker et al.,
1985; King, 1991). While it is likely that the effects of iceberg
ploughing would be more variable and localised than subglacial processes, and therefore result in highly variable micromorphological structures, this is yet to be tested at a reliable
analogue site. However, the consistency of sedimentological
micromorphological characteristics in repeat samples from
spatially widely separated samples suggests that in this study,
there is little evidence to support extensive disturbance by icebergs in the formations under examination.
Formation
Figure 11 Palaeogeographic reconstruction of Weichselian glaciation

of the North Sea basin during the Bolders Bank glacial episode
Table 5 A comparison of the genetic interpretations of Weichselian/Devensian formations in the North Sea Basin between the sources quoted in Fig. 4 and this study
150
testing of the depositional and deformation history of seismostratigraphic units from the NSB (Table 5). Taking the process-based
interpretations obtained through micromorphology and applying these to the existing Weichselian stratigraphy of the NSB,
and incorporating previously published models of the palaeogeography of the NSB (Fig. 1), three major phases of
Weichselian glaciation may be reconstructed (Table 5; Figs 7,
10 and 12). The rst two of these events (Ferder and Cape Shore
glacial episodes) reect conuent glaciation of the Scandinavian
and British ice sheets extending to the continental shelf edge,
with the latter event conforming to the reconstruction of the
LGM ice sheet in this region by Sejrup et al. (2000). The nal
event, termed here the Bolders Bank glacial episode, reects
more restricted glaciation of the region, with limited advance
of the Scandinavian ice sheet beyond the Norwegian Channel,
and the extension of a tongue of ice from northeast England and
Scotland into the southern North Sea, with no evidence of ice
sheet conuence. An independent ice-cap developed over the
Shetland Isles, but it is unclear whether this was entirely separate (Sutherland, 1991), or partly contiguous with the main British ice sheet (Hall and Bent, 1990; Stoker and Holmes, 1991).
Application of thin-section micromorphology has provided a
reliable indication of the extent of the various ice sheets as they
extended into the NSB on different occasions, allowing greater
condence in the discussion of key stratigraphic and glaciological implications of such reconstructions.
Stratigraphic and chronological issues

While it is beyond the remit of this paper to revise the Late Quaternary stratigraphy of the NSB, it is clear that the ndings
reported here have a fundamental impact on the current understanding of glaciation in northwest Europe through the last glacial cycle, and therefore requires consideration. There are two
principal problems with attempts to reconstruct a detailed
Weichselian glacial history for the NSB. Firstly, it is evident that
much of the stratigraphy for the last glacial cycle in the NSB is
inadequately dated, and that the quality of 14C dating is constrained by the quality of material available for dating. Other
approaches to dating events in the NSB during the Weichselian
that have been attempted (AAR, palaeomagnetic analyses) do
not provide anywhere near the temporal resolution necessary
in this context (see McCarroll, 2002). Secondly, it is apparent
that the relationship between individual formations in the NSB
is not clearly identied by seismostratigraphy, and that a series
of stratigraphic ambiguities limit the precision and condence
that can be expressed in the correlations between formations
outlined in Fig. 4 and described above. This results in great difculty in resolving key stratigraphic issues such as the number
of occasions during which the NSB was glaciated during the
Weichselian. From the data outlined in this paper, it is clear
that there is evidence of multiple phases of glaciation, and that
a number of these invoke conuent Scandinavian and British
ice sheets. The three stages of glaciation outlined above represent a best-t of the stratigraphy as it currently stands in the
NSB, but until improvements are made to the correlations
between specic formations (notably the Coal Pit, Swatchway
and Dogger Bank Formations), this model is subject to review.
A host of stratigraphic issues arise from the three-phase
Weichselian glaciation model outlined above, relating to the
manner in which the evidence in the NSB links the onshore
records of the British Isles and Scandinavia. These problems
primarily relate to the evidence for Middle to Late Weichselian
glaciation. It is clear that both the Cape Shore and Bolders Bank
episodes reect glaciation subsequent to MIS 3, during the tranCopyright 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
sition from the Middle to Late Weichselian. The Cape Shore

glacial episode presents a range of stratigraphic and chronological problems, in that it is difcult to reconcile the onshore
and offshore records of glaciation, particularly with the Scottish
onshore stratigraphy. Extremely limited 14C (bulk) radiometric
ages (Milling, 1975; Rise and Rokoengen, 1984; Johnson et al.,
1993) suggest that the transition from glacimarine to subglacial
conditions occurred in the Cape Shore Formation after approximately 3128 k 14C yr BP, reaching a peak of glaciation at or
around 22 k 14C yr BP (Sejrup et al., 1994). Whilst this chronology is largely compatible with the Weichselian glacial curve for
Western Scandinavia (Mangerud, 1991; Sejrup et al., 2000), it
does not conform to the evidence from Scotland, from which
well-constrained, high-quality 14C dated sites close to the
Late Weichselian ice divide (Bishopriggs, Sourlie, Inchnadampf)
identify cold, but ice-free conditions until approximately
26 k 14C yr BP, with glaciation reaching a peak at or soon after
18 k 14C yr BP (Rose, 1985; Boulton et al., 1991). However, it is
notable that in a recently recovered core from the Barra Fan,
with a detailed 14C AMS chronology (Wilson et al., 2002),
the British Ice Sheet is considered to have advanced to the
continental shelf edge by 30 k 14C yr BP, suggesting that reexamination of the whole issue is required.
Given that so few age estimates from the NSB can be considered reliable, in terms of the materials sampled for 14C dating
(mainly marine shells or foraminifera samples), the overdependence on a very limited number of dated cores, and in
the absence of new radiometric ages using 14C AMS and other
techniques (e.g. OSL dating), it is unlikely that this contradiction can be adequately resolved. However, it is interesting to
note that the recent compilation of data from the British Isles
for the Last Glaciation by Clark et al. (2004) recognise two
stages of ice maxima in a number of locations across the British
Isles, suggesting that there is further investigation to be done in
the onshore, as well as offshore records.
Conclusions
1 The investigation of thin-section micromorphology has provided a signicant improvement in the condence by which
the processes resulting in the deposition and deformation of
sediments recovered from offshore cores and boreholes from
the NSB may be understood. Whilst it is apparent that further
research is required to test micromorphological interpretations
in regions affected by iceberg scour, for example, thin-section
examination of offshore sediments shows great promise.
2 Within the constraints of the current seismostratigraphic framework, three major glacial advances into the NSB have
been reconstructed for the Weichselian/Devensian glaciation,
two of which (Ferder and Cape Shore episodes) demonstrate
conuence between the British and Scandinavian ice sheets,
supporting the maximal model of the LGM in the NSB
reported by Sejrup et al. (2000). A nal, more restricted glacial
advance (Bolders Bank episode) reects glaciation of the NSB
with an ice-free corridor between the two ice sheets.
3 The increased condence in the genetic interpretation of the
sediments of the NSB identies signicant problems with
the existing offshore seismostratigraphic framework for the
Devensian/Weichselian glaciation. It is clear that there is a
need for fundamental re-examination of the geochronology
of the last glacial cycle in the region. This will be essential to
resolve continuing controversy in understanding the
dynamics of ice sheet development and the relationships
between the onshore and offshore stratigraphic record in
the region.

Acknowledgements This research was funded as a NERC CASE
research studentship GT4/94/364/G between Royal Holloway, University of London, and BGS Edinburgh. Many thanks to Cees Laban
for access to cores and seismic lines held by the TNO/NITG, and
to Hans-Petter Sejrup and Haidi Haidason for samples from the
Norwegian Channel and North Sea Fan. Discussion with the late
Robin Wingeld was extremely useful in evaluating the status of
the Dogger Bank, whilst Doug Peacock and Charles Harris helped
rene many of the ideas forming the basis of this paper. S.J.C. would
like to acknowledge the signicant assistance of Jerry Lee in making
the thin sections. Reviews by John Hiemstra and Hans Petter Sejrup
are gratefully acknowledged.
References
Andrews IJ, Long D, Richards PC, Thomson AR, Brown S, Chesher
JA, McCormac M. 1990. United Kingdom Offshore Regional
Report: The Geology of the Moray Firth. HMSO: London;
96 pp.
Balson PS, Jeffrey DH. 1991. The glacial sequence of the southern
North Sea. In Glacial Deposits in Great Britain and Ireland, Ehlers
J, Gibbard P, Rose J (eds). Balkema: Rotterdam; 245254.
Bent AJA. 1986. Aspects of Pleistocene glaciomarine sequences in the
North Sea. PhD thesis, University of Edinburgh.
Boulton GS. 1996. Theory of glacial erosion, transport and deposition
as a consequence of subglacial sediment deformation. Journal of
Glaciology 42: 4362.
Boulton GS, Hindmarsh RCA. 1987. Sediment deformation beneath
glaciers: rheology and sedimentological consequences. Journal of
Geophysical Research 92: 90599082.
Boulton GS, Sutherland DS, Peacock JD. 1991. Quaternary. In The
Geology of Scotland (3rd edn), Craig DY (ed.). Geological Society:
London.
Boulton GS, van der Meer JJM, Hart J, Beets D, Ruegg GHJ, van der
Wateren FM, and Jarvis J. 1996. Till and moraine emplacement in
a deforming bed surgean example from a marine environment.
Quaternary Science Reviews 15: 961987.
Bowen DQ, McCabe AM, Phillips FM, Knutz PC, Sykes GA. 2002.
New data for the Last Glacial Maximum in Great Britain and Ireland.
Cameron TDJ, Holmes R. 1999. The Continental Shelf. In A Revised
Correlation of Quaternary Deposits in the British Isles, Bowen DQ
(ed.). Special report 23, Geological Society of London: London;
125139
Cameron T, Stoker M, Long D. 1987. The history of Quaternary
sedimentation in the UK sector of the North Sea basin. Journal of
the Geological Society of London 144: 4358.
Cameron TDJ, Crosby A, Balson PS, Jeffery DH, Lott GK, Bulat
J, Harrison DJ. 1992. United Kingdom Offshore Regional
Report: The geology of the Southern North Sea. HMSO: London;
153 pp.
Carr SJ. 1998. The last glaciation of the North Sea Basin. PhD thesis,
University of London.
Carr SJ. 1999. The micromorphology of Last Glacial Maximum
sediments in the Southern North Sea. Catena 35: 123145.
Carr SJ. 2001. Micromorphological criteria for discriminating
subglacial and glacimarine sediments: evidence from a contemporary tidewater glacier, Spitsbergen. Quaternary International 86: 71
79.
Carr SJ. 2004a. Micro-scale features and structures. In A Practical
Guide to the Study of Glacial Sediments, Benn DI, Evans DJA
(eds). Arnold: London; 115144.
Carr SJ. 2004b. The North Sea Basin. In Atlas of Quaternary Glaciation:
Europe, Vol. 1, Ehlers J (ed.). Elsevier: Amsterdam.
Carr SJ, Lee JR. 1998. Thin section production of diamicts: problems
and solutions. Journal of Sedimentary Research 68: 217221.
Carr SJ, Rose J. 2003. Till fabric patterns and signicance: particle
response to subglacial stress. Quaternary Science Reviews 22:
14151426.
151
Carr SJ, Haidason H, Sejrup HP. 2000. Micromorphological evidence

supporting Late Weichselian glaciation of the northern North Sea.
Boreas 29: 315328.
Caston VND. 1977. Quaternary sediments of the central North Sea. A
new isopachyte map of the Quaternary of the North Sea. Report of
the Institute of Geological Sciences, 77/11; 18.
Catt JA. 1991. Late Devensian glacial deposits and glaciations in eastern England and the adjoining offshore region. In Glacial Deposits of
Great Britain and Ireland, Ehlers J, Gibbard P, Rose J (eds). Balkema:
Rotterdam; 6168.
Catt JA, Penny LF. 1966. The Pleistocene deposits of Holderness, East
Yorkshire. Proceedings of the Yorkshire Geological Society 35: 375
420.
Clark CD, Evans DJA, Khatwa A, Bradwell T, Jordan CJ, Marsh SH,
Mitchell WA, Bateman MD. 2004. Glacial map of Britain and GIS
database. Boreas 33: 359375.
Ehlers J, Wingeld R. 1991. The extension of the Late Weichselian/Late
Devensian ice sheets in the North Sea Basin. Journal of Quaternary
Science 6: 313326.
Ehlers J, Gibbard PL, Rose J. 1991. Glacial deposits of Britain and
Europe: general overview. In Glacial Deposits of Great Britain
and Ireland, Ehlers J, Gibbard PL, Rose J (eds). Balkema: Rotterdam;
493502.
Ehlers J, Meyer KD, Stephan HJ. 1984. The pre-Weichselian glaciations
of North-West Europe. Quaternary Science Reviews 3: 140.
Evenson EB. 1970. The relationship of macro- and microfabric of till in
the genesis of glacial landforms in Jefferson County, Wisconsin. In
Till/ a symposium, Goldthwait RP (ed.). Ohio State University Press:
Columbus; 345364.
Fairbanks RG. 1989. A 17,000 year glacio-eustatic sea level record:
inuence of glacial melting rate on the Younger Dryas event and
deep water circulation. Nature 342: 637642.
Fannin NGT. 1989. Offshore investigations 19661987. British Geological Survey Technical Report WB/89/2.
Flinn D. 1967. Ice front in the North Sea. Nature 215: 11511154.
Flinn D. 1978. The most recent glaciation of the OrkneyShetland
Channel and adjacent areas. Scottish Journal of Geology 19: 311
320.
Gatliff RW, Richards PC, Smith K, Graham CC, McCormac M, Smith
NJP, Long D, Cameron TDJ, Evans D, Stevenson AG, Bulat J, Ritchie
JD. 1994. United Kingdom Offshore Regional Report: The Geology
of the Central North Sea. HMSO: London; 118 pp.
Geikie J. 1873. The Great Ice Age and its Relation to the Antiquity of
Man. Stanford: London.
Glen JW, Donner JJ, West RG. 1957. On the mechanism by which
stones in till become oriented. American Journal of Science 255:
194205.
Gostelow TP, Browne MAE. 1986. Engineering geology of the upper
Forth Estuary. Report of the British Geological Survey 16; 8.
Hall AM, Bent AJA. 1990. The limits of the last British Ice Sheet in
Northern Scotland and the adjacent shelf. Quaternary Newsletter
61: 212.
Hansen S, Nielsen AV. 1960. Glacial geology of Southern Denmark:
guide to excursions numbers A44 and C39. 21st Session, International Geological Congress, Copenhagen.
Hiemstra JF. 2001. Dirt pictures reveal the past extent of the grounded
Antarctic ice sheet. PhD thesis, University of Amsterdam; 231 pp.
Hiemstra JF, van der Meer JJM. 1997 Pore water controlled grain fracturing as an indicator for subglacial shearing in tills. Journal of Glaciology 43: 446454.
Holmes R. 1977. Quaternary Deposits of the Central North Sea Report
5: the Quaternary geology of the UK sector of the North Sea between
56 and 58 N. Report of the Institute of Geological Sciences 77/14.
Holmes R. 1997. Quaternary Stratigraphy: the offshore record. In
Reections on the Ice Age in Scotland, Gordon JE (ed.). Scottish Association of Geography Teachers/ Scottish Natural Heritage: Glasgow;
7294.
Huuse M, Lykke-Andersen H. 2000. Overdeepened Quaternary valleys
in the eastern Danish North Sea: morphology and origin. Quaternary
Science Reviews 19: 12331253.
Jansen JHF. 1976. Late Pleistocene and Holocene history of the northern North Sea, based upon acoustic reection records. Netherlands
Journal of Sea Research 10: 143.
152
Jansen JHF, van Weering TCE, Eisma D. 1979. Late Quaternary sedimentation in the North Sea. In The Quaternary History of the North
Sea, Oele E, Schuttenhelm RTE, Wiggers AJ (eds). Acta Universitatis
Upsaliensis: Symposium Universitatis Annum Quingentesium Celebrantis, Vol. 2; 175187.
Johnson H, Richards PC, Long D, Graham CC. 1993. United Kingdom
Offshore Regional Report: The Geology of the Northern North Sea.
HMSO: London; 111 pp.
Johnson MD. 1983. The origin and microfabric of Lake Superior Red
Clay. Sedimentary Petrology 53: 859873.
Kent PE. 1967. Outline geology of the Southern North Sea basin. Proceedings of the Yorkshire Geological Society 36: 122.
King E. 1991. History of Quaternary sedimentation in borehole 77/02,
Witch Ground Basin, North Sea. Candidature of Science in Marine
Geology, University of Bergen.
Kluiving SJ, Bosh JHA, Ebbing JHJ, Mesdag CS, Westerhoff RS. 2003.
Onshore and offshore seismic and lithostratigraphic analysis of a
deeply incised Quaternary buried valley-system in the northern
Netherlands. Journal of Applied Geophysics 53: 249271.
Laban C. 1995. The Pleistocene glaciations in the Dutch Sector of the
North Sea. PhD thesis, University of Amsterdam.
Lee JA, Kemp RA. 1992. Thin sections of unconsolidated sediments: a
recipe. CEAM report no. 2. Royal Holloway, University of London; 32
pp.
Lee JR. 2001. Genesis and palaeogeographical signicance of the Corton Diamicton (basal member of the North Sea Drift Formation), East
Anglia, UK. Proceedings of the Geologists Association 112: 2943.
Lloyd Davies MT. 2004 A polar paradise: the glaciation of South Victoria Land, Antarctica. PhD thesis, University of Amsterdam.
Long D, Skinner AC. 1985. Glacial meltwater channels in the Northern
Isles of Scotland: a comment. Scottish Journal of Geology 21: 222
224.
Long D, Stoker MS. 1986. Valley asymmetry: evidence for periglacial
activity in the central North Sea. Earth Surface Processes and
Landforms 11: 525532.
Long D, Laban C, Streif H, Cameron TDJ, Schuttenhelm RTE. 1988. The
sedimentary record of climatic variation in the Southern North Sea.
Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London B318:
523537.
Lundqvist J. 1986. Late Weichselian glaciation and deglaciation in
Scandinavia. Quaternary Science Reviews 5: 269292.
Mangerud J. 1991. The last Interglacial/Glacial cycle in Northern
Europe. In Quaternary Landscapes, Shane LCK, Cushing EJ (eds).
Belhaven Press: London; 3875.
McCabe AM. 1996. Dating and rhythmicity from the last deglacial cycle in
the British Isles. The Journal of the Geological Society 153: 499502.
McCarroll D. 2002. Amino-acid geochronology and the British Pleistocene: secure stratigraphical framework or a case of circular reasoning? Journal of Quaternary Science 17: 647651.
Milling ME. 1975. Geological appraisal of foundation conditions,
northern North Sea. In Proceedings of Oceanology International,
Brighton, 1975; 310319.
Mitchum RM, Vail PR, Thompson S. 1977. Seismic stratigraphy and
global changes of sea level. Part 2: The depositional sequence as a
basic unit for stratigraphic analysis. In Payton CE (ed.). Seismic stratigraphyApplications to Hydrocarbon Exploration. Memoir 26,
American Association of Petroleum Geologists: Tulsa; 5362.
OCofaigh C. 1996. Tunnel valley genesis. Progress in Physical
Geography 20: 119.
Ostry RC, Deane RE. 1963. Microfabric analyses of till. Geological
Society of America Bulletin 74: 165168.
Peacock JD. 1997. Was there a re-advance of the British Ice Sheet into
the North Sea between 15 ka and 14 ka BP? Quaternary Newsletter
81: 18.
Penny LF, Coope GR, Catt JA. 1969. Age and insect fauna of the Dimlington silts, East Yorkshire. Nature 224: 6567.
Rise L, Rokoengen K. 1984. Surcial sediments in the Norwegian sector of
theNorthSeabetween60 300 and62 N.MarineGeology58:287317.
Rise L, Rokoengen K, Skinner AC, Long D. 1984. Nordlige Nordsjo.
Kvataergeologisk kart mellom 60 3000 og 62 N, og ost for 1 (Northern North Sea. Quaternary Geology Map between 60 3000 N and east
of 1 E) 1:500 000. Instittut for kontinentalsokkelundersokelser (IKU):
Trondheim, Norway.
Rokoengen K. Loadi M, Rise L, Loken T, Carlsen R. 1982. Description

and dating of a submerged beach in the northern North Sea. Marine
Geology 50: 2128.
Rose J. 1985. The Dimlington Stadial/Dimlington Chronozone: a proposal for naming the main glacial episode of the Late Devensian in
Britain. Boreas 14: 225230.
Ross H. 1997. The Last Glaciation of Shetland. PhD thesis, University
of St Andrews.
Sejrup HP, Aarseth KL, Ellingsen KL, Reither E, Jansen E, Lovlie R, Bent
A, Brigham-Grette J, Larsen E, Stoker MS. 1987. Quaternary stratigraphy of the Fladen area, central North Sea: a multidisciplinary study.
Journal of Quaternary Science 2: 3558.
Sejrup HP, Nagy J, Brigham-Grette J. 1989. Foraminiferal stratigraphy
and amino-acid geochronology of Quaternary sediments in the
Norwegian Channel, northern North Sea. Norsk Geologisk Tidsskrift
69: 111124.
Sejrup HP, Aarseth I, Haidason H. 1991. The Quaternary succession
in the northern North Sea. Marine Geology 101: 103111.
Sejrup HP, Haidason H, Aarseth I, King E, Forsberg CF, Long D,
Rokoengen K. 1994. Late Weichselian glaciation history of the northern North Sea. Boreas 23: 113.
Sejrup HP, Aarseth I, Haidason H, Lovlie R, Bratten A, Tjostheim G,
Forsberg CF, Ellingsen KL. 1995. Quaternary of the Norwegian Channel; glaciation history and palaeoceanography. Norges Geologisk
Tidsskrift 75: 128.
Sejrup HP, King EL, Aarseth I, Haidason H, Elverhoi A. 1996. Quaternary erosion and depositional processes: western Norwegian
Fjords, Norwegian Channel and North Sea Fan. In Geology of Siliciclastic Shelf Seas, de Batiste M, Jacobs P (eds). Geological Society of
London Special Publication 117; 187202.
Sejrup HP, Landvik JY, Larsen E, Janocko J, Eriksson J, King E. 1998. The
Jaeren area, a border zone of the Norwegian Channel ice stream.
Sejrup HP, Larsen E, Landvik J, King EL, Haidason H, Nesje A. 2000.
Quaternary glaciations in southern Fennoscandia: evidence from
southwestern Norway and the northern North Sea region. Quaternary Science Reviews 19: 667685.
Sha LP (ed.). 1991. Quaternary sedimentary sequences in the southern
North Sea basin. Final discipline report: Quaternary sedimentary
sequences in the southern North Sea basin. Rijks Geologische
Dienst: Haarlem; 135 pp.
Skinner AC, Gregory DM. 1983. Quaternary stratigraphy in the northern North Sea. Boreas 12: 145152.
Skinner AC, McElvanney E, Ruckley N, Rise L, Rokoengen K. 1986.
1:250 000 offshore regional geology maps: Cormorant: Quaternary.
British Geological Survey. HMSO: London.
Stewart FS. 1991. A reconstruction of the eastern margin of the Late
Weichselian ice sheet in Northern Britain. PhD thesis, University
of Edinburgh.
Stoker MS, Long D. 1984. A relict ice-scoured erosion surface in the
central North Sea. Marine Geology 61: 8593.
Stoker MS, Bent AJ. 1985. Middle Pliestocene glacial and glaciomarine
sedimentation in the west central North Sea. Boreas 14: 325
332.
Stoker MS, Holmes R. 1991. Submarine end-moraines as indicators of
Pleistocene ice-limits off Northwest Britain. Journal of the Geological Society of London 148: 431434.
Stoker MS, Long D, Fyfe AJ. 1985. The Quaternary succesion in the
central North Sea. Newsletters in Stratigraphy 14: 119128.
Sutherland DG. 1991. The glaciation of the Shetland and Orkney
Islands. In Glacial Deposits of Britain and Ireland, Ehlers J, Gibbard
P, Rose J (eds). Balkema: Rotterdam; 121128.
Tesch P. 1942. De Noordzee van historich-geologisch standpunt.
Medededelingen Rijks Geologische Dienst, Series A 9: 123.
Vail PR. 1987. Seismic stratigraphy interpretation sequence stratigraphy, Part 1: Seismic stratigraphy interpretation procedure. In Atlas
of Seismic Stratigraphy, Bally AW (ed.). Association of American Petroleum Geologists Studies in Geology 27: Tulsa; 110.
Valentin H. 1957. Die grenze der letzten vereisung im Nordseeraum.
Verhandlungen des Deutschen Geographentages Band 30: 359
366.
van der Meer JJM. 1993. Microscopic evidence of subglacial deformation. Quaternary Science Reviews 12: 553587.

van der Meer JJM. 1995. Glaciomarine sediments in close up: large
scale thin sections from Barents Sea cores. Quaternary Research
Association Annual Discussion Meeting, Edinburgh Abstract.
van der Meer JJM. 1996. Micromorphology. In Past Glacial EnvironmentsSediments, Forms, Techniques, Menzies J (ed.). Pergamon:
Oxford; 335356.
van der Meer JJM. 1997. Particle and aggregate mobility in till: microscopic evidence of subglacial processes. Quaternary Science
Reviews 16: 827831.
van der Meer JJM, Laban C. 1990. Micromorphology of some North Sea
till samples, a pilot study. Journal of Quaternary Science 5: 95101.
153
Wilson LJ, Austin WEN, Jansen E. 2002. The last British Ice Sheet:
growth, maximum extent and deglaciation. Polar Research 21:
243250.
Wingeld R. 1989. Glacial incisions indicating Middle and
Upper Pleistocene Ice limits off Britain. Terra Nova 1: 538
548.
Wingeld R. 1990. The origin of major incisions within the Pleistocene
deposits of the North Sea. Marine Geology 91: 3152.
Wood SV, Rome JL. 1868. On the glacial and postglacial structure of
Lincolnshire and south-east Yorkshire. Quarterly Journal of the Geological Society of London 24: 146184.

The Last Glacial Maximum in The North Sea Basin

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

The Last Glacial Maximum in The North Sea Basin

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

The Last Glacial Maximum in The North Sea Basin

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

JOURNAL OF QUATERNARY SCIENCE (2006) 21(2) 131153

Copyright 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.