ORIGINAL ARTICLE
Palynology of Early Cretaceous (Barremian to Aptian) hydrocarbon (methane) seep carbonates and associated mudstones, Wollaston Forland, Northeast Greenland
1
Natural History Museum, University of Oslo, PO Box 1172 Blindern, NO-0316, Oslo, Norway
2
School of Earth and Environment, University of Leeds, Leeds, LS2 9JT, United Kingdom
3
Department of Geoscience, University of Oslo, PO Box 1047 Blindern, NO-0316 Oslo, Norway
4
CASP, West Building, Madingley Rise, Madingley Road, Cambridge, CB3 0UD, United Kingdom
5
Geological Survey of Norway, Postal Box 6315 Torgarden, NO-7491 Trondheim, Norway
Online publication date: 2022-06-14
Publication date: 2022-06-14
Acta Palaeobotanica 2022; 62(1): 11-23
HIGHLIGHTS
- Three informal Barremian-early Aptian dinoflagellate cyst zones are identified from NE Greenland
- Samples come from a hydrocarbon seep carbonate dominated succession
- Statistical analysis separate carbonate samples from mudstone samples
- Palynofacies analysis indicate deposition in proximal shelf setting
KEYWORDS
Palynostratigraphydinoflagellate cystspalynofacieshydrocarbon seep carbonatesEarly CretaceousNortheast Greenland
ABSTRACT
Palynostratigraphic and palynofacies analysis have been performed on hydrocarbon seep carbonate, carbonate nodule and mudstone samples from the Early Cretaceous Kuhnpasset Beds in the Kuhnpasset area of Wollaston Forland, Northeast Greenland. Three informal palynostratigraphic zones have been defined based on dinoflagellate cyst occurrences. The zones range from ?early Barremian to early Aptian in age, and correlate with previously defined dinoflagellate cyst zones in Northeast Greenland. These zones indicate hydrocarbon seepage in Kuhnpasset spanned the ?early–late Barremian age range, but did not continue into the Aptian, and thus seep activity continued for as much as three million years. Palynofacies analysis is used to interpret the depositional environment of the Kuhnpasset Beds and indicate that the hydrocarbon seeps and associated mudstones from this sedimentary sequence were deposited in a proximal shelf setting.
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