47 ground-penetrating radar lines of Area 4 - Gravel spit system from Potter Cove, King George Island, Antarctic Peninsula

During two field campaigns (Austral springs 2011 and 2012) the sedimentary architecture of a polar gravel-spit system at the northern coast of Potter Peninsula (Area 4) was revealed using ground-penetrating radar (GPR, Geophysical Survey Systems, Inc. SIR-3000). 47 profiles were collected using a mono-static 200 MHz antenna operated in common offset mode. Trace increment was set to 0.05 m. A differential global-positioning system (dGPS, Leica GS09) was used to obtain topographical information along the GPR lines. GPR data are provided in RADAN-Format, dGPS coordinates are provided in ascii format; projection is UTM (WGS 84, zone 21S).

49 ground-penetrating radar lines of Area 2 - Gravel cuspate spit with gravel beach ridges from Potter Cove, King George Island, Antarctic Peninsula

During two field campaigns (Austral springs 2011 and 2012) the sedimentary architecture of a polar gravel-beach system at the southwestern coast of Potter Peninsula (Area 2) was revealed using ground-penetrating radar (GPR, Geophysical Survey Systems, Inc. SIR-3000). 49 profiles were collected using a mono-static 200 MHz antenna operated in common offset mode. Trace increment was set to 0.05 m. A differential global-positioning system (dGPS, Leica GS09) was used to obtain topographical information along the GPR lines. GPR data are provided in RADAN-Format, dGPS coordinates are provided in ascii format; projection is UTM (WGS 84, zone 21S).

(Table 1) Radiocarbon ages of Holocene samples obtained from the Schaabe sandbar on Rügen Island

Lithological and stratigraphical data obtained from 167 boreholes from the Schaabe spit in northeast Rügen and 46 radiocarbon datings mainly on peats, as well as interpretation of diatoms and palynological assemblages lead to a reappraisal of its sedimentational history and morphological development. The new local shoreline displacement curve is compared and discussed with the previous curve of Vorpommern (Southern Baltic Sea).

Geological map of Geltinger Birk, western Baltic Sea, Germany

The geological structure of a Holocene sand spit system and the adjacent Weichselian glacial deposits in the northeastern part of Schleswig-Holstein have been investigated and presented in a geological map. Thin meltwater deposits overlie the glacial tills in the area of the former Beverö lsland in the west. To its north and northeast, the modern Sand spit system is present. Its basal transgression horizon is composed mainly of gravels and boulders, and directly overlie the Pleistocene deposits. Further up the succession, fine graind sands are present, in turn overlain by the coarser grained sands of the barrier bar. To the east, under the protection of the sand spit, gyttyas and peats which sometimes attain large thicknesses have been deposited under lacustrinellagoonal conditions. Closer to the shore, these sediments are covered by marine sands.

Table 1 : AMS-14C data used for the reconstruction of the Wismar Bay shoreline displacement curve

The Baltic coast of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern is located in the transition Zone between the region of Fennoscandian Uplift and the Central European Depression. In relation to the eustatic sea-level rise, the northeast coast shows a slower inundation, while for the southwestern area a faster transgression is indicated, which can be attributed to crustal movements. To determine the spatial and temporal differences since the onset of the Littorina Transgression, three relative sea-level curves have been established along a transect parallel to the gradient of upliftlsubsidence. The Wismar Bay area is one endpoint of the transect demonstrating today 10 Abb., 2 Tab. a relative sea-level rise of 1.4 mm/a. To determine the relative sea-level curve for the Wismar Bay, two sites were investigated on Rustwerder Spit (Poel) and Redentin. They provided reliable depth-age data, while the stratigraphy was additionally supported by lithological/geochemical, pollen, diatom and macrofossil data. Additional evidence was provided by archaeological submarine surveys and excavations. Comparing the new relative sea-level curve with a curve from the Vorpommern coast, it can be shown that for the period from 4000 cal BC until present, the differences between the two curves are caused by a constant neotectonic movement, while for the older periods an increasing isostatic component must be taken into account.