Scientific Webinars

Professor Peter Burgess – University of Liverpool

Strata may contain a signal that records the history of the tectonic and climatic forcing that controls how they form, and many conceptual models tie themselves in logical knots by assuming that these signals are always present in the strata. More interesting than assuming that a signal is present is testing what the signal might look like if it was present, and exploring how it can be extracted from the noise and autogenic patterns that may also be present. This presentation will show some results from numerical experiments using Lobyte3D, a simple stratigraphic forward model of a deep-water fan system, to investigate how an external signal is recorded, and how it can be distinguished, or not, from the autogenic patterns also present in the strata.

Dr Florian Pohl – Durham University

The threat posed by plastic pollution to ecosystems and human health is under increasing scrutiny and the amount of mismanaged plastic waste entering the environment is growing at a staggering rate. In particular microplastics (plastic particles <1 mm in size) have been discovered in every sedimentary system on the planet and thus became a new type of sediment particle. As such, sedimentology represents an important and powerful tool to understand and predict the transport, dispersal, and ultimate fate of microplastics in different environments. However, due to the complex shapes and low densities the transport and sedimentation behavior of this new sediment particle may differ significantly from those of natural sediments. The presence of microplastics in the environments poses new challenges for the field of sedimentology, but may also provide opportunities to better understand the dynamics of sedimentary systems. In this talk I will provide an overview on global plastic-pollution, microplastic as a new and unique sediment particle, and on microplastics in seafloor sediments.

Dr Franz van Buchem and Dr Andy Davies – Halliburton – Landmark

Based on a recent review of the literature a data base of absolute values of short term (<3my) Cretaceous sea level rises and falls has been created. This shows an overall amplitude range of 5 to >65m, organised in four broad trends. The potential of aquifer eustasy has been investigated using climate modelling which showed a maximum impact of 5 to 10 meters. This leaves Glacio-eustasy as the key driver for short term high magnitude sea level changes in the Cretaceous.

Mardi McNeil – Queensland University of Technology

The Halimeda algal bioherms of the Great Barrier Reef, Australia represent the largest living, actively accumulating Halimeda deposits worldwide. Following the Holocene post-glacial marine transgression, these bioherms kicked off the outer-shelf carbonate factory some 2000 years earlier than the nearby coral reefs. Recent multi-disciplinary work has revealed new insights into their surface geomorphology, subsurface architecture and depositional environment that may be of interest to those working on their fossil counterparts.