Controls on modern carbonate sedimentation on warm-temperate to arctic coasts, shelves and seamounts in the Northern Hemisphere: Implications for fossil counterparts

Abstract

In contrast to the well studied tropical carbonate environments, interest in non-tropical carbonate deposition was rather low until the basic ideas of theForamol-concept were outlined byLees & Buller (1972). In the following two decades studies on non-tropical carbonate settings evolved as a new and exciting branch of carbonate sedimentology (seeNelson 1988). This is archieved in a great number of publications dealing on temperate carbonate deposits from numerous coastal and open shelf settings on both hemispheres. The existence of wide extended carbonate depositional systems and even reefal frameworks in Subarctic and Arctic seas which are in focus by our research group made it possible to study modern non-tropical carbonate settings along a latitudinal transect from the warm-temperate Mediterranean Sea to the cold Nordic Seas. Because of increasing seasonality in environmental conditions towards high latitudes, the major controls in biogenic carbonate production can be more clearly addressed in these areas. After the initiation of the priority program “Global and regional controlling processes of biogenic sedimentation-evolution of reefs” by the German Science Foundation four years ago, a set of modern case studies were comparatively analysed specifically with regard to their principle controlling processes: