Facies arrangement and cyclostratigraphic architecture of a shallow-marine, warm-water carbonate platform: the Late Carboniferous Ny Friesland Platform in eastern Spitsbergen (Pyefjellet Beds, Wordiekammen Formation, Gipsdalen Group)

Abstract

During the Late Carboniferous, a spacious warm-water carbonate platform developed across the eastern part of the present Arctic archipelago of Svalbard. The platform initiated in the Moscovian on an uplifted fault block (Ny Friesland High) and progradated during the Late Moscovian to Early Kasimovian into the adjacent Campbellryggen Basin (central Spitsbergen). The fossiliferous platform strata are characterized by a pronounced cyclicity formed by stacked parasequences, which consist of defined, subtidal to supratidal facies-set successions reflecting a general shallowing of the depositional area. Up to 17 of these shallowing-upward cycles, bounded by distinct discontinuity (marine flooding) surfaces due to the recurrent emersion and subsequent flooding of the platform surface, have been recognized within the platform strata. The stacked cycles are the result of global, glacio-eustatic, high-frequent and high-amplitudinal sea-level fluctuations with eccentricity periodicities caused by ice volume changes during the Gondwana Land glaciation. Based on systematic changes of the cycles (thickness and internal facies composition), the upper part of the platform strata is interpreted as a progradational parasequence set of a late highstand system tract.