Occurrence of flow parallel and flow transverse bedforms in Fehmarn Belt (SW Baltic Sea) related to the local palaeomorphology

Abstract

This study describes the spatial distribution of flow-parallel sand ribbons and flow-transverse large and very large subaqueous dunes in the south-western Baltic Sea offshore Fehmarn Island between 13m and 20m water depth, based on hydroacoustic and grain size data. The system of sand ribbons and dunes is intermittently active due to currents induced during major inflows of the North Sea water into the Baltic Sea. The sand ribbons are located on a lag deposit on top of glacial till, while the dunes rest on top of drowned Holocene nearshore deposits. The sand ribbons reach heights between 0.4m and 0.6m, with widths varying between 60m and several hundreds of metres. The observed dunes have heights between 0.09m and 2.35m, while their wavelengths range from 17m to 120m. Offshore Fehmarn Island, the transition from sand ribbons to dunes is most likely linked to a contrast in sediment supply, as reworked drowned nearshore deposits provide sediment available for transport in significantly larger amounts than glacial till. Similar to an earlier approach for river bed states, the dimensionless thickness of sediment available for transport is able to differentiate between the bed states.