News from the research project Reconstructing the Triassic northern Barents shelf: basin infill patterns controlled by gentle sags and faults

No 3March2015

Main Trias events in 2015: • June1st–3rd:PartnermeetinginOslo:Datasharing summit.• FieldworkatSvalbardtentativelyAugust18th–31st.!!

New paper on the Triassic Snadd Formation Regional development and sequence stratigraphyTriaspostdocTore Grane Klausenandco-work-ershavejustpublishedanarticleonthistopicinMarineandPetroleumGeology.Wequotethearticle’sabstract:

TheMiddletoLateTriassicSnaddForma-tionrepresentsoneofthelaterstagesofEarlyMesozoicinfillingoftheBarentsSea

Basin,expressedbyasilicilasticwedgeprogradingfromthesoutheast,wheresedimentswereshedfromtheUralideOrogeny.Theformationwasdepositedinashallow(100–500m)basinfacingtheBorealpartofthePanthalassaOcean,andtheprogradationreacheditspeakattheSvalbardArchipelagowhichhassincebeenupliftedandwhereoutcropsareexposedasthetimeequiva-lentBotneheiaandDeGeerdalenformations.TheSnaddFormationincludesdepositionalenviron-mentsrangingfromoffshoreshalethroughshallowmarinetofluvial,arrangedindiscretestratigraphicsequences. Herewepresentarefinedsequencestratigraph-icframeworkfortheSnaddFormation.Twosec-ondordersequenceshavebeeninterpretedwithin

thelimitsofthestudyarea,dividedintosixthirdordersequences.ThetwosecondordersequencesaresplitalonganIntraCarnianmaximumfloodingsurface.Depositionalelementsinherenttothese-quencestratigraphicframeworkarealsointerpret-edandextrapolatedsoastodescribetheregionaldistributionofpotentialreservoirsandstonesandthecontrolexertedonthedevelopmentofthirdordersequences. Differentdepositionalenvironmentsfromvariousdatasetsandscalesofobservationshowtheprogressivedevelopmentofaprogradingdeltaacrossmorethan700kmfromaproximalpositionontheFinnmarkPlatformtoadistalpositiononEdgeøya.Regionalcorrelationofwelllogsand2Dseismiccoupledwithdetaileddepositionalenvi-ronmentinterpretationfrom3Dseismicandcorehasresultedinbasin-widepalaeogeographicrecon-structionoftheformationthroughouttheNorwe-gianpartoftheBarentsSea,withimplicationsforunderstandingthedistributionandevolutionofdepositionalsystemsduringthislarge-scalebasininfill.http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.marpetgeo.2015.02.004

2D seismic mappingTheplanistofocusonconstrainingtheregionalge-ologybyfocusingontwoareas,oneofwhichwillbetheStappenHigh,whichisakeyinunderstandingthedevelopmentofthenorthernpartoftheshelf.

Provenance of reservoir sandstonesWewillcontinuetheprovenancestudiesofsilici-clasticfaciesbelongingtotheTriassicsedimentarysuccessionofSvalbard,onthebasisoftheresultsofpetrographic(opticalmicroscopy,SEMandCLtech-niques)andgeochemicalanalyses.ThesubjectoftheresearchwillbemostlysandstonesrepresentingtheKarentoppenandSomovbreenMembersoftheBra-vaisbergetFormation.

Fluvial seismic geomorphology Targetsaretoformalize,presentandpublishworkondecompactionofsedimentarysystems,withanemphasisonclinoforms.AtthenextstagetheseresultswillbeusedonclinoformdatasetsfromtheSWBarentsSea,toseeifnewlearningcanbegained.Ofspecialinterestisthequantificationofclinoformgeometriesassuchparametersmayinformourunder-standingoftheassociatedsedimentarysystem.

Sedimentary facies belts and regional variability WewillsamplecoresfromSnaddandKobbefor-mationatNPD’scorestore,andperformdetailedsedimentologicalstudy(logging)fromDeGeerdalenFormationandWilhelmøyaSubgroupatSvalbard.Furthermore,wewilllookforpossibleanalyticalmethodstoconstructthermalburialhistorytounder-standtheeffectofupliftondiageneticalterationandreservoirquality.

Did Triassic faulting halt regional clinoform pro-gradation? Workisfocusingonlinkingobservationsoftheoff-shoreseismicdatatoonshorelogsonEdgeøyabasedonourcurrentunderstandingofclinoformsanddeltasinshallowerwater.Additionally,wewillbefocusingontheTriassiclarge-scaledevelopmentofEdgeøya.3D photometric models Wewillcontinuewiththephotogrammetricprocess-ing,andweneedtocompletesomedevelopmentworktoensuretransitionbetweenthephotogrammetricsoftwareoutputandourregularlidarworkflows.Thetextured3Doutcropmodelswhenfinishedwillbe

handedoverforgeologicalwork.Atthisstagemarkerbedswillbetracedoutandstratigraphiclogsplacedintothemodelforfurtheranalysis,spanningacrosstothestudyoflow-angleclinoformsonstructuralhighs,clinothemearchitectureandrelatedsedimentaryfacies.

3D photometric models and strip-logs Datasetsfromtwofieldcampaigns(2012and2014)withextensivelogginginmanyhalf-grabensspanningacrosstofaciesinterpretationarecurrentlycompiledforpublication.

Faults analysed for deformation mechanism and sealing potential Ourworkoncharacterizingfaultsinpoorlyconsoli-datedsedimentsdividesintotwophases.Phase1willfocusontheanalysisandinterpretationsofthedatasetcollectedduringthe2014fieldcampaignPhase2willbededicatedtotheanalysisofthe2015dataandtoimplementthetotalstructural-stratigraphicdatabase.

Shale detachmentsExtensivedatahasbeencollectedthroughtwofieldseasons,andarecurrentlyprocessedtowardsasum-mary.Theseresultswillbecoordinatedwiththeotherfaultstudies.

Synthetic seismic modelling of the facies beltTheworkusesseismicmodellingsoftwareofNOR-SARproprietary,commercialandprototypes,espe-ciallyaPSDMsimulator(seeproposalfordetails).AtthemomentthefocusisontheKvalpyntenoutcropofEdgeøya.Abetterinputmodelcomingoutsoonwillformthebaseforamorecompletemodellingthatwillbeundertaken.

Structural style controlled by fault growth vs sedi-ment loadingInParma,wewillstartthepilotmodelandcompletethefirstseriesofpreliminaryexperiments.Themodelsetuphasbeendiscussedandmodifiedinlinewithpreliminaryresultsandfeedbackfromthepartners.Lateron,wewillcalibratethemodelandthediffer-entscenariosalongwiththeresultscomingfromthepreliminaryexperiments.

Decoupled fault-segment growth in mechanically layered successionsDatasetsarecurrentlybeingprocessed.

Excerpts from the Trias North Work Plan 2015

Things we hope to get done ...

Trias North in the Emerging Leaders program

The Future of the Final FrontierEmerging leadersisaprogramwhichisruninconjunctionwiththeArctic Frontiers conferenceinTromsø.ThisyearourownpostdocIngrid Anell hadthechancetoparticipateintheprogramasoneoftenPhD/PostdocsfromNorwegianinsti-tutionsfundedbytheNorwegianresearchcouncil.Thisisherreport.

Theprogrambroughttogether30youngpeoplefromavarietyofbackgrounds;geology,biology,oceanography,climate

science,economy,business,managementandpol-itics.ThegrouptravelledtogetherfromBodøviaSvolværandfinallytoTromsø,wheretheexcitingweek-longeventwasroundedoffwithtwodaysofpolicyatArcticFrontiers.Alongthewayanemi-nentgroupofmentorsjoined,includingembassyrepresentatives,prominentscientistsandleadersinindustryandbusiness.Theweektogetherwasintenseandexciting.Thetalksincludedsessionsfocusedonpoliticsandsecurityinthehigharctic,climateandenergy,safetyandmaritimeresourcesandbusinessandsocietyinnorthernNorway.Buttherewasalsoroomrforsomefantasticlunchesanddinners,aswellasculturalandsocialengage-mentslikeahigh-speedboatsafariaroundtheLofotenislands,andvisitinganaquariumandaVikingmuseum. Theconvergenceofsuchaninterdisciplinarygroupplacedeverydiscussioninawidercontext.Everyquestionwasviewedfromasocialperspective,aneconomicperspective,anenvironmentalper-spective,apoliticalperspective.Thediscussionsandworkhighlightedtheinter-disciplinarynatureofthegroupandparticularlythedifferentconsid-erationsbetweenscienceandsocie-ty.Amongseveralothertopics,the

groupdiscussedvisionsforthefutureenergymixintheArctic,whichnaturallyincludedtheroleofoilandgas.ThisdiscussiondidnotremainaboardHurtigruten,however,asitalsoheldacentralroleinthediscussionsthroughoutthepolicysessionatArcticFrontiers.AttheopeningsessiontherewasanarmchairdiscussionaboutoilandgasintheArctic,betweenapanelofpeoplewhichfeaturedbothGreenpeaceandroyalty.Asageologistyoudevelopauniquesenseoftimeandauniqueviewoftheearth.Itsevolutionanddevelopmentoccuronascalewhichisfarbeyondthehumantime-frame.Tectonicplates,outpouringsoflavaandvolcanicgas,supercon-tinents,andsnowballearth–allthiscanmakeanthropogenicinfluenceseemalmostpetty.Theearth,therocks,ourstudyarea,willmostcertainlysurviveclimatechange.Speciesmaynot,butlifewill.Asanacademic,evenwhenworkingwithseismicdata,wellsandsedimentaryrock,itiseasytotakeaneutralstandonoilandgasexploration.Theacademicroleissimplytopiecetogetherthegeologicalhistory. Itwasthereforethought-provokingtobeapartofthediscussionandtohearothersdiscusstheseverypertinentquestions.Questions,itbecameclear,whicharewithoutsimpleanswers.Visionscanbeeasycomparedtotherealityofthemultiplefactorswhichneedtobetakenintoaccountwhenmakingdecisions.

The emerging leaders and their mentors at The Edge Hotel in Tromsø, all glammed up for the banquet.

DuringthepolicysessionatArcticFrontiersprominentpeoplefrompolitics,business,envi-ronmentalorganizations,arcticgovernanceandscientificadvi-sorsdiscussedissuesrelatedtoclimateandenergyintheArctic.IfoundmyselfsittingbetweentwoambassadorslisteningtothePrinceofMonaco.ThismadeArcticFrontiersalittlemoreintimidatingthanmostconferencesIhadattendedbefore. Policygavewaytosciencesessions,however,andonThursdayIheldatalkentitledBridging the

gaps of our understanding of the Triassic develop-ment of the northern Barents Shelf.WhileArctic

Frontierswasveryenthusiastic,theorganizerswarnedmeofanaudienceofnon-geologistsandaneedtokeepthingssimple.Thepresentationthereforebe-camequiteageneraltalkabouthowunderstandingtheTrias-sicprovidesunderstandingof

source,reservoirandpotentiallysealonthenorth-ernBarentsshelf.Thetalkwaswellmetanditwasagoodchallengetopresenttoanaudiencewithadiversebackground.

EmergingLeaders/ArcticFrontierswasafantasticopportu-nity.Althoughalmostoverwhelm-ingattimesgiventhehecticsched-ule,sheeramountofinformationandintensityofconversation,itwastrulyafulfillingexperience.Thegroupwasdiverseandstimu-latingandthementorscamewithawidevarietyofinsightandguid-ance.IfeelIhadthechancetoseethingsdifferentlyandmeetsometrulyinterestingpeople,manyofwhomarenownotonlycontacts,butfriends.

“What happens in the Arctic does not stay in the Arctic”

Robert Papp, US Spe-cial representative to the Arctic, speaking at Arctic Frontiers 2015

Postdoc Ingrid Anell in Svolvær

• Osmundsen,Braathen,Rød,Hynne:Stylesofnormalfaultingandfaultcontrolledsedimenta-tionintheTriassicdepositsofEasternSvalbard.Norwegian Petroleum Directorate Bulletin.

• Anell,Braathen,Olaussen:TheTriassic–EarlyJurassicofthenorthernBarentsShelf:aregionalunderstandingoftheLongyearbyenCO2reser-voir.Norsk Geologisk Tidsskrift.

• Anell,Midtkandal,Braathen:TrajectoryanalysisandinferencesongeometricrelationshipsofanEarlyTriassicprogradingclinoformsuccession

onthenorthernBarentsShelf.Marine and Petro-leum Geology.

• Gabrielsen,Braathen,Skar:NormalFaultsinSedimentaryRocks;Dynamics,ArchitectureandInfluencesonFluidFlow.ConferenceonGeome-tryandGrowthofNormalFaults.

• Ogata,Anell,Braathen,Osmundsen,Smy-rak-Sikora,Husteli,Olaussen,Maher:Syndepo-sitionalfaultingintheLateTriassicsuccessionofKvalpynten,Edgeøya,EastSvalbard.CongressoftheItalianGeologicalSociety.

As registered in the Cristin Research Database

Trias merits of 2014

Trias website at UiO: mn.uio.no/triasnorth

Presenting our staffWe continue our presentation of people working at the Trias project. This time we take the trip to the far north to meet some folks at Svalbard.

MynameisGareth Lord andIamaPhDcandidateattheDepartmentofGeologyandMineralResourcesEngineeringattheNorwegianUniversityofScienceandTechnology(NTNU)inTrondheim.IamalsoanexternalPhDattheUniversityCentreinSvalbard(UNIS).MyprojectworkisfundedbytheNorwegianPetroleumDirectorate(NPD)andwillbeconductedincloseco-operationwiththeTriassicNorthProject,SINTEFandtheUniversityofBergen. IgraduatedtheUniversityofPlymouthinEnglandin2010,withaBachelorHonoursDegreeinGeology,includingathesiswhichinvolvedmappingtheareaofHarstadinnorthernNorway.MycarreerinSvalbardbeganthesameyearasafieldassistantwithSINTEF,NPDandlaterforUiT,anopportunitywhichsubsequentlydevelopedintoathesis.Iearnedmymas-tersinPetroleumGeologyatNTNUinTrondheim,inassociationwithUNIS.

ThetopiccoveredaregionaldevelopmentoffracturepatternsthroughoutcentralSpitsbergen,EdgeøyaandHopen. MyPhDprojectistoincreasetheunderstandingoftheentireTriassicsuccessionofSvalbardandtheNorthernBar-entsSea.Implimentinganextensivefielddataset,withrecentoffshoredatafromeasternSvalbardandtheKongKarlsLandregion.Theobjectivebeingtodiscernthemorediscretesedimentologicalandstratigraphicaldevelopmentswithinthesuccession.

MynameisBerit Husteli andIamaPhDcandidateinsedimentol-ogyattheUniversityCentreinSvalbard.Myresearchisrevolvingthesedimentologyofheterogeneouscoastaldepositsaffectedbytides.IhaveaBScinConstructionEngineeringfromOsloUniver-sityCollege,afewyearsexperienceasanengineerandanMScinEnvironmentandNaturalResourcesfromtheNorwegianUniver-sityofLifeSciences,specializinginGeology.StudentsummerswerespentdoinggeologicalmappingfortheNorwegianGeologicalSurvey. MyPhDresearchdealswiththeLongyearbyenCO2Lab’stargetedreservoir,thelateTriassicDeGeerdalenformation,anditssedimentology,depositionalarchitectureandlateralfaciesdistribution.Theaimofthestudyistodescribetidallyinfluencedsedimentsandtheirinherentheterogeneitiesinsuchdetailthattheircharacteristicscanbeparameterizedandimplementedintoareservoirmodel,successfullypredictingfluidbehaviour.Thedatawillprovideasspecificinputtoon-goingeffortstomodelreservoirpropertiesoftheKappToscanaGroup.Additionalfociareimprovedunderstandingofstackingpatternsintidalsystemsandtheenviron-mentsprevailingwhenthestudiedsedimentsweredeposited.

GARETH

BERIT

The Trias North project ishostedbyUniversityofOsloandfundedbytheResearchCouncilofNor-way,TullowOil,Statoil,LundinNorway,EdisonOilandRWEDea.ResearchpartnersareUniversityofBergen,UniversityCentreinSvalbard,NorwegianUniversityofScienceandTechnology,NORSAR,UniResearch,UniversityofUtrecht,UniversityofParma,PolishAcademyofSciences,andUniversityofNebraskaatOmaha,andwearecooperatingwithGeologicalSurveyofNorway,GeologicalSurveyofCanadaandothers. PleasespreadthisnewsletterwithinyourinstitutionandtootherTriasfans.

MARKMynameisMark Mulrooney,TriasNorthPhDcandidateattheUniversityCentreinSvalbard(Unis),wheremyresearchisfocusedonTriassicbasindevelopmentandevolutionintheBarentsShelf.PriortocommencingmyPhDresearchIobtainedaBScinGeologyfromUniversityCollegeDublin,andanMSCinPetroleumGeosciencefromRoyalHolloway,UniversityofLondon. MyresearchfocussesonfaultactivityduringtheTriassicutilising3Dseismicsurveys.InadditionIamconductingoutcropandcorebasedstudiesoftensileTertiarystructuresaffectingLateTriassictoEarlyJurassicsedimentsintheLong-yearbyenenvirons.IwasresponsibleforacquiringTriassicoutcropphotogrammetryduringlastsummer’sfieldworkinEasternSvalbardwhichiscurrentlybeingrenderedintoahighresolution3Dmodel.Themodelwillallowinterpreta-tionofregionalcharacteristicsofadeltaicsysteminteractingwithsyn-depositionalfaulting.InadditionwewilldeployUAVmountedhighdefinitioncamerasduringnextsummer’sfieldseasoninordertocaptureimageryfromotherwiseinaccessibleareas.

MynameisAleksandra Smyrak-Sikora.IamPhDstudentfromtheUniversityofBergenworkingintheUniversityCentreinSvalbard.MyPhDprojectfocusesonthearchitectureofsedimentsdepositedinareasofactivetectonics.AnexcellentexampleofinteractionoffaultingwithsedimentaryprocessescanbefoundinKvalpynten(SouthernEdgeøya),wherealongofninekilometreslongcliff,twelvesmallscalesedimentarybasins(grabensandhalfgrabens)areexposed.

IhavebeenattendingexpeditionstoEdgeøyatwice,in2012and2014,wheremymaintaskwastostudysedimenta-ryfillofKvalpyntengrabens.DespitesteepmountainslopesourTriassicNorthGroupmanagedtologmorethan1800mofsandstonesandshalesdepositedwithinfault-boundedbasinsandabovethem.CurrentlyIamworkingonfaciesinterpretationandsedimentaryarchitectureofbasinswemanagedtologtoandIamtryingtolinktheevolutionofsedi-mentsandfaultactivity. IcametoSvalbardforthefirsttimein2006todofieldworkformyMasterthesis,focusingonductiledeformationinHeclaHoekSuccession,exposedinSWSvalbard.In2008IdefendedMScdegreeattheUniversityofWroclaw,Poland.IworkatUNISsince2012.InadditiontoTriassicrocksonEdgeøya,IalsostudyCarboniferousriftfillinBillefjorden,CentralSpitsbergen.

ALEKS