Dinoflagellate cyst stratigraphy of the Barremian to Albian, Lower Cretaceous, North-East Greenland – a summary

Abstract

As part of studies of the onshore hydrocarbon potential in East Greenland undertaken by the Geological Survey of Greenland (GGU), a project was initiated with the purpose of describing the dinoflagellate cyst stratigraphy of the Lower Cretaceous succession in East Greenland (72°76°N) and correlating the exposed sections throughout the region (Nøhr-Hansen, 1993). Based on the rather sporadic occurrence of macrofossils the Lower Cretaceous sediments of East Greenland was previously dated as Aptian to Albian (Spath, 1946; Maync, 1949; Donovan, 1953, 1955, 1957). Maync (1949) reported the total exposed thickness of the ‘Aptian-Albian series’ to be more than 2000 m, whereas Surlyk (1990) noted that the Lower Cretaceous shale succession reached a cumulative thickness or 1000 m. Furthermore, Donovan (1972) reported that Hauterivian and Barremian sediments were unknown in East Greenland. Dinoflagellate cysts recorded from 40 sections throughout the region have now dated the Lower Cretaceous sequence as Barremian to Albian, and correlation of sections yields a cumulative thickness of approximately 1500m (Nøhr-Hansen, 1993).