A review of the sequence stratigraphic development of the Tertiary basins of the North and West Alpine Foreland domains shows that their structural and depositional history was episodically affected by brief tectonic phases. These were associated with intermittent deformation events induced by the collisional convergence and compressional coupling of the Apulian and Iberian microplates with the European Plate. The plate kinematics-related episodicity was essentially isochronously recorded in the basin fills of the Alpine Foreland region. These are generally correlative with changes in eustatic sea level. The ensuing correlative successions of so-called Cenozoic Rift and Foredeep (CRF) sequences and phases can be traced throughout the European Cenozoic Rift System and Alpine Foreland Basin. Their temporal correlation indicates that, apparently, the changes in the plate collision-related stress regime of the Alpine Foreland were repeatedly accompanied by coeval changes in eustatic sea level. To test and substantiate the validity of this inferred causal relationship between intraplate deposition, plate kinematics and eustacy, the tectono-sedimentary evolution of the basins of the Mediterranean plate-boundary zone has been analysed in conjunction with a review of the plate-boundary events in the North Atlantic. Within the uncertainty range of available datings, synchroneity could thus be demonstrated for the punctuated tectonostratigraphic development of basins of the western Mediterranean (comprising the Liguro-Provençal Basin, Valencia Trough, Sardinia Rift and Tyrrhenian Basin), the Apenninic-Calabrian Arc, the Betic domain (including the Alboran Basin) and the North and West Alpine Foreland regions. Similar temporal correlations of plate tectonicsrelated events near the Mid-Atlantic Ridge in the North Atlantic and tectonostratigraphic sequences and phases of the Alpino-Pyrenean Foreland basins are further evidence of a common causal mechanism. The driving mechanisms appear to have been the northward drift of Africa and the resulting mechanical coupling of Apulia and Iberia with the southern passive margin of Europe, as well as the stepwise opening of the North Atlantic and accompanying episodic plate re-organisations of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge.

The Upper Cretaceous deposits of New Jersey and Delaware produced the first mosasaur specimens collected in North America. Recent recovery of mosasaur specimens from streambank exposures and new excavation sites has increased our knowledge of the stratigraphic distribution of these animals in the northern Atlantic coastal plain. Reassessment of the source and age of mosasaur specimens from the Big Brook site and other localities in Monmouth County (NJ) has greatly increased the number of known Campanian mosasaur specimens from this region. Two main taphonomic occurrence modes are noted: 1 - single, worn and broken bones and isolated teeth in mixed faunal deposits probably accumulated due to current action in nearshore environments; 2 - partial skeletons, skulls and single bones in deeper-water settings were the aftermath of biological modification of carcasses and deadfalls. The mosasaurs of the New Egypt Formation represent some of the last (i.e., stratigraphically highest) mosasaur fossils in North America. Mosasaur extinction was due to the collapse of the rich Late Cretaceous marine food web at the K/T boundary. Subsequently in the early Paleocene, with the disappearance of the mosasaurs, crocodilians became the apical predators of the marine environment in this area.

We report here the addition of two rare mosasaur taxa to the Maastrichtian marine amniote fauna of Angola, both of which are also found in northern Europe. The new specimens include a dentary fragment referable to the large carnivore Prognathodon cf. saturator and an isolated tooth of the small durophage Carinodens belgicus. Both were recovered from Maastrichtian outcrops in southern Angola in 2011. Additionally, a complete posterior mandibular unit of a large mosasaur from the type Maastrichtian of the Netherlands, collected some time prior to 1879 and previously identified as ‘Mosasaurus giganteus’, is described and reassigned here to Prognathodon saturator; historical issues surrounding the taxonomic attribution of this specimen are clarified. The new material extends the known geographic distribution of Prognathodon saturator and Carinodens belgicus.

The Bench 19 Bonebed at Bentiaba, Angola, is a unique concentration of marine vertebrates preserving six species of mosasaurs in sediments best correlated by magnetostratigraphy to chron C32n.1n between 71.4 and 71.64 Ma. The bonebed formed at a paleolatitude near 24°S, with an Atlantic width at that latitude approximating 2700 km, roughly half that of the current width. The locality lies on an uncharacteristically narrow continental shelf near transform faults that controlled the coastal outline of Africa in the formation of the South Atlantic Ocean. Biostratigraphic change through the Bentiaba section indicates that the accumulation occurred in an ecological time dimension within the 240 ky bin delimited by chron 32n.1n. The fauna occurs in a 10 m sand unit in the Mocuio Formation with bones and partial skeletons concentrated in, but not limited to, the basal 1–2 m. The sediment entombing the fossils is an immature feldspathic sand shown by detrital zircon ages to be derived from nearby granitic shield rocks. Specimens do not appear to have a strong preferred orientation and they are not concentrated in a strand line. Stable oxygen isotope analysis of associated bivalve shells indicates a water temperature of 18.5°C. The bonebed is clearly mixed with scattered dinosaur and pterosaur elements in a marine assemblage. Gut contents, scavenging marks and associated shed shark teeth in the Bench 19 Fauna indicate biological association and attrition due to feeding activities. The ecological diversity of mosasaur species is shown by tooth and body-size disparity and by δ13C analysis of tooth enamel, which indicate a variety of foraging areas and dietary niches. The Bench 19 Fauna was formed in arid latitudes along a coastal desert similar to that of modern Namibia on a narrow, tectonically controlled continental shelf, in shallow waters below wave base. The area was used as a foraging ground for diverse species, including molluscivorus Globidens phosphaticus, small species expected near the coast, abundant Prognathodon kianda, which fed on other mosasaurs at Bench 19, and species that may have been transient and opportunistic feeders in the area.

A stream-sediment survey was carried out for the island of Aruba. Concentrations in stream sediments represent the abundance of chemical elements in the drainage basins. A geochemical atlas was created from the collected data and natural background values were established. Cluster analysis and pattern recognition techniques were used to gain a better understanding of the data set.

Two cluster models were selected to study the various geochemical controls on the sediments and to establish a spatial basis of environmental-quality settings for the development of future environmental policies. The first cluster model was suitable to recognise in some detail the reflection of the geology on the geochemistry of the stream sediments. The second, coarser cluster model stressed the importance to distinguish between the two main lithological units of the island when instituting natural background values. Not one uniform value per element is valid, but the value depends on the lithology.

Belemnitellid cephalopods from the Maastrichtian stratotype area (southeast Netherlands) are shown to be comparatively well preserved. Although partial diagenetic alteration has been observed, micromilling techniques have permitted the extraction of pristine belemnite calcite, suitable for the reconstruction of strontium (Sr), oxygen (O) and carbon (C) isotope variation of Maastrichtian seawater. A distinct Sr isotope pattern in the Maastricht record can be matched stratigraphically with records from Hemmoor (northern Germany), El Kef (Tunisia) and ODP site 690 (Maud Rise, Antarctica), leading to a new chemostratigraphical age model for the Maastrichtian stratotype section. Our data improve currently applied strontium isotope stratigraphical reference curves by revealing an Sr isotope inflection pattern near the lower/upper Maastrichtian boundary that is a potentially diagnostic feature for intra-Maastrichtian stratigraphical correlation between distant sections. Belemnites further show significant stratigraphical oxygen isotope variation through the Maastrichtian. We interpret this variation to have resulted from palaeoceanographic reorganisations in the Atlantic Ocean during this time interval.

The up to 60 m thick Neurath Sand (Serravallian, late middle Miocene) is one of several marine sands in the Lower Rhine Basin which were deposited as a result of North Sea transgressive activity in Cenozoic times. The shallow-marine Neurath Sand is well exposed in the Garzweiler open-cast mine, which is located in the centre of the Lower Rhine Basin. Detailed examination of three sediment profiles extending from the underlying Frimmersdorf Seam via the Neurath Sand and through to the overlying Garzweiler Seam, integrating both sedimentological and palaeontological data, has enabled the depositional setting of the area to be reconstructed.

Six subenvironments are recognised in the Neurath Sand, commencing with the upper shoreface (1) sediments characterised by glauconite-rich sands and an extensive biota (Ophiomorpha ichnosp.). These are associated with the silt-rich sands of a transitional subenvironment (2), containing Skolithos linearis, Planolites ichnosp. and Teichichnus ichnosp. These silt-rich sands grade up to the upper shoreface subenvironment (1), which is indicative of an initial regressive trend. The overlying intertidal deposits can be subdivided into a lower breaker zone (3), characterised by ridge-and-runnel systems, and the swash zone (4) where the surge and backwash of waves resulted in the deposition of high-energy laminites. The intertidal deposits were capped by aeolian backshore sediments (5). Extensive root traces present in this latter subenvironment reflect the development of the overlying peatland (i.e. Garzweiler Seam). Within the Garzweiler Seam, restricted sand lenses indicate a lagoonal or estuarine depositional environment (6). Regional correlation with adjacent wells establishes that shallow-marine conditions were widespread across the Lower Rhine Basin in middle Serravallian times. The shoreline profile, characterised by both tidal and wave activity and influenced by fluvial input from the adjacent Rhenish Massif, is indicative of the complexity of the coastal depositional setting within the Lower Rhine Basin.

A detailed reconstruction of the alluvial architecture of the Coevorden gas Field (Tubbergen Formation, Upper Carboniferous), which is located in the northeastern part of the Netherlands, is presented. This reconstruction is based on well logs, cross-sections and paleogeographic maps. Sedimentological analysis of a 93 m long core allowed to refine the interpretation of the depositional environment. Accurate width determinations are necessary to correctly correlate fluvial sandbodies and reconstruct alluvial architecture. Without using sedimentological information, sandbody width is likely to be overestimated. A method developed by Bridge and Tye (2000) was used to calculate the width of one sandstone body from cross-set thicknesses. On the basis of this calculation and the paleogeographic reconstructions, it may be stated that on average the width of the channel belts we studied in the Coevorden field does not exceed 4 km. Moreover, our paleogeographic reconstructions, which point to a northwestern direction of paleoflow, are in accordance with earlier observations from the study area. The Tubbergen Formation and time-equivalent sediments in Germany are reviewed briefly to put the Coevorden Field in a regional context. The thickness of the Tubbergen Formation is ∼450 m in our study area. In the adjacent German area, time-equivalent sedimentary sequences reach higher thicknesses. This may be attributed to tectonic movements along the Gronau Fault zone and the coming into existence of the Ems Low, of which the Coevorden Field is the westernmost part.

Subsidence caused by extraction of hydrocarbons and solution salt mining is a sensitive issue in the Netherlands. An extensive legal, technical and organisational framework is in place to ensure a high probability that such subsidence will stay within predefined limits. The key question is: how much subsidence is acceptable and at which rate? And: how can it be reliably assured that (future) subsidence will stay within these limits?

To address the issue for the Wadden Sea area, the concept of ‘effective subsidence capacity’ is used. To determine the ‘effective subsidence capacity’, the maximum volumetric rate of relative sea-level rise, that can be accommodated in the long term, without environmental harm, is established first. The volume of sediment that can be transported and deposited by nature into the tidal basin where the subsidence is expected, ultimately determines this ‘limit of acceptable average subsidence rate’. The capability of the tidal basins to ‘capture’ sediment over the lunar cycle period of 18.6 years is the overall rate-determining step. Effective subsidence capacity is then the maximum average subsidence rate available for planning of human activities. It is obtained by subtracting the subsidence volume rate ‘consumed’ by natural relative subsidence in the area (sealevel rise plus natural shallow compaction) from the total long-term acceptable subsidence volume rate limit.

In the operational procedure for mining companies, six-years-average expectation values of subsidence rates are used to calculate the maximum allowable production rates. This is done under the provision that production will be reduced or halted if the expected or actual subsidence rate (natural + man induced) is likely to exceed the limit of acceptable subsidence. Monitoring and management schemes ensure that predicted (6-year average) and actual (18.6-year average) subsidence rates stay within the limit of acceptable subsidence rate and that no damage is caused to the protected nature. A GPS based early warning system is used for early detection of unexpected behaviour. In support of SSM (State Supervision of Mines, the government regulator), TNO-AGE (an independent government advisory group) applies an independent Bayesian statistical analysis of all data, as they become available, to calculate the probability of scenario's under which future subsidence will exceed the defined limits. It is external to the operator's annual measurement and control loop and ensures that preventive actions can be taken in time in case such scenarios emerge.

Regular communication keeps the authorities and the general public informed on the use of the effective subsidence capacity to demonstrate that the actual average subsidence rate stays strictly within the defined bounds and that, from a scientific point of view, there is no reasonable doubt that damage to the tidal system will not occur now or in the future.

Thermal history and evolution of the Palaeozoic petroleum system of the western Lower Saxony Basin as well as charge history of the Apeldorn gas field was reconstructed using 2-D forward basin modelling software. The Apeldorn gas field is located on an inverted western rim of the Lower Saxony Basin (LSB) and belongs with its relatively anomalous nitrogen content of 73.9 vol. % to one of the most unique gas accumulations in North Germany. Based on thermal calibration studies utilising both, vitrinite reflectance and corrected bottom hole temperatures as calibration parameters, a shallow burial model and an anomalous event of Coniacian high heat flow of 80 to 120 mW/m2 was derived. As result, Lower Triassic and younger successions became subjected to slight changes in thermal maturity as opposed to Carboniferous and Permian successions, which show no assessable impact of the high heat flow event on the coalification pattern. The deep burial model in contrary to the shallow burial model is not supported by the structural reconstruction and backstripping in this more marginal setting. According to the modelling results, the key charge of the present Apeldorn gas field began in Tithonian (late Upper Jurassic) during the major phase of rifting in the Lower Saxony Basin. The present Westphalian coal-derived gas accumulations of the Lower Triassic Buntsandstein reservoir were sourced directly from modelled methane pools at top Rotliegend level. The hydrocarbon potential of the Westphalian source rocks became exhausted in Oxfordian (early Upper Jurassic). Reduction of the hydrostatic pressure during the Coniacian high heat flow event together with uplift during the Coniacian-Santonian inversion led to an extensive free gas exsolution. The resulting gas mixture between the exsolved free gas and the Westphalian coal-derived gas reached and saturated Buntsandstein reservoir. The structural trap became destroyed in course of the inversion leading to a sharp decrease of methane and nitrogen saturation.

Raman spectroscopy appears to be an ideal technique for the initial detection of biomarkers, molecules that are potentially indicative of life on planetary bodies elsewhere in our solar system. Carotenoids are particularly useful biomarkers as they are used widely across the species, relatively resistant to breakdown and no inorganic source is known. They are used by microorganisms in their cell membranes for protection against UV radiation. In this paper we focus on the detection of carotenoids in microorganisms within a mineral matrix. We compare the Raman signatures of pure compounds with those of laboratory-made mixtures of β-carotene and minerals. Carotenoids covered by 2.5 mm of translucent calcite or 40 mm of transparent halite were detected using a conventional confocal Raman microscope. To improve sensitivity and hence detection levels, Raman measurements were successfully performed under resonant conditions. Raman analysis can be compromised by fluorescence interference. Data are presented to show how the contribution from the fluorescent background in the Raman spectra can be reduced when making use of gated detection in time-resolved Raman spectroscopy. Overall, this study demonstrates some of the potential of Raman spectroscopy as a method for the detection of (past) life signatures during future planetary missions without taking current technical limitations such as instrumental size into account as recent rapid technical developments suggest these limitations will be resolved in time.

Shaking and damage in the province of Groningen, the Netherlands, resulting from production-induced seismicity has caused increased public anxiety. Since 2014, production offtake has been reduced stepwise by over 50% in an attempt to minimise production-induced seismicity. The earthquake catalogue, combined with comprehensive data of the changes in production offtake, shows a clear response of seismic activity following the production measures taken. Associated temporal variations in the proportionality between smaller- and larger-magnitude events (the b-value of the Gutenberg–Richter relation) are observed. Since production measures were imposed, the b-value has tended to increase, thus lowering the probability of a larger-magnitude event. The analysis also shows increases in activity rate and b-value prior to larger-magnitude events. Subsequently, the probability of a larger-magnitude event seems to be decreasing prior to the events occurring. This implies that for short-term earthquake prediction of hydrocarbon-production-induced seismicity, these types of analysis could be misleading. However, regional analysis is necessary to explain the observations in terms of rupture initiation. At present, each event felt still draws the interest of both public and press. As some clustering of events in both time and space is still observed, managing both the seismicity and the public perception provides a continuing challenge.

Stable oxygen and carbon isotope studies were performed on unionid shells from Rhine and Meuse rivers. Results show that the characteristic isotopic signature of each river is well documented in the shells with average δ18O values of ∼9.00‰ for the Rhine specimens and of 6.5‰ for the Meuse unionid. The average δ18O values of the shell material corresponds to the average δ18O of the to rivers and thus identifies Rhine or Meuse sedimentary sequences. All δ18O records show distinct seasonality, which may be used to reconstruct past riverconditions

Gold has been a major economic asset for Suriname for more than a century. The long history of gold mining, concentrated in large parts of a greenstone belt in the northeast of the country, began with small-scale artisanal extraction activities and has recently seen the development of major open-pit operations. Despite the range of mining activities, Suriname's gold deposits and occurrences are under-explored from a scientific point of view. Primary gold mineralisations in the greenstone belt occur in multiple forms, and although their origin is commonly related to the Palaeoproterozoic Trans-Amazonian orogeny, the controls of ore formation in specific cases often remain obscure. This contribution presents an abridged overview of currently available information on the geological setting and characteristics for some of the main deposits where gold is extracted. In view of the consistent link between gold metallogeny and granitoid–greenstone belts in the northern Guiana Shield, the mineralised settings in Suriname are discussed in a regional context.

Preliminary stable oxygen isotope data are presented from the southern North Sea Basin successions, ranging from the Lutetian to Rupelian. Analyses were performed on fish otoliths, nuculid bivalves and benthic foraminifera and are presented as bulk δ18O values relative to a well established regional sequence stratigraphic framework. The most significant positive shift in δ18O values clearly falls at the top of the regionally recognised Bassevelde 3 sequence, which base corresponds to the Eocene-Oligocene GSSP boundary. The here documented δ18O shift is closely associated with the base of the traditional Rupelian unit-stratotype and is tentatively correlated to the globally recognised Oi-1 event.

In the Netherlands North Sea area, the Chalk Group has thus far been subdivided into the Cenomanian Texel Formation, the Turonian to Maastrichtian Ommelanden Formation and the Danian Ekofisk Formation. This paper describes the attempt to arrive at a more detailed lithostratigraphic subdivision for this area, particularly of the Ommelanden Formation. To this end, a seismic stratigraphic analysis was carried out on a regional 2D and 3D seismic dataset. The Chalk Group was subdivided into eleven seismic stratigraphic sequences, named CK1 through CK11, based on the mapping and correlation of unconformities. The identified seismic sequence boundaries were used as the main chronostratigraphic markers in the Chalk Group interval. The seismic dataset was subsequently expanded with well log data of 45 boreholes. These were tied to the seismic dataset by constructing a synthetic seismogram for each borehole, after which the seismic sequence boundaries were noted and correlated on the logs. Finally, micropaleonthological data available in 15 boreholes were used to date the seismic sequences. The sequences were interpreted to be of Cenomanian (CK1), Turonian (CK2), Coniacian (CK3), Santonian (CK4), Early Campanian (CK5; CK6), Middle to Late Campanian (CK7), Early Maastrichtian (CK8; CK9), Late Maastrichtian (CK10) and Danian (CK11) age. The seismic units recognised in this study were compared with formal lithostratigraphic units defined in the Chalk Group in the surrounding North Sea sectors. Based on this comparison, a revision of the formal lithostratigraphic scheme, recognising Tor Formation and Herring Formation equivalents, is suggested for the Netherlands North Sea area.

In recent years, a range of operculate sixth abdominal tergite types of pylochelid and parapylochelid hermit crabs (Anomura, Paguroidea) have been recorded from Upper Jurassic (Oxfordian and Kimmeridgian) strata in southern Poland and southern Germany. Here we add two new genera (Parapylochelitergites, Paguritergites) and four new late Early Cretaceous species (Parapylochelitergites pustulosus, Pylochelitergites alatus, Pylochelitergites rugosus and Paguritergites yvonnecooleae) from Navarra, northern Spain. In the reefal limestones at Koskobilo quarry near Alsasua, of late Albian age, the number of sixth abdominal paguroid tergite taxa approximates that of paguroid carapace types. Thus, linking fossil paguroid carapaces to tergites can now be attempted. Assemblages of symmetrical hermit crabs (parapylochelids and pylochelids) in reefal settings appear to have changed drastically from the late Albian onwards, with asymmetrical forms (Diogenidae, Paguridae) becoming predominant.

Temperature profiles along east-west and north-south transects in Europe are presented for four time-slices covering the two most prominent warming phases of the last glacial-interglacial transition: Late Pleniglacial (LP), early Bøiling (BL), Younger Dryas (YD), and Preboreal (PB). These temperature profiles are based on two methods: 1) simulation experiments with an atmospheric general circulation model, 2) reconstructions based on terrestrial geological and palaeoecological data. The profiles have The Netherlands as intersection point (52°N, 5°E). During the cold phases (LP and YD), the simulated and reconstructed temperature gradients are very steep in a north-south direction, ranging in January from -25°C in northern Europe (56–60°N) to at least 5°C near the Mediterranean, and in July from 0°C to 20°C. The east-west profiles along 52°N for LP and YD show that temperatures in Eastern Europe were similar to the Atlantic coast (i.e. between ‒15°C and ‒25°C). During the warm phases (BL and PB), the temperature regimes resembled present-day thermal conditions, although steeper north-south and east-west temperature gradients were present during BL and PB. The model simulations suggest that continental Europe was a few degrees warmer during PB and BL than today in July under influence of the relatively high summer insolation. Considering the change of climate through time, the profiles show that in The Netherlands the warming during the two transitions (LP-BL, YD-PB) was relatively small compared to regions to the West and North, whereas in Eastern and Southern Europe the temperature increase is even smaller. This reflects the dominant influence of latitudinal movements of the North Atlantic polar front and associated sea-ice margin.

The Mema is a semi-arid region in central Mali with a rich archaeologicalheritage indicating the former existence of large urban settlements. Thearchaeological data suggest millennia of occupation history of the Mémapreceding relatively sudden abandonment by the 14th or 15th century AD.Population numbers have remained low since then and today’s human presencein the area is sparse and largely mobile. Geomorphologically, the Méma canbe characterized as a graben hosting various generations of aeolianlandforms and (presently mostly dry) interdunal channels and lakes, linkedto the neighbouring Inland Niger Delta floodplain. Given this setting, andthe variability of the Sahelian climate, climatic contributions to theregion’s sudden abandonment are likely. A geomorphological survey of theregion, and interpretation of the observed geomorphological record in termsof climatic history, aimed at providing a basis for understanding theintensive occupation and subsequent abandonment of the Méma. The results ofthis study underscore dramatic Holocene climatic variability, leading to theregion’s present geomorphological diversity, but also suggest thatneotectonic movements constitute an important additional cause of regionaldesiccation. Both may have encouraged prehistoric people to abandon the Mémaafter a long period of occupation.

An overview is presented of belemnitellid faunas of Santonian to Maastrichtian (Late Cretaceous) age in the Mons Basin and in the Brabant-Méhaigne and Maastricht-Aachen-Liège areas (Belgium, southeast Netherlands). As many as twenty-two species of the genera Actinocamax Miller, 1823, Gonioteuthis Bayle, 1878, Belemnitella d'Orbigny, 1840 and Belemnella Nowak, 1913 have been recorded to date. On the basis of these, thirteen zones can be distinguished: three in the Santonian (G. w. westfalica, G. westfalicagranulata and G. granulata), six in the Campanian (G. granulataquadrata, G. quadrata, Blt. mucronata, Blt. woodi, Blt. minor I and Blt. minor II) and four in the Maastrichtian (Bln. obtusa, Bln. ex gr. sumensis/cimbrica, Blt. junior and Bln. kazimiroviensis). Correlative schemes between these zones and those proposed for Norfolk (southeast England) and for the combined Lägerdorf-Kronsmoor-Hemmoor section (northern Germany) are presented. The belemnitellid assemblage of the study area closely resembles that of Norfolk, but differs from the late Campanian faunas of northwest Germany.