Paleogeography of the Norwegian-Greenland and Northwestern European Sea Basins in the Paleogene

Published and original data on the lithology and fauna (mainly foraminifers) of the Paleogene Norwegian-Greenland and Northwestern European Sea Basins are generalized in this article. Their paleogeographic evolution and the character of development of connections with the North Atlantic, Mesotetis, and the Arctic Ocean are established from the moment of generation to their disappearance. It is shown that the paleogeographic conditions of the studied sedimentation basins depend to a great extent on the tectonic movements of lithospheric plates. Iceland Plume volcanism exerted a considerable influence on the paleoenvironment and sedimentogenesis. The paleotectonic and climatic conditions of sedimentation are reconstructed. The occurrence of bauxite-bearing continental residual soil and other data point to a tropical, humid climate in the Early Paleogene, which changed into a moderate humid climate by the end of the Late Paleogene. Terrigenous sediments, including oil-and-gas bearing ones, were formed in the sea basins; they contain products of eroded residual soil, placers of accessory minerals, pyroclastics of volcanoes of the Iceland Plume, and zeolite-bearing, amber-bearing, phosphorite-bearing, and glauconitic horizons that have practical interest.