Latest Pleistocene to Holocene changes in glaciomarine sedimentation in Scoresby Sund and along the adjacent East Greenland Continental Margin: Preliminary results

Based on preliminary results of sedimentological and organic geochemical investigations, distinct changes in the composition of siliciclastic and biogenic components occured in sediments from the East Greenland Continental Slope and Shelf and Scoresby Sund during the latest Pleistocene to Holocene times. These changes probably reflect the (? early/) late Weichselian glacial to Holocene interglacial transition, i.e., the decay of continental ice masses and sea-ice cover, causing major changes in supply of terrigenous matter and surface-water productivity. Flux rates of coarse-grained ice-rafted debris (IRD) distinctly decreased on the continental slope/shelf during the deglaciation interval. During the last 10,000 years, major amounts of IRD were trapped in the Scoresby Sund system. In comparison to modern interglacial conditions, surface-water productivity was significantly lower during the last glacial.