The geology of the Morecambe gas field

The subsurface of the Irish Sea contains one of the United Kingdom's most important gas fields, the Morecambe Field, owned by British Gas. Approximately 10% of the UK's daily consumption of natural gas will be supplied by this giant accumulation trapped within fluvial deposits of the Lower Triassic Sherwood Sandstone Formation.     

SOME APPLICATIONS OF THEORY AND EXPERIMENT TO THE STUDY OF BEDDING GENESIS

The origin of many sedimentation units deposited in granular cohesionless materials can be rationally explained by utilizing the concept of the profile of equilibrium. This basic concept can be formally expressed in terms of the variables, or groups of variables, that characterize a sediment transport system. A change in one or more variables or a shift in local base level will generally cause a shift in the spatial position of the profile, resulting in either aggradation or degradation. As shown by flume experiments, the rate of shift of the profile is a critical factor in bedding genesis. A relatively large and rapid upward shift of the profile results in the deposition of a tabular or wedge-shaped unit of cross-bedding, i.e., a laboratory delta. On the other hand, a gradual upward shift of the profile results in the deposition of a sequence of horizontal bedding that is commonly associated with intercalations of ripple or dune cross-bedding. For the intermediate case of a moderately rapid shift of the profile, the depositional sequence includes trough units and poorly-defined tabular units of cross-bedding with numerous intercalations of horizontal bedding. The concept of the profile of equilibrium therefore provides a rationale for considering the depositional framework for sedimentary structures produced by current flow.     

Mineralogy of meteorite groups: An update

Abstract— Twenty minerals that were not included in the most recent list of meteoritic minerals have been reported as occurring in meteorites. Extraterrestrial anhydrous Ca phosphate should be called merrillite, not whitlockite.