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A 3D gravity and magnetic model for the Entenschnabel area (German North Sea)

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Abstract

In this study, we focus on structural configuration of the Entenschnabel area, a part of the German exclusive economic zone within the North Sea, by means of gravity and magnetic modelling. The starting point of the 3D modelling approach is published information on subseafloor structures for shallow depths, acquired by wells and seismic surveys. Subsequent gravity and magnetic modelling of the structures of the deeper subsurface builds on this geophysical and geological information and on gravity and magnetic data acquired during a research cruise to the Entenschnabel area. On the one hand, our 3D model shows the density and susceptibility distribution of the sediments and the crust. In addition, the potential field modelling provides evidence for a differentiation between lower and upper crust. The thickness distribution of the crust is also discussed with respect to the tectonic framework. Furthermore, gravity as well as magnetic modelling points to an intrusive complex beneath the Central Graben within the Entenschnabel area. On the other hand, this work provides a geological–geophysical consistent 3D gravity and magnetic model that can be used as a starting point for further investigation of this part of the German North Sea.

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Acknowledgements

We would like to thank Lutz Reinhardt and Rüdiger Lutz for discussions concerning the geology of the North Sea. We thank the Technical University Denmark-National Space Institute for the publicly available global gravity field model (DTU10). The GMT software packages (Wessel and Smith 1998) was used in the preparation of this paper. Furthermore, we would also like to thank Y. P. Maystrenko and an anonymous reviewer for their constructive comments which helped to improve the manuscript.

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  1. Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources (BGR), Stilleweg 2, 30655, Hannover, Germany

    Ingo Dressel, Udo Barckhausen & Ingo Heyde

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  1. Ingo Dressel
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  2. Udo Barckhausen
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Correspondence to Ingo Dressel.

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Dressel, I., Barckhausen, U. & Heyde, I. A 3D gravity and magnetic model for the Entenschnabel area (German North Sea). Int J Earth Sci (Geol Rundsch) 107, 177–190 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00531-017-1481-x

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