On the 19-21 September 2023 the NSRG in collaboration with the BSRG and sponsored by IAS, held a joint field trip to Northern Denmark.
The first IAS-sponsored postgraduate field trip organized by the NSRG took place 19 – 21st September 2023. The objective was to see the exceptionally well-preserved Paleocene – Eocene clay, diatomite and ashes exposed in northern Denmark. The trip was lead by Dr. Madeleine L. Vickers, Dr. Morgan T. Jones, Ms. Aurora Garcia and Mr. Bo Pagh Schultz, and was enjoyed by 11 participants which included Bachelor, Master and PhD students, as well as post-docs. In all the group represented 8 universities across Norway, Denmark, Germany, Ireland, and the U.K., with nationalities from across 4 continents.
The participants met at Copenhagen airport, and drove to northern of Denmark, taking the Molslinjen ferry from Sjaelland to Aarhus. Onboard, a welcome and group introductions between participants and leaders was conducted.
Heavy rain did not dampen any spirits as the group arrived at the Fossil- og Molermuseet in Nykøbing Mors. Following an introduction in the museum by Dr. Jan Audun Rasmussen, the group braved the weather to enjoy spectacularly exposed sections showing glacial tectonics visible in the Skarrhage quarry, adjacent to the museum. Following this, the group drove to accommodation at Mors, ending the day by cooking and enjoying a communal dinner.
The second day began with a series of morning lectures, covering the paradoxical paleoclimate signals in the Fur Formation and also the North Atlantic Igneous Province volcanism and its effect on global climate. The group then drove to Fur Island to dive into the stratigraphy.
The rest of the morning was spent at Stolleklint, in order to see the Paleocene-Eocene aged Stolleklint clay (which includes sediments deposited during the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum hyperthermal). Access the Stolleklint Clay section was challenging due to changes in outcrop following bad weather and this required some awkward scrambling to reach. After heavy showers and lunch in the Fur museum, the afternoon was spent at Stendal quarry, fossil hunting and sampling, and enjoying a demonstration of volcanic eruptions from Mr. Bo P. Schultz. This day was followed by the fieldtrip dinner which was enjoyed at the Hotel Pinenhus.
The last morning was spent at the beautiful Ejerslev Havn outcrop, looking at the upper part of the Fur Formation diatomite, prior to the drive back to Copenhagen which also allowed for a final wrap-up with the group on the Molslinjen ferry.
Following the trip as, participants were invited to complete a short questionnaire to help us gauge their impressions from the trip. The responses were overwhelmingly positive and all indicated that the participants were very satisfied with both the trips cost and its content.
Feedback however, did include the desire to increase the length of the field trip to be a day longer. As this would allow more time for participants to examine the geology and to allow more extensive group wrap-ups at the end of the day.
