FACULTY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

DEPARTMENT OF GEOLOGY

Multibeam bathymetry and backscatter data analysis

of pockmarks at Vestnesa Ridge off NW-Svalbard

Glennda Alina Villaflor

Master’s Thesis in Geology

November 2014
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 Geo 3900
Master’s Thesis in Geology

Multibeam bathymetry and backscatter data analysis of

pockmarks at Vestnesa Ridge off NW-Svalbard

Glennda Alina Villaflor

November 2014

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ABSTRACT

The Vestnesa Ridge is an elongated sediment drift situated at 79 o N on the northwest

Svalbard margin in the Fram Strait. It is one of the northernmost documented oceanic
gas hydrate provinces. The narrow southeastern part of the ridge is characterized by
pockmarks that line up along the apex of the crest. Some of these pockmarks are
continuously venting gas while some are inactive. This study looks at changes in
morphology of the pockmarks in relation to sedimentary processes, ocean currents and
fluid flow mechanism, and their role in active fluid venting. Detailed bathymetry and
backscatter data from different surveys in 2010, 2012 and 2013 are studied. Comparing
the surfaces reveals relatively less sediment deposition in the pockmarks. The
pockmarks exhibit an elongate shape and asymmetrical profiles, pointing to a strong
influence by the WSC bottom currents. Backscatter data also reveal possible carbonate
or gas hydrate deposits inside the pockmarks. These observations, along with apparent
inactivity in some pockmarks, point to a possible scenario where carbonate or hydrate
formation leads to self-sealing and eventual relocation of the gas vents through existing
faults and fractures.

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I would like to thank my adviser Dr. Stefan Bünz and the Geology Department for letting
me write this thesis. I am forever grateful for the opportunity.

I would also like to thank my family for the support and love.

Maraming salamat.

Glennda Villaflor
Tromsø, November 2014

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Table of Contents

ABSTRACT ..................................................................................................................................................... 4
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ................................................................................................................................ 6
1 INTRODUCTION.................................................................................................................................. 10
1.1 PURPOSE ................................................................................................................................... 10
1.2 STUDY AREA .............................................................................................................................. 11
1.3 FLUID FLOW .............................................................................................................................. 12
1.4 GAS HYDRATES .......................................................................................................................... 15
1.5 CONTOURITES (SEDIMENT DRIFTS) ........................................................................................... 17
2 GEOLOGICAL OVERVIEW.................................................................................................................... 21
2.1 TECTONIC SETTING ................................................................................................................... 21
2.2 OCEAN CURRENTS ..................................................................................................................... 23
2.3 SEDIMENTATION AND SEABED MORPHOLOGY ........................................................................ 25
2.4 FLUID FLOW AT VESTNESA RIDGE ............................................................................................. 28
3 MATERIALS AND METHODS ............................................................................................................... 33
3.1 KONGSBERG-SIMRAD EM300 MULTIBEAM SONAR SYSTEM .................................................... 33
3.1 BATHYMETRIC PROCESSING AND 3D VISUALIZATION .............................................................. 35
3.2 BACKSCATTER PROCESSING AND VISUALIZATION .................................................................... 36
3.3 MULTIBEAM DATA .................................................................................................................... 39
4 RESULTS ............................................................................................................................................. 41
4.1 SWATH BATHYMETRY ............................................................................................................... 41
4.1.1 GENERAL DESCRIPTION .................................................................................................... 41
4.1.2 PROFILING ........................................................................................................................ 44
4.1.3 CONTOURING ................................................................................................................... 46
4.1.4 SURFACE DIFFERENCE ...................................................................................................... 47
4.2 BACKSCATTER IMAGING ........................................................................................................... 48
4.2.1 BACKSCATTER IMAGE OF STUDY AREA ............................................................................ 48
4.2.2 ANGULAR RANGE ANALYSIS ............................................................................................. 51
4.3 POCKMARKS .............................................................................................................................. 53
4.3.1 MORPHOLOGICAL CHANGES ............................................................................................ 53
4.3.2 VOLUMETRIC CHANGES ................................................................................................... 60
4.4 POCKMARK FIELD NORTH OF THE STUDY AREA ....................................................................... 62
5 DISCUSSION ....................................................................................................................................... 64
5.1 Pockmark morphology .............................................................................................................. 64
5.2 Backscatter data ....................................................................................................................... 67
5.3 Fluid flow controls..................................................................................................................... 71
6 CONCLUSION ..................................................................................................................................... 74
References .................................................................................................................................................. 76

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1 INTRODUCTION

1.1 PURPOSE

The aim of this master thesis is to map and describe morphological changes on the
seabed of the Vestnesa Ridge along the continental margin west of Svalbard. Swath
bathymetry gridded to 10 m from three different cruises from 2010, 2012 and 2013 were
processed using QPS Fledermaus 4D geo-spatial processing and analysis tool for high
resolution imaging of the seabed. The results will show in changes in the local
geomorphology that may be related to sedimentary processes, ocean currents and fluid
flow activity in the area. In addition, backscatter data will also be analyzed using QPS
Fledermaus Geocoder Toolbox (FMGT) to identify structures or deposits related to fluid
flow and to classify the different types of sedimentary environment in the study area.

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1.2 STUDY AREA

The study area is located at the Vestnesa Ridge situated on the northwest Svalbard
margin in the Fram Strait. The Vestnesa Ridge is a SE-NW to E-W bending elongated
sediment drift situated at 79o N to the northeast of the Molloy transform fault and to
the north of the Knipovich Ridge (Figure 1). It is one of the northernmost documented
oceanic gas hydrate provinces, with active gas leakage at the eastern part on the upper
continental slope (Bünz et al., 2012).

Figure 1: Overview map of the Vestnesa Ridge on the western margin of Svalbard. (modified from Bünz et al., 2012)

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1.3 FLUID FLOW

Seabed fluid flow involving seepage of free methane gas and/or water with a high
methane concentration in solution is found in every sea and ocean (Judd, 2003).
Acoustic and seismic data can reveal seabed fluid flow indicators such as pockmarks,
mud volcanoes, acoustic chimneys, pingos and authigenic carbonate build up which are
related to hydrocarbon migration (Hovland and Judd, 1988). These may be present both
in passive continental margins in areas with rapid sedimentation and undercompaction
that prevents fluids to be expelled during sedimentation, and on active continental
margins, where they are mainly related to compressional geological processes (Judd and
Hovland, 2007).

Pockmarks are craters that commonly occur worldwide on muddy seabed and are
known to occur on continental slopes with gas hydrates and in association with slides
and slumps (Hovland et al., 2002). They occur wherever fluid flow is focused and escape
is from low-permeability, fine-grained surficial sediments (Hovland and Judd, 1988).
Pockmarks can be subdivided into six morphological classes (Hovland et al.2002) (Figure
2):

 Unit pockmarks are small depressions typically 1-10 m across and up to 0.5 m
deep, and probably represent a one-time expulsion event. They are common
inside and around normal pockmarks.

 Normal pockmarks are circular depressions typically 10-700 m across, and from
1-45 m deep. Their cross-section varies from a basin-formed (low-angle) shape
to an asymmetrical and steep-walled feature. Some are even funnel-shaped in
the center.

 Elongated pockmarks are depressions with one axis that is much longer than the
other. They occur on slopes and areas of seafloor influenced by strong bottom
currents.

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 Eyed pockmarks contain an acoustically high-reflective object or region in its
central part, which could either be caused by coarse material remaining after the
erosive process (winnowing), from biological activity (skeleton remains, dead
and living shells, etc.) or from authigenic carbonate precipitation.

 Strings of pockmarks consist of unit pockmarks or small normal pockmarks

arranged in curvilinear chains or strings, which may be kilometers in length. They
are suspected to be a result of fluid focusing along near-vertical faults, flexures
or weakness zones in the upper sedimentary layer.

 Complex pockmarks occur as clusters of normal pockmarks or amalgamations of

large pockmarks.

Figure 2: Illustration of the main morphological classes of pockmarks. (adapted from Hovland et al., 2002)

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Fluid migration may be detected on seismic data where acoustic masking and its related
features occur. Acoustic masking is an area on the seismic profile with low seismic
reflectivity or where the reflections are highly distorted or disturbed. When occurring in
association with other gas indicators such as bright spots or pull down of underlying
seismic reflections, they may be interpreted to indicate a scattering of acoustic energy
caused by interstitial gas bubbles in sediments (Anderson and Hampton, 1980) (Figure
3). Gas chimneys are detected on seismic data as vertical zones which have been

disturbed by previous or ongoing gas migration. The acoustic disturbance in the

chimneys may have been caused by small parcels of gas in the pore space of sediments
and slightly displaced sediments (Judd and Hovland, 2007). Rapid and strong gas flows
may cause upward directed structural disturbances of sediment layers and a blow-out
feature at the sediment surface. Acoustic gas chimneys may show both push down and
pull-up effects. Pull up may occur in the presence of a high velocity zone in layers of
authigenic carbonate or gas hydrates.

Pockmarks on continental shelves and slopes, in estuaries and in lakes may be

considered as valuable monitoring sites for deep fluids (Hovland et al., 2002).

Figure 3: (a) Seismic profile showing a zone of acoustic masking, associated bright spots and pull down of underlying
reflections. (b) Seismic profile showing acoustic pipes interpreted to represent fractures pathways for gas-bearing
fluids, leading in this case to an interpreted pockmark crater on the buried horizon. (from Andreassen et al., 2007)

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1.4 GAS HYDRATES

Gas hydrates are crystalline solids and are similar to ice, except that the crystalline
structure is stabilized by a gas molecule within the cage of water molecules (Judd and
Hovland, 2007). Many gases have molecular sizes suitable to form hydrates, including
naturally occurring gases such as methane and other hydrocarbons, although most
marine gas hydrates that have been recovered and analyzed are methane hydrates.
Natural gas hydrates can be found mainly in oceanic and permafrost regions, where the
pressure and temperature conditions are such that gas hydrates remain stable. In
addition, there must be an adequate supply of gas molecules and water within the
sediments (Hovland, 2005, Kvenvolden, 1993).

Gas hydrates may be indirectly detected using seismic methods, where the base of the
gas hydrate stability zone (GHSZ) is indicated by a BSR (bottom simulating reflector)
(Figure 4). The base of gas hydrate-bearing sediments follows iso-temperature lines and
causes a seismic reflection that is parallel to the seafloor. The BSR may be caused by the
high velocity of the gas hydrate in the hydrate-bearing zone above the BSR, or by the
low velocity of free gas in the gas-bearing zone below the BSR. In any case, the BSR is
characterized by being a negative-polarity reflection, indicating a negative reflection
coefficient. The compressional wave velocity decreases abruptly when the seismic signal
enters from the hydrated sediments above to gas charged sediments beneath it. Due to
the velocity drop, the gas hydrate/free gas related BSR shows a phase reversal if
compared to the sea floor. The true nature of BSR is mostly due to the presence of free
gas beneath the hydrate sediments (Andreassen et al., 1995). Since the BSR is
dependent on pressure and temperature, it may also cross-cut the sedimentary bedding
(Bünz and Mienert, 2004).

Natural submarine gas hydrates are regarded as important because it has a potential of
being an energy resource – the density of methane hydrates is up to five times greater
than the energy density of conventional natural gas (Kvenvolden, 2000). Gas hydrates
may also have a strong influence on the environment and climate because methane is a
significant greenhouse gas. They may also be a significant geohazard because they alter

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the seafloor sediment stability – the permeability of the sediment decreases due to gas
hydrate growth and sediment compaction stops. When continued sedimentation causes
a deeper burial of gas hydrate, it will then reach a temperature where the gas hydrate
is no longer stable. The solid gas hydrate will become a liquid gas/water mixture, and
the basal zone of the gas hydrate becomes underconsolidated and possibly
overpressured due to newly released gas, leading to a zone of weakness. This zone of
reduced shear strength and increased overpressure may result in submarine slope
failures (McIver, 1982). A study of the Storegga slide by Mienert et al. (2004) suggests
that the hydrate stability zone in the upper part of the Storegga area was significantly
influenced by variations in ocean temperature since LGM, and that hydrate dissociation
may also have influenced the position of the headwall of the slide, corresponding with
the zone of predicted maximal in situ pore pressure build-up.

Figure 4: Schematic model for dynamic hydrate/free gas system on the northern flank of the Storegga Slide. (from
Bünz and Mienert, 2004)

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1.5 CONTOURITES (SEDIMENT DRIFTS)

Contourites are sediments deposited or substantially reworked by the persistent action

of bottom currents (Stow et al., 2002). They cover large parts of the ocean floor and
continental margins, and occur largely in continental rise to lower slope settings. The
accumulation and geomorphology of contourite deposits are mainly influenced by three
factors: intensity of deepwater bottom-currents, seafloor topography, and sediment
supply (Faugères et al., 1993). There are three main types of contourite accumulations
as proposed by Faugères et al. (2008):

• Sheeted drifts (Figure 5) or contourite sheets are characterized by a wide,

mounded geometry, covering a large area with uniform thickness. The internal
seismofacies is typically low-amplitude, discontinuous reflectors. They show a
predominantly aggradational stacking pattern with no significant migration and may
comprise or be covered by large fields of sediment waves. Three kinds of sheeted drifts
are identified: (a) abyssal sheets, which cover basin plains whose margins trap the
bottom currents; (b) slope sheets, which are spread out across margins where a gentle
gradient and smooth topography favor a wide non-focused current; and (c) channel-
related patch sheets.

• Mounded drifts (Figure 5) are characterized by their distinctly mounded and more
or less elongated geometry. They commonly show good parallel to sub-parallel seismic
reflectors. Three kinds of mounded drifts are identified: (a) giant elongated drifts,
ranging from a few tens of kilometers to over 1000km long, thicknesses of up to several
hundreds of meters, and situated parallel or sub-parallel to contours; (b) channel-
related drifts, which are specifically related to narrow conduits (deep channels,
gateways or contourite moats) where the bottom circulation is constrained and flow
velocities increased; and (c) confined drifts deposited in relatively small confining basins.

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• Mixed drift systems involve the significant interaction of contour currents with
other depositional processes, and characterized by both down-slope and along-slope
processes, where the normal contourite-drift morphologies and development may be
markedly modified.

Figure 5: Summary of the different types of contourite drifts (after McCave and Tucholke, 1986; Faugères et al.,
1999) showing the drift general geometry, migration trend (black arrow) and inferred axis of bottom-current flow
(dashed arches). (from Rebesco and Stow, 2001)

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In Northern Europe, from southwest Ireland to offshore central Norway, persistent
bottom currents have generated drift deposits which mostly have elongated mounded
geometries with well-layered internal acoustic signatures and composed of sandy and
muddy contourites, with facies indicating that deposition was dominated by a
combination of bottom currents, ice-rafting and hemipelagic settling (Hernández-
Molina et al., 2008). Along the Norwegian shelf, there is present winnowing along the
shelf and upper slope by the inflowing currents of the Atlantic waters, and the
contourites derived from the winnowing are deposited in lower slope embayment and
in slide scars (Laberg et al., 2005), whereas deep persistent currents have influenced the
sedimentation in large parts of the Fram strait at the NW Svalbard margin (Eiken and
Hinz, 1993).

The study of contourites has considerable impact on three research areas: hydrocarbon
exploration, climate change and slope stability.

The economic significance of contourites has been recognized due to the advance of
hydrocarbon exploration toward deeper waters. This demands a better understanding
of the role of bottom currents and their implications for petroleum systems such as
reservoir and sealing rocks. Seismic and well-log characteristics of coarse-grained
contourites can reveal high reservoir potential. Fine-grained drifts can locally and
regionally develop large and thick accumulations, which have an important seal
potential for trapping hydrocarbon (Viana et al., 2007). It is also worth noting that along
the Atlantic passive margin settings, gas hydrates associated with BSRs are mainly found
in contourite deposits (Dillon and Paull, 1983). In some cases, sediment erosion by
contour currents can trigger the release of methane from gas-hydrate accumulations
(Holbrook et al., 2002).

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2 GEOLOGICAL OVERVIEW

2.1 TECTONIC SETTING

The Svalbard archipelago is located on the north-western edge of the European

continental shelf and bordered by the Arctic Ocean, Fram Strait, Norwegian and Barents
Sea (Figure 6). Seafloor spreading in the Eurasian Basin and the Norwegian-Greenland
Sea occurred in the early Eocene times as Greenland and North America separated from
Eurasia (Demenitskaya and Karasik, 1969; Talwani and Eldholm, 1977; Eldholm et al.,
1987). A rotation in spreading in the early Oligocene terminated the Western
Spitsbergen Orogeny and forced rifting along the continental transform between the
Barents Sea and Greenland, leading to oblique spreading along the Knipovich Ridge and
finally continental separation of Greenland and Svalbard (Talwani and Eldholm, 1977;
Faleide et al., 1991). After subsidence, the Fram Strait developed as the only deepwater
passage to the Arctic Ocean, playing a crucial role in ocean circulation processes (Eiken
and Hinz, 1993).

The forming of new oceanic crust started at about 20 Ma, with a low spreading rate (1,5-
2 cm/yr), resulting in a short distance between the main spreading ridge and the
continental shelf. A series of transform faults and short spreading centers connect the
Knipovich Ridge in the most northern part of the Norwegian-Greenland Sea with the
Gakkkel Ridge in the eastern Arctic basins (Talwani and Eldholm, 1977; Thiede et al.,
1998). West dipping faults are common, formed as compressional to transpressional
structures during the Western Spitsbergen Orogeny, and then extended during the
opening of the ocean between Greenland and Svalbard.

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Figure 6: Structural map of the Svalbard area with plate boundaries, fracture zones and major fault zones according
to various authors as cited by Winkelmann et al. (2008). BFZ – Billefjorden Fault Zone; HD – Hayes Deep; HFZ - Hinlopen
Fault Zone; HR - Hovgård Ridge; HSFZ - Hornsund Fault Zone; KR - Knipovich Ridge; LFZ - Lifdefjorden Fault Zone; LT -
Littke Trough; LV - Lena Valley; MD - Molly Deep; MFZ - Molly Fracture Zone; MoFZ - Moffen Fault Zone; MR - Molly
Ridge; NLTFZ - North Lena Trough Fracture Zone; SFZ - Spitsbergen Fracture Zone; SLTFZ - South Lena Trough Fracture
Zone. (from Winkelmann et al., 2008)

The continental margin north of Svalbard is considered to be of non-volcanic nature

(Geissler and Jokat, 2004). The continent-ocean transition in the area is characterized by
down-faulted basement rocks rather than by seaward dipping volcanic sequences. Some
of the faults in the southern Yermak Plateau cutting through the young sediments near
the seafloor, in addition to sparsely occurring earthquakes (IRIS, 2000) in the area, point
to recent crustal movements, which are connected with the evolution of the plate
boundary along the Spitsbergen Fracture Zone. SW-NE structures are dominant
following the modern continental margin.

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2.2 OCEAN CURRENTS

Svalbard is dominated by two main surface currents, the West Spitsbergen Current
(WSC), a shallow northward-flowing warm water branch of the North Atlantic Current
(NAC), and the cold southward-flowing East Greenland Current (EGC) (Aagaard et al.,
1987). The area between these two surface currents is characterized by mixed waters
(Swift and Aagaard, 1981). The relatively warm and saline incoming Atlantic Water (AW)
provides major pathway for heat and water transport into the Arctic Ocean, and an
integral part of the global thermohaline circulation (Ślubowska-Woldengen et al., 2007).

The Fram Strait is the 2500 m deep channel connecting the Nordic Seas to the Arctic
Ocean. The North Atlantic Water (AW) flows through the strait along its eastern side as
the upper 850m part of the WSC (Fahrbach et al., 2001; Schauer et al., 2004) and
eventually branches out. The largest one, Knipovich Branch (KB), separates from the
WSC and flows above the Knipovich ridge and the Greenland-Spitsbergen sill, and joins
the East Greenland Current flowing southwards on the western side of the Fram Strait.
Further north, at 79°–79°45"N, the remaining WSC splits into the Svalbard Branch (SVB)
and the Yermak Plateau Branch (YPB) (Figure 7).

Figure 7: Map of ocean currents on the west and north of Svalbard. The path of the West Spitsbergen Current (WSC)
is after Rudels et al. (2005). (from Cokelet et al., 2008)

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In Fram Strait, the observed depth of the AW core is at 150–200 m and the lower
boundary of the AW has been observed between 600–715 m (Schauer et al., 2004;
Cokelet et al., 2008; Aksenov et al., 2010) (Figure 8). The seabed topography affects the
local current pattern as the current speed intensifies with an increase in steepness of
the slope (Cokelet et al., 2008) (Figure 9).

Figure 8: Water mass type for Section 1 (location on Figure 4) looking downstream in the West Spitsbergen Current,
Svalbard Branch SVB, from October to November 2001. PW = Polar Water, PIW= Polar Intermediate Water, ASW =
Arctic Surface Water, AW = Atlantic Water, UAIW = Upper Arctic Intermediate Water, LAIW = Lower Arctic
Intermediate Water, DW = Deep Water (after Aagaard et al., 1985). (from Cokelet et al., 2008)

Figure 9: Geostrophic velocity for Section 1 (location on Figure 4) looking downstream in the West Spitsbergen Current,
Svalbard Branch SVB, from October to November, 2001. (from Cokelet et al., 2008)

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2.3 SEDIMENTATION AND SEABED MORPHOLOGY

The presence and dynamics of glaciers and ice streams during Plio-Pleistocene
glaciations have had a pronounced effect on both sedimentation and erosion on the
Svalbard continental margin. These fast-flowing ice streams scoured cross-shelf troughs
and pushed large volumes of terrigenous sediments beyond the shelf break during
glacial times, resulting in shelf progradation and stacked glacigenic debris flow
deposition on the upper slopes (Ottesen et al., 2005).

The morphology of the Svalbard shelf indicates glacial activity during the Plio-
Pleistocene when glaciers repeatedly reached the shelf break (Solheim et al., 1996;
Solheim et al., 1998; Vorren et al., 1998), with the last three advances taking place
during the Weichselian (Mangerud et al., 1998). The shelf is characterized by fjord and
cross-shelf trough systems, which typically drain into trough mouth fans, separated by
shallower banks (Figure 10). Submarine morphological evidence, along with
stratigraphical and chronological data from previous studies (Svendsen et al., 1992 1996
2004, Andersen et al., 1996, Landvik et al., 1998, Mangerud et al., 2002) show that the
Late Weichselian ice sheet reached the continental shelf edge west and north of
Svalbard. This ice sheet was partitioned into fast-flowing ice streams which retreated
rapidly from the cross-shelf troughs and outer fjords, separated by slower moving ice on
the intervening shallower banks. Ice calving is thought to have been the main
mechanism responsible for the rapid mass loss from ice sheets on the deeper cross shelf
troughs (Ottesen et al., 2007a).

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Figure 10: Geomorphic map of submarine bedforms on the Svalbard continental margin: Mega-scale glacial lineations
formed at the base of fast-flowing ice streams, Transverse ridges interpreted as terminal moraines; Recessional
transverse ridges (and sedimentary wedges) making major and minor stillstands during ice retreat; and Lateral
moraines formed at ice stream lateral margins. (from Ottesen et al., 2007a)

According to Eiken and Hinz (1993), deep persistent currents have influenced the
sedimentation in large parts of the Fram Strait since the late Miocene, where contourite
deposits are mainly concentrated on the eastern part of the strait. In postglacial times,
the uplift of the continental crust of Svalbard and the subsidence of the young ocean
crust was most likely accompanied by increases in sediment fluxes into the eastern part
of the Fram strait (Eiken and Hinz, 1993). And in regions between the trough fans, the
sedimentation is controlled by alongslope currents and hemipelagic deposition
producing sediment drifts and thick draped sediments (Vogt et al., 1999).

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Eiken and Hinz (1993) divided the Vestnesa Ridge into three seismic sequences that
make up more than 2 km of sediments. These are YP-1, YP-2 and YP-3 (Figure 11) that
show continuous strata with only minor unconformities and are as follows: YP-3:
Sediment depocenter with a prograding pattern at the outer shelf and a second
depocenter of circular shape at the Vestnesa Ridge. YP-2: Westward-thickening wedges
with a migration of the depocenter and a sequence that downlaps to the west. YP-1:
Lowermost sequence YP-1 with shows a subparallel reflection pattern.

Figure 11: Interpretation of seismic line UB 18-81 parallel to Vestnesa Ridge (Eiken and Hinz, 1993).

The western Svalbard margin has been influenced by both downslope and alongslope
processes (Howe et al., 2008). A sediment drift on the Vestnesa Ridge contains at least
50m of acoustically well-laminated sediments while the crest of the drift contains fine-
grained silty muds. A sediment core analysis from the crest of the drift (Howe et al.,
2008), suggest Holocene sedimentation dominated by muddy-silty contourite deposits
from the West Spitsbergen Current, sitting above laminated silty turbidites formed from
increased sediment supply and lower sea level during the LGM. The calculated high
sedimentation rates of 105 cm/kyr for the pre-LGM with a decrease to less than 10
cm/kyr between the LGM and Holocene. The modern mass accumulation rates on the
Vestnesa Ridge drift is at 0.12 cm/yr (Howe et al., 2008).

More recent studies (Jessen et al., 2010, Consolaro et al., 2014) looking into sediment
cores from the study area describes of an upper interval of a homogenous hemipelagic
grey clay (225-0 cm); a fine-grained, structureless, silty mud interval with high
abundance of diatoms (335-225 cm); and a lower part with high concentration of IRD,
with a greenish sandy layer (360 cm).

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2.4 FLUID FLOW AT VESTNESA RIDGE

A 1-3 km wide and 50 km long pockmark field on the crest of the Vestnesa Ridge was
mapped by Vogt et al (1994) using sidescan sonar. Some of the pockmarks are 100-200
m in diameter and 10-20 m deep. These pockmarks were hypothesized to have been
formed by evolution of methane generated by the decomposition of marine organic
matter in the sediment drift. The rising methane would collect in the ridge-crest trap,
and intermittently escaping to the sea floor (Vogt et al., 1994).

Several seismic studies revealed the occurrence of a prominent bottom-simulating

reflector (BSR) along the western Svalbard margin (Eiken and Hinz, 1993, Posewang and
Mienert, 1999, Vanneste et al., 2005a), indicating that gas hydrates and gas
accumulations are common in the area (Figure 12). The gas hydrates on the western
Svalbard margin are suggested to be mainly of biogenic origin (Myhre et al., 1995,
Vanneste et al., 2005b).

Figure 12: Multi channel seismic profile across the NW Svalbard margin from the Molloy Fracture Zone to the shelf
edge and running E-W through the Vestnesa Ridge. Dashed line marks the identified BST across the margin. (from
Hustoft et al., 2009)

A study in 2008 revealed a gas-hydrate, free-gas and venting system that is exceptionally
more dynamic than documented elsewhere along the northeastern North Atlantic
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margin (Hustoft et al., 2009). This study documented an elongated pockmark field
consisting of more than 100 individual pockmarks up to 600 m wide, along the apex of
the Vestnesa Ridge. Active degassing was evident from gas flares (750-m-high and 150-
m-wide) observed in the water column (Figure 13). Episodic gas discharge at this site in
the eastern Fram Strait has probably occurred for thousands of years, and the
extensional faulting related to the Knipovich Ridge and/or thermal subsidence of the
basin, may play a key role in the supply and distribution of methane hydrate and free
gas across the Vestnesa Ridge (Hustoft et al., 2009).

Figure 13: Swath bathymetry and profile illustrating the spatial relationship between the topography controlled
pockmark field and the anticline geometry of the BSR. Inset shows echosounder data of a 750 m tall gas flare coming
from a pockmark/chimney structure (from Hustoft et al., 2009).

The pockmarks at the western end of the Vestnesa Ridge were studied in detail using
high-resolution 3D seismic data (Petersen et al., 2010). It was concluded that pressure-
driven focused fluid flow could explain the hydro-fracturing processes that control the
plumbing system and lead to extensive pockmark formation at the crest. High-amplitude
anomalies in the upper 50 m of the chimney structures suggest formations of near-
surface gas hydrates and/or authigenic carbonate precipitation while the deeper high-
amplitude reflections above the BSR are associated with the occurrence of hydrate
layers (Petersen et al., 2010).

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A more recent study (Bünz et al., 2012) also used 3D high resolution seismic data to
analyse the active and inactive chimney structures on the Vestnesa Ridge in further
detail (Figure 14). The data indicates the presence of free gas and gas hydrate based on
a strong BSR, making it one of the northernmost documented oceanic gas hydrate
provinces. The focused fluid flow at the crest of the ridge suggests a strong
topographically controlled fluid migration, with gas hydrates like inhibiting vertical gas
flow through the flanks of the ridge (Bünz et al., 2012). The study also considers the
Vestnesa Ridge as unique on Earth, due to its close proximity a mid-oceanic ridge and a
transform fault, with the hydrothermal circulation system affecting the dynamics of its
gas-hydrate and free-gas system.

Figure 14: Top: 3D seismic interpretation of the seafloor showing pockmarks. Bottom: Seismic line showing fluid flow
structures (shimneys) associated with the individual pockmarks. (from Bünz et al., 2012)

30
The active gas leakage at the eastern part of the Vestnesa Ridge on the upper
continental slope is more extensive than previously assumed (Bünz et al., 2012). The
seeps showed continuous gas leakage during survey cruises in 2010 and 2012. In 2010,
the highest flare reached a height of 930 m (270 mbsl). In 2012, the highest flare reached
a height of 990 m (210 mbsl) (Figure 15). These flare heights suggest that hydrate skins
are developing around the bubbles, decreasing gas-dissolution processes during bubble
rise and allowing bubbles to reach such heights (Smith et al., 2014). Geochemical
analyses from the area also show that a thermogenic source is supplying methane and
other light hydrocarbons to the Vestnesa Ridge (Smith et al., 2014) .

Figure 15: Flares above pockmarks at the Vestnesa Ridge in (a) 2010 and (b) 2012. (from Smith et al., 2014)

31
32
3 MATERIALS AND METHODS

3.1 KONGSBERG-SIMRAD EM300 MULTIBEAM SONAR SYSTEM

The EM 300 multibeam echosounder (Figure 16) is designed to do seafloor mapping from
10m depth down to more than 5000m depth with swath widths up to about 5000m. It
includes sensor interfaces, data displays for quality control and sensor calibration,
seabed visualization, and data logging, as well as integrated seabed acoustic imaging
capability.

Figure 16: Diagram of multibeam sonar scho sounding the seafloor. The sonar illuminates narrow swath elongated
across the bottom and perpendicular to the path of the boat. (from www.oicinc.com/multibeam.html)

The nominal sonar frequency is 30 kHz with an angular coverage sector of up to 150
degrees and 135 beams per ping as narrow as 1 degree. On a flat bottom, the swath
width is normally up to 5.5 times the water depth. The number of beams can be
maximized by setting the angular coverage sector and beam pointing angles to vary
according to the achievable coverage.

33
The soundings are fit to a line perpendicular to the survey line, which ensures a uniform
100% sampling coverage. This transmit fan is split in sectors which are frequency coded
(30 to 34 kHz). These sectors are all transmitted sequentially at each ping. Sector
steering, refraction due to the sound speed profile, vessel attitudes and installation
angles are taken into account when the sounding position and depth is calculated, while
pulse length and range sampling rate are variable with depth. The ping rate is mainly
limited by the round trip travel time in the water up to a ping rate of 10 Hz.

The EM 300 transducers are linear arrays with separate units for transmit and receive (

Table 1). The arrays are divided into modules with 1 and 2 degrees beamwidths as a
standard. 4 degrees beamwidth is available for the receive array, with resulting array
lengths of 0.8 to 3.3 m.

Main operational 30 kHz Frequencies in the range of 30 to

frequency 34 kHz are employed to code the
different transmit sectorsNumber
of beams for each ping: 135
Beamwidths 1x1, 1x2, Other beamwidth cobinations are
2x2 or 2x4 possible in accordance with the
degrees number of transducer modules
installed
Beam spacing Equidistant or equiangle
Coverage sector Up to 150 degrees
Transmit beam steering Stablized for roll, pitch and yaw
Receive beam steering Stabilized for roll
Maximum ping rate 10 Hz
Depth range from 10 to 5,000 m
transducers
Depth resolution 1 to 16 m
Pulse lengths 0.7, 2, 5 and 15 ms
Range sampling rate 4.5 kHz (17 m)

Table 1: Technical specifications of the multibeam echosounder. (adapted from Kongsberg Technical Manual 2004)

34
Beams are converted into water depth on-site, using accurate sound velocities through
the water column, as measured from CTD (conductivity-temperature-depth recorders)
profiles of sound velocity during the survey, after appropriate filtering and editing. These
profiles record the changing speed of the acoustic pulses with water salinity,
temperature and depths. The Simrad processors use the sound speed data for
instantaneous beam forming and ray tracing of each individual beam, at the same time
as they correct for the vessel attitude. The result is the conversion of range and angle
data to xyz triplets. A graphical user interface provides control on the data quality and
runtime parameters used during acquisition.

3.1 BATHYMETRIC PROCESSING AND 3D VISUALIZATION

Data processing consisted of cleaning and filtering navigation data, noise reduction, data
editing and visualization using the QPS Fledermaus software package Pro version 7.
Fledermaus is a set of interactive 3D visualization tools for data preparation, analysis
and presentation. It allows for assembling and exploring a virtual 3D of object models
including surfaces, images, points, lines, and cross-sections, and is tailored for the
display of geographic data such as digital terrain models of the ocean floor or a 3D
contour map of a mountain range. The software allows for import of a wide variety of
data formats, making it possible for producing combined 3D models. Two specific
programs were utilized for the bathymetric data: Fledermaus, which is the main
interactive 3D exploration application, and DMagic, the data preparation tool.

The multibeam echosounder data files (.all format) contain a series of datagrams: Water
column, Position and Heading. The data were gridded, and outliers were identified,
flagged, deleted in DMagic, resulting in a relatively noise-free grid. The most important
parameter when gridding data is the cell size, which determines the dimensions of the
surface to be created. These dimensions are determined by taking the range of the input
data in the X and Y dimensions, dividing it by the cell size, and rounding up. When
gridding, the number of neighboring soundings inside a given radius is important – a too
small radius may not reduce noise from the data, and a too large radius might smooth

35
out the surface characteristics. There are three types of surfaces that can be used from
irregularly spaced XYZ data:

• Weighted Moving Average – default weighted average algorithm

• Shallow Biased – minimum value in the cell
• Median Filtered – median value in the cell

The gridding algorithm allows each grid cell to blend slightly with neighboring grid cells.
The amount that a given point contributes to any cell falls off linearly with distance from
the point’s location. The Weight Diameter determines how many cells the area of effect
will extend over. A value of one will force the point to affect only the cell that contains
it, while a value of three will affect the contained cell and all eight neighboring cells. A
value of five extends the effect to the neighbors’ neighbors. Only odd numbers for the
weight field diameter are used. The Weight Diameter is not relevant when using Shallow
Biased or Median Filtered gridding.

3.2 BACKSCATTER PROCESSING AND VISUALIZATION

Backscatter strength is the intensity of the acoustic response, corresponding to the

relative amount of energy sent back from target, measured in decibels. The backscatter
strength depends on the physical nature of the seafloor, structure and the frequency
and angle used. Acoustic backscatter data are often useful for classifying seafloor
characteristics (Lurton, 2002).

Backscattering is affected by three factors: geometry of the sensor-target system (local

slope, local angle of incidence, etc.), the physical characteristics of the surface
(roughness, sound speed, etc.) and the intrinsic nature of the surface (composition,
density, etc.) (Figure 17). Slopes facing toward the sonar will produce more backscatter
and a rougher surface will produce more backscatter. The effect of volume scattering
should also be taken into account due to a possible acoustic penetration at the
frequency used (Blondel, 2009).

36
Figure 17: Backscattering from the seafloor is influenced by three factors: A) local geometry of area of ensonification,
B) roughness of the seafloor at scales comparable to the sonar's wavelength, C) intrinsic properties of the seafloor
(e.g., rocks vs. sediments). (from Blondel, 2009).

Backscatter strengths describe the response of the seafloor at the frequency used and
for specific conditions of ensonification (mostly the grazing angle). If calibrated and
expressed in dB, they can also be compared with acoustic backscatter models, providing
more insights into seafloor processes. Full knowledge of the processing chain and the
accuracy of the calibrated backscatter strength of a particular pixel on the seabed,
allows the interpreter to assess whether surface or volume processes predominate, and
compare the geotechnical properties of this portion of the seabed with known
quantities. (Blondel, 2009)

37
A study by Johnson et al. (2003) looked into backscatter data in determining the spatial
distribution of cold seep carbonates and their relationship to subsurface structure and
the underlying gas hydrate system. High backscatter data was divided into three
categories (Figure 18):

• Category I - Circular to blotchy with apparent surface roughness. High backscatter due
to presence of gas hydrates and authigenic carbonate.
• Category II - Circular to blotchy with no apparent surface roughness. High backscatter
due likely to authigenic carbonate, with some gas hydrate, slightly buried by hemipelagic
sediments.
• Category III - Streaky to continuous with variable surface roughness. High to moderate
backscatter that coincides with regions of high slope angles, likely derived from deep-
seated fluids but unrelated to destabilization of gas hydrate.

Figure 18: Schematic diagrams depicting environments likely responsible for each of the classified backscatter
categories from a study of the Hydrate Ridge region offshore Oregon. (from Johnson et al., 2003)

38
The Fledermaus Geocoder Toolbox (FMGT) is used to process backscatter data in this
study. FMGT is a software program designed to visualize and analyse backscatter data
from multibeam sonars. In processing the source files into mosaics, it is designed to
perform as many corrections as possible to maximize the information content within the
backscatter signals. The software can read multiple files of backscatter data, apply
corrections, and then create a 2D representation of the ocean floor called a backscatter
mosaic. Once the mosaic has been generated, various statistics can be calculated and
exported along with the backscatter in a number of different formats. Angle range
analysis (ARA) can also be performed to attempt to classify the bottom types.

3.3 MULTIBEAM DATA

Swath bathymetry and backscatter data were acquired using the Kongsberg Simrad
EM300 system during surveys in 2010 on R/V Jan Mayen, in 2012 and 2013 on R/V
Helmer Hanssen. The system operates at a sonar frequency of 30 kHz with an angular
coverage of 135o. Sound velocity profiles for calibration of beams in the water column
were extracted from CTD stations acquired during the surveys.

Approximately 40 km2 of swath bathymetry data were acquired on the southeastern

flank of the Vestnesa Ridge with a height range of –1190 m to –1290 m, located at 79o
N and 7o E. Bathymetry data were gridded, plotted, cleaned, filtered and visualized using
QPS Fledermaus software. Backscatter data was processed using QPS FM Geocoder
Toolbox.

39
40
4 RESULTS

4.1 SWATH BATHYMETRY

4.1.1 GENERAL DESCRIPTION

The Vestnesa Ridge is a SE-NW to E-W bending elongated sediment drift situated at 79o
N to the northeast of the Molloy transform fault and to the north of the Knipovich Ridge
(Figure 19). At a water depth of 1200m, the ridge is situated between the Kongsfjorden
Trough mouth fan in the east and the Molloy Ridge to its west. The Vestnesa Ridge is
approximately 100 km long and 2.5 to 3.5 km long. The ridge widens from southeast
until it bends towards the west, where it gradually starts to get narrower further
westward. The mean slope angle of the Vestnesa Ridge is 0.1° from southeast until it
turns westward where the slope angle gradually increases until it rapidly increases to 6°
at the most western part of the ridge (Bünz et al., 2012).

More than 100 pockmarks have been identified situated on the crest of the Vestnesa
Ridge. The interpreted pockmarks are seafloor depressions that have circular to oval
shapes and are typical seabed expressions of fluid flow (Judd and Hovland, 2007) and
are indicative of recent fluid flow activity at the crest (Hustoft et al., 2009). Pockmarks
are present all along the ridge but vary in distribution and morphology along the crest.
On the western part where the crest gets wider, the pockmarks are distributed over a
wider area. On the southeastern part of the Vestnesa Ridge, where the crest is narrower,
the pockmarks line up perfectly along the apex of the crest and are predominantly
circular to elongate in shape. The pockmarks on the southeastern side of Vestnesa Ridge
appear to be more numerous and larger compared to the western part. No fluid flow
features have been observed on the flanks of the ridge, suggesting a strong
topographically controlled migration of fluids (Bünz et al., 2012).

41
 Figure 19: Location map of the study area on the Vestnesa Ridge. (modified from Bünz et al., 2012)

This study will focus on the seabed features along the southeastern part of the Vestnesa
Ridge (Figure 19), where the pockmarks are larger more evenly distributed. Datasets
from three different surveys in 2010, 2012 and 2013 will be compared as to account for
changes in morphology over time. The datasets were gridded to 10m using the WGS 84
UTM zone 32N coordinate system, cleaned, distance-filtered and visualized on the QPS
Fledermaus software (Figure 20).

The swath bathymetry covers an area approximately 42 km2, 12 km long and 3.5 wide.
The mean slope is 0.1o from southeast to northwest along the length of the crest, with
the highest part on the south-eastern end at -1190 mbsl. The mean slope from the ridge
crest to southwest is 1.5o while it is approximately 1.7o on the other side of the crest to
the northeast.

The ridge crest is interspersed by several large pockmarks that are circular to oval in
shape and are close to one another that some appear as one pockmark. Some appear to
have hummocky or mounded texture within. The pockmarks can reach up to 10m deep
and 700m across.

42
Figure 20: Swath bathymetry of the study area gridded to 10 m, from three surveys in 2010, 2012 and 2013.

43
 4.1.2 PROFILING

Morphological changes along the ridge crest can be determined from comparing profiles
of the different datasets along the same profiler plane (Figure 21). Special interest is
given to specific pockmarks that have recently been observed to be actively releasing
gas into the water column (Hustoft et al., 2009, Bünz et al., 2012, Smith et al., 2014).
These active pockmarks are marked with red arrows on Figure 21.

The profile across the dataset is approximately 6.8 km long and goes through the evenly
distributed pockmarks that are up to 700m wide and 10m deep. Changes can be
detected from the shapes of the pockmark profiles, otherwise the general morphology
remains more or less the same.

Figure 21: Profiles across the three different surveys intersecting data on the same plane. The red arrows indicate
pockmarks observed to be active recently.

44
Superimposing the different profiles gives more information on the changes along the
ridge crest. The 2010 survey is seen to be offset by about 2-3m and thus cannot be used
in comparative calculations such as surface difference and volumetric changes. The
offset might have been caused by recalibration of the multibeam echosounder for yaw,
pitch, heave and roll, or different sets of parameters logged in the system.

Nevertheless, the 2012 and 2013 survey datasets are compatible and will be used for
comparative study. In Figure 22, the 2013 profile shows to be generally higher by up to 1
m in relation to the 2012 profile, indicating deposition of sediments. In some areas,
especially where the pockmarks are, there appears to be no difference and in some
parts, the 2013 profile is lower than that of 2012, which could indicate erosional
processes in the pockmarks. There also appears to be differences in the shapes of some
of these individual pockmarks, signifying recent activity or processes that alter the
surface morphology inside these pockmarks.

Figure 22: Profile overlay for comparison of different surveys. The 2010 survey is anomalously elevated while the
2012 and 2013 data are more compatible for comparative study.

45
 4.1.3 CONTOURING

Contour mapping is one way of determining changes in elevation resulting from

depositional or erosional processes, as well as changes in relative slope of the surface.
At 10m contours, the 2012 and 2013 maps show very slight differences but generally
follow the same contours (Figure 23, upper). At 2m contours, there are more marked
differences at the crest. While the flanks show evenly spaced contours indicating a
relatively smooth and undisturbed slope, the contours on the crest show the basins
corresponding to the pockmarks, and are very uneven. It is at the crest where the two
contours from 2013 and 2012 show marked differences (Figure 23, lower), indicating
dynamic changes in and around the pockmarks in a span of one year. In basins where
the 2013 contours enclose a 2012 contour (blue outside, red inside) could indicate
deposition while 2012 enclosing a 2013 contour (red outside, blue inside) could indicate
erosional processes.

Figure 23: 10 m and 2 m contours showing smooth and even slopes on the flanks, and an uneven ridge crest. The 2 m
contours of the 2012 and 2013 datasets show changes on the crest where the pockmarks are.

46
 4.1.4 SURFACE DIFFERENCE

Calculating for surface difference, and effectively, the volume change, is another good
way of determining changes in a depositional environment. In calculating for surface
difference, a query is applied to the common intersection area of two input surfaces. A
polygon can be used to constrain the query scope within a certain area, and can be
selected to account for positive changes or negative changes in relation to the base
surface, which is usually the older surface. This can be a very good tool for individually
calculating volume changes in each area covered by the pockmarks.

In determining surface changes for the 2013 and 2012 surveys, the reference surface of
2012 was subtracted from the 2013 surface and surface objects were plotted as results.
Figure 24 shows these two surface objects, the first is a plot of the data above the
reference 2012 surface and the second is a plot of the data below the reference 2012
surface. The resulting plots show positive changes after 2012 along the crest of the ridge,
indicating deposition in most parts, while areas with pockmarks show negative changes,
indicating removal of sediments.

Figure 24: Surface difference plots for the 2012 and 2013 datasets. The base 2012 surface is subtracted from the
newer 2013 surface. (A) Positive difference. (B) Negative difference. The patches on (A) where there is was no
inferred net deposition are pockmark locations.

47
4.2 BACKSCATTER IMAGING

4.2.1 BACKSCATTER IMAGE OF STUDY AREA

Backscatter intensity is a function of the angle of incidence of each beam, the physical
characteristics of the surface, the intrinsic nature of the surface and to some extent, the
frequency and pulse characteristics of the sonar (Blondel and Murton, 1997). One of the
important effects on the backscatter signal received is the effect due to bathymetric
slope. Steep seafloor bathymetry sloping toward a passing sonar has enhanced
backscatter strength compared to those slopes dipping away from the sonar. For the
study area on the Vestnesa Ridge, the slope across the survey is 0.1o which implies a
high backscatter to be more likely related to changes in rock and sediment composition
on the seafloor rather than a bathymetric effect. In effect, the presence of backscatter
anomalies in the data would indicate a change in the physical properties of the seafloor
or near sub-surface.

The resulting mosaics of the 2013 survey were gridded at 25m and 10m pixels as
presented on Figure 25 and Figure 26. The maximum resolution from the data is 25m but
gridding it to 10m allows for better contrast, nonetheless no additional information or
details are discernible in gridding it down. Figure 25 is a backscatter mosaic of all the lines
surveyed on top of the crest. They are overlapping so that the seafloor was imaged
multiple times, with insonification from opposing directions. There is no data recovery
directly beneath the trackline (nadir) so the resulting image are the overlapped images
from the neighbouring tracks. The km wide swaths over the crest were towed NW-SE
along the axis of the ridge.

Figure 26 shows another mosaic using one continuous line of swaths for imaging. The

lines along the center of the trackline are also nadirs with no data recovery. The
backscatter values range from -30 (low) to -19 (high) dB. The backscatter data show
predominantly high-to-medium backscatter strength with a mottled texture on the
gently dipping (0.1o) seafloor, especially on the flanks of the ridge where the values
appear similar. The backscatter on the crest are more varied. Examination of the survey

48
mosaic on the crest reveals some high (bright) and low (dark) backscatter spots, with
the rest of the image in varying shades of grey. The low backscatter spots directly
corresponds to the sites where the pockmarks are situated on the ridge crest. Inside
these low backscatter spots are relatively brighter patches that corresponds to physical
mounds inside the pockmarks as visible on the bathymetry. This can possibly be from
the hummocky sediments or even hydrate/carbonate patches in and around the
pockmarks.

Figure 25: Backscatter mosaic (25m resolution) of the study area using multiple multibeam data.

49
Figure 26: Backscatter mosaic using one continuous line of multibeam swaths.

50
 4.2.2 ANGULAR RANGE ANALYSIS

Angle range analysis (ARA) can be performed to attempt to classify substrate types. This
is a method of seafloor characterization which compares the actual backscatter angular
response to expected acoustic response curves based on a mathematical model, in this
case, the Jackson Model (Jackson et al., 1986) (Figure 27). This model generates an
expected acoustic response curve as a function of grazing angle vs. returned backscatter
intensity. The goal of the analysis is to attempt to characterize the measured response
curve from the survey data to a best fit of a modelled curve. This modelled curve takes
into account sediment properties and acoustic frequency.

Figure 27: Jackson Model. Small-scale roughness scattering strength. (from Jackson et al., 1986)

The ARA process is relatively new so there are limitations. More ground-truthing needs
to be done and the quality of the results is dependent on the system calibration and the
radiometric corrections applied. The survey environment will also affect the results as
ARA requires a wide coverage of grazing angles. The process does not work well in
deeper water where there is often limited grazing angles. Nonetheless, the ARA process
has been shown to work well for EM3002 sonars (QPS Manual, 2011), but good
calibration is key.

51
Figure 28 shows the results of the angle range analysis to the backscatter data from the
2013 survey. The ARA map (Figure 28C) plots the predicted seabed characterization while
the Patch Analyzer (Figure 28D) shows the Angle vs. Range Analysis dialog which can be
viewed and edited. The default characterization is shown by the blue line but values can
be manually selected for adjustments. For the 2013 survey, the resulting seabed
characterization identifies clayey sand as sparsely covering the crest, muddy sand on the
flanks to the east, and very fine sand covering most of the study area. This more or less
agrees with a study that identifies homogeneous hemipelagic grey clay with very little
amount of IRD as the upper interval of a sediment core retrieved from the western end
of the Vestnesa Ridge (Consolaro et al., 2014). Another study identifies hemipelagic grey
sandy mud as the upper interval from the reference core of the western Svalbard margin
(Jessen et al., 2010).

Figure 28: Angle Range Analysis (ARA) as incorporated in the Fledermaus Geocoder Toolbox. (A) Bathymetry (B)
Backscatter (C) ARA analysis (D) Patch Analyzer dialog box for editing the seabed characterization parameters.

52
4.3 POCKMARKS

4.3.1 MORPHOLOGICAL CHANGES

A quick comparison of the profiles across two pockmarks at the southeastern part of the
ridge crest show marked differences in their topographies (Figure 29). All three datasets
have 10 m resolution. These same two pockmarks are among those that have been
shown to be recently active due to gas flares emanating from them.

Figure 29: Profiles across the three datasets for general comparison. 2010 (top), 2012 (middle), 2013 (bottom).

53
As mentioned, the 2010 survey data appears to have had different re-calibration values
to the multibeam echosounder system than that of the 2012 and 2013 survey data. The
offset in depth is approximately 2m to as much as 3m (Figure 30). Nonetheless, surface
changes can still be detected by ocular inspection of the profiles. From Figure 30, it can
be seen that the pockmark to the southeast has a wider depression than in the 2010
survey. In most places along this part of the ridge, the topography is preserved whereas
the pockmarks show to have more dynamic changes.

Figure 30: Profile comparison of the 2010 and 2012 datasets. The 2010 show at least 2m offset.

The pockmarks on this part of the Vestnesa Ridge generally appear circular to elliptical.
They have an average long axis of 570 m and short axis of 540 m, with an average depth
of 6 m. There are some pockmarks that are too close together that they seem to be
forming one single pockmark. These pockmarks have especially elongated shapes with
their long axes almost double their short axes. The long axis of the pockmarks seem to
prefer a SW-NE orientation and their basin profiles are asymmetrical where the NE side
is much lower than the SW side. This shape of the pockmarks are possibly influenced by
the direction of the bottom currents.

Profiles from the 2012 and 2013 surveys are superimposed and compared along the two
active pockmarks on the southeast (Figure 32). There seems to be a general increase in
sediments along the ridge, of up 0.5 m on the crest. Inside the pockmarks, there appears
to be both deposition and erosion. On one of the pockmarks, there is relatively little
deposition. On both pockmarks there are eroded parts. These erosion surfaces could
possibly be where the gas flares escape into the water column. Other examples for the
leaking and non-leaking pockmarks are illustrated (Figures 33-36).

54
 Figure 31: Location map of the 2012-2013 profiles on Figure 32.

Figure 32: Profile comparison of the 2012-2013 datasets. Corresponding arrows indicate possible erosion spots.

55
Figure 33: 2013 (indicated with arrows) and 2012 profiles across a non-leaking pockmark. The new deposits are
thickest at about 0.5 m. The overlying surface appears smoother and generally follows the shape of the underlying
surface, implying that this/these pockmark/s must have been inactive for a while.

56
Figure 34: 2013 (indicated with arrows) and 2012 profiles across a non-leaking pockmark. This appears to be two
elongated pockmarks that formed very near each other. The overlying surface also appears smoother, but the
pockmarks are deep, implying that they have become inactive relatively not too long ago.

57
Figure 35: 2013 (indicated with arrows) and 2012 profiles across a leaking and a non-leaking pockmark. Profile (a)
shows a stark contrast of the surfaces between a leaking and a non-leaking pockmark. The leaking pockmark’s
bathymetry is rough and deep while the inactive pockmark is smooth and shallow. Profile (b) show thicker deposition
on the stoss side direction of the bottom current.

58
Figure 36: 2013 (indicated with arrows) and 2012 profiles across a non-leaking pockmark. These pockmarks are
shallow with a funnel-like depression on Profile (c). There is no deposition on the depression and this may be due to
upwelling or initial fluid activity.

59
 4.3.2 VOLUMETRIC CHANGES

Volume change between two surfaces can be calculated from the two survey datasets
with the 2012 surface data subtracted from the newer 2013 data, to record changes that
has occurred in the time between the two data acquisitions. This is a good gauge of
deposition within the pockmarks, especially since the bathymetric features in and
around the pockmarks were double-checked and filtered, with the surfaces verified to
be real features.

Figure 37 shows a simple diagram of the major pockmarks on the study area aligned NW-

SE (from left to right), with the recently active ones shaded. At the bottom part of the
figure are the calculated surface difference for each of these pockmarks. The dark areas
are positive (deposition) and the blank areas are negative (erosion). The software-
calculated net deposition inside the pockmarks ranges from 5 288 m3 to 62 277 m3.
Active pockmarks pm2, pm3, pm6 and pm9 also show net deposition, but on their edges
towards SW, there are blank patches. It is possible that gas escapes on these areas of
non-deposition.

Figure 37: Upper: Diagram of pockmarks along the ridge crest oriented NW-SE (left to right). The pockmarks with
observed recent activity are shaded red. Lower: Surface difference plots between the 2012 and the 2013 surfaces. The
plot represents positive difference that indicates net deposition.

60
A combination of different types of data (bathymetry, profile, backscatter, surface
difference, gas flares) suggest that activity within these pockmarks are localized to a
specific area. The eroded surface on the bathymetry profile, the low intensity
backscatter, the negative patches on the surface difference plot, seem to agree with
earlier observations that gas seeps originate from the SW edge of these two pockmarks
(shaded area on Figure 38D). This corresponds to earlier observations and studies on the
gas flares emanating from these pockmarks (Figure 38 inset).

The surface difference plot (Figure 38C) also show negative values to the NE of the
pockmarks, suggesting erosional processes going in that direction, down the ridge flank
and further down into the adjacent trough.

Figure 38: Different representations of the seafloor with the two active pockmarks. (A) Bathymetry showing the inner
structure of the pockmarks. (B) Backscatter showing low-intensity dark patches on the SW half of the pockmarks. (C)
Surface difference (2013-2012) plot showing non-deposition on the SW half of the pockmarks. (D) Interpreted source
of gas flares from inside the pockmarks, which corresponds to the plotted source of gas flares (D inset) observed in
earlier studies by Bünz et al., 2012 and Smith et al., 2014.

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4.4 POCKMARK FIELD NORTH OF THE STUDY AREA

Backscatter data remains a very useful tool in detecting features on the seafloor that are
not discernible on bathymetry data. In this example from a pockmark field in the
northwestern part of the Vestnesa Ridge (Figure 39), high backscatter is detected on the
pockmarks that are randomly distributed on the seafloor, suggesting the presence of
carbonates or hydrates. On the other side of the bend, the evenly distributed pockmarks
along the crest of the ridge to the east are only faintly detected as grey low-energy
backscatter. This could point to different mechanisms of fluid flow and gas release
between these two distinct pockmark fields.

Figure 39: Bathymetry and backscatter of a pockmark field in the northwestern end of the Vestnesa Ridge. The arrow
on the inset points to the location of the swath. High backscatter on the unevenly distributed pockmarks to the NW
are distinguishable while linear bigger pockmarks to the SE show as faint low-energy backscatter

62
63
5 DISCUSSION

5.1 Pockmark morphology

Elongate shape

Pockmarks are circular to elongated depressions on the seafloor, commonly occurring

especially on the continental shelf throughout the world (Hovland and Judd, 1988,
Hovland et al., 2002). Elongated pockmarks commonly occur in areas influenced by
strong bottom currents capable of eroding the newly formed pockmarks (Hovland et al.,
2002). These elongated pockmarks are often aligned along prevailing current directions,
which may indicate that the pockmarks were initially circular, but have been deformed
by sediment transport, deposition, and erosion (Josenhans et al., 1978; Hovland, 1983;
Bøe et al., 1998). Furthermore, erosion by bottom current will be most significant on the
downstream side of the pockmark, resulting in an asymmetrical shape where they
develop deepest upstream (Josenhans et al., 1978).

The pockmarks on southeastern part of the ridge are mostly elongated, with the long
axis oriented SW-NE. They have asymmetrical profiles (Figure 32) with the steeper part
upstream. The surface difference of the 2013 and 2012 bathymetry show negative
values where the erosion of the bottom currents is supposed to have occurred. While
other processes such as creeping, or other down-slope processes may also occur, it is
highly likely that very strong bottom currents exist at the crest of the Vestnesa Ridge
that are capable of eroding or shaping these pockmarks.

64
Presence or lack of infill

Coarse sediment is often found in the center of pockmarks. In some cases, this is due to
authigenic carbonate in methane seep settings, or may be explained as a winnowed lag
deposit caused by the expulsion or seepage of fluids. Such lag deposits can also be due
to currents, as well as to the accumulation of other debris (Hovland et al., 2002).
Bathymetric data show that there has been deposition in the pockmarks with both low
and medium backscatter values, with homogenous fine sediments (low backscatter) and
coarser sediments (medium) as assumed infill. In general, pockmarks that inactive have
a smoother morphology than those documented to be leaking (Figure 40),

In some places, the pockmarks appear to have no deposition, and with net erosion.
Hammer et al. (2009) suggested that currents may be deflected by the pockmark in a
way that produces a positive vertical current component from the pockmark. This
upwelling phenomenon could lead to reduced sedimentation rate, and winnowing of
inside the pockmark. This upwelling is an effect of deflected currents, not of expulsion
of fluids or gas from the seafloor, and is sufficiently strong to prevent the settling of fine
particles. This reduction in sedimentation rate over the pockmarks (relative to that of
the flat surrounding seabed) explain the lack of infill in pockmarks even when it is
inactive. The lower relative sedimentation rate inside the pockmark could even make it
deepen over time, as was the case in the bathymetric changes in this dataset.

Figure 40: 10 m resolution bathymetry of a portion of the Vestnesa Ridge. Leaking pockmarks have a more uneven
morphology, while non-leaking pockmarks are smoother.

65
Advancing pockmark

A study by Ho et al. (2012) looked into advancing pockmark arrays as a record of paleo-
fluid processes. Buried channels or deep faults provide conduits for fluid flow, with
degassing most likely occurring along the axis of the buried channel during times of
lower sea level. The lateral advancement of pockmarks subsequently results from the
interplay between fluid venting and generation of local depressions in the sediment
surface, and the perturbation of bottom currents within the depression. For the
advancing pockmark location, fluid flow variations control the creation of pre-existing
topography, which in turn controls the location of sedimentary accumulation. The
lateral migration of the pockmark terminates when fluid venting ceases. Once fluid
venting stops, new depressions cease to form and are buried by subsequent
sedimentation (Figure 41).

While this model does not adequately account for the fluid migration on the ridge crest,
this can explain the truncation of sediments in the pockmarks on the downstream side
towards the NE.

Figure 41: Model for the development of advancing pockmarks. (A) Fine-grained sand on the downstream pockmarks
sidewall re-suspended by vortex and seepage. A horseshoe-shaped truncated area was formed. (B) The infill phase
may occur during times of reduced bottom-water current activity. Thus horseshoe-shaped void was filled by the new
deposits. (C) Stage A repeated after a new layer deposited. (D) Lateral migration by the creation of secondary
pockmarks, which truncated the downslope flank of the preceding infill sequence. (from Ho et al., 2012)

66
5.2 Backscatter data

Backscatter interpretation

Pockmarks on Vestnesa Ridge are characterized by both high and low backscatter
intensity relative to the surrounding seafloor. The high amplitudes may be indicative for
precipitated carbonate and/or hydrate formation at or near the seafloor whereas low
reflectivity reflects soft, muddy sediment probably being altered by fluid expulsion
(Petersen and Buenz, 2008).

The backscatter data of the study area (Figure 26) show more or less a homogenous
composition on the flanks of the ridge. The crest is interspersed with low backscatter
areas corresponding to the pockmarks, with medium-high backscatter inside and around
the pockmarks. The low backscatter value inside the pockmarks could be interpreted as
an angle of incidence effect, with the surface facing away from the beam. The SW half
of the pockmarks generally appear darker than the other half, and this could be due to
the steepness and depth of the upstream side of the ridge, while the downstream side
slopes more gently and so has relatively higher backscatter. The backscatter contrast
could also be due to sediment-property differences between the sediments covering the
pockmark, e.g. differences in grain size distribution induced by prevailing currents (Todd,
2005). This scenario is possible since the 2013 data shows net erosion on the part of the
pockmarks that have low backscatter. Inside some pockmarks, there appears to be
material or sediments in the middle that has higher backscatter. This can possibly be
course sediments or debris reworked by currents, as backscatter is influenced by the
physical characteristics of the surface, that is, rougher surfaces have higher backscatter.
The presence of bubbles in the sediments or close to the seafloor can also contribute to
higher backscatter at this water depth (Fonseca et al., 2002).

67
A more likely explanation for the relatively high backscatter material inside the
pockmarks on the crest is that it indicates carbonate or hydrate presence. Seabed cold
seeps may be recognized by distinctive morphological and/or backscatter signatures on
sonar images. Authigenic carbonates are known to be major contributors to seafloor
roughness and acoustic impedance contrast in cold seep areas, and thus also to acoustic
backscatter intensity (Johnson et al., 2003). In particular, a strong difference in
impedance contrast, small-scale roughness and morphology between carbonate
precipitates and the seafloor produces elevated backscatter in sonar images from which
seep carbonates can be identified (Johnson et al., 2003; Holland et al., 2006). This is
especially true for marine environments with muddy, hemipelagic seafloor sediments
that are of low backscatter.

In a study by Naudts et al. (2008) of the backscatter patterns in a methane venting area,
it was observed that methane seeps are in areas with medium- to high-backscatter
strength, and not in areas with very high and maximum backscatter strength. They
explained that the absence of active seeps in areas with the highest backscatter values
supports the model proposed by Hovland (2002), in which AOM-induced carbonate
formation may lead to self-sealing of fluid pathways by carbonate clogging, followed by
a relocation of the fluid/gas pathways around the cemented, impermeable areas. They
concluded that the observed backscatter patterns are the result of ongoing methane
seepage and the precipitation of MDACs (methane-derived authigenic carbonates)
caused by AOM (anaerobic oxidation of methane), and the carbonate formation also
appears to lead to a gradual (self)-sealing of the seeps by cementing fluid
pathways/horizons followed by a relocation of the bubble-releasing locations (Naudts
et al., 2008).

The Vestnesa Ridge has methane seeps and is also found to have methane-derived
carbonates and gas hydrates from gravity and piston cores retrieved from the around
the pockmarks of the study area (Smith et al., 2014). It is therefore possible that this
part of the ridge exhibits the gradual self-sealing of the seeps, albeit in lesser extent
since there have not been observed high backscatter (massive carbonate precipitates)

68
in the study area, rather, medium backscatter values in and around the pockmarks
(Figure 42). The medium backscatter is nonetheless characteristic of areas with methane
seeps. This slightly elevated backscatter have been attributed by Klaucke et al. (2010)
to the presence of gas bubbles or even gas hydrate in the shallow subsurface, both of
which is the case in this area of the Vestnesa Ridge. It can be also be that methane-
derived carbonates acts as seal on the surface or the shallow subsurface, and could likely
explain the varied backscatter response from the different pockmarks on the crest, and
ultimately, why some of the pockmarks or some parts of the pockmarks are inactive. A
clearer relationship between inactive (assumed to be sealed with carbonate
precipitates) pockmarks on this area and the backscatter response can most likely be
determined from a better quality backscatter data.

The pockmark field north of the study area (Figure 39) can be interpreted thus as having
methane-derived carbonate precipitates from the high backscatter observed on some
of the pockmarks. It is likely that the areas with high backscatter are sealed and no
methane release is occurring where the carbonate seals are.

Figure 42: Backscatter of pockmarks that possibly containing gas hydrates or carbonate precipitates. The active
pockmarks show a high contrast in backscatter value while the inactive pockmark is hardly discernible.

69
Backscatter data quality

The backscatter was processed at 25 m resolution, the best possible for the acquired
data. The backscatter data was acquired by the same installation as the EM300
multibeam echosounder. Multibeam systems, however, are optimized for bottom
detection and not backscatter sampling. Small amounts of noise that have negligible
effect on bathymetry data quality may have a big effect on the backscatter data. For
example, a 200 kHz multibeam can be operated simultaneously with a 100 kHz single
beam echosounder without any measurable interference in the bathymetric data; but
the interference pattern from the single beam will be clearly visible in the backscatter
record (Blondel, 2009).

During the surveys, single-beam echosounder data were also acquired using a Simrad
EK60 system operating at frequencies of 18, 38 and 120 kHz to detect gas bubbles in the
water column. The interference from the single beam acquisition has likely
compromised the backscatter record of the EM300 multibeam for the study area. In
areas where there were no apparent interference, such as the pockmark field further
north where the ridge bends (Figure 39), the backscatter record was less noisy and the
resolution is higher at 11 m. In any case, backscatter record from multibeam systems is
sufficient and even has proven to work well with ARA analysis of seabed characterization
(Fonseca and Calder, 2005), provided there are no interference and/or operating at high
frequencies.

70
5.3 Fluid flow controls

Faults

The Vestnesa Ridge sits on young oceanic crust where the eastern part is approximately
20 My and the western part is less than 10 My. The western end of the ridge is about 40
km away from the Molloy Ridge. Shallow crustal seismicity associated with the mid-
ocean spreading triggers active faulting in the region.

Extensional faulting plays a key role in the supply and distribution of methane hydrate
and free gas across the Vestnesa Ridge (Hustoft et al., 2009). This extensional faulting is
a continuous process related to the nearby rifting and/or thermal subsidence of the
young basin. Hustoft et al. (2009) interpreted several faults beneath the Vestnesa Ridge,
to a depth extent down to the YP1 unit, which lies at ~-3500 ms (TWT) beneath this part
of the ridge. These faults are related to the nearby Knipovich Ridge and the Molloy
Transform Fault Zone and has an SE orientation, approximately strike-parallel to the COT
that runs SE– NW. The same study also found that peak saturations of both gas hydrate
and free gas occurring at the crest of the ridge and in immediate vicinity of extensional
faults, implying a strong relationship between the faults and fluid flow in the ridge.

The apparent activity within the pockmarks as observed in this study, where it is
assumed that only the SW half of at least 4 of the pockmarks are leaking, can be related
to the location of the SE oriented fault within the pockmark-chimney system. It is
possible that the upward migration of gas/fluids is strongly fault-controlled and the free
pathway for the gases or pore fluids is through a common fault that cuts through the
ridge. This can explain the preference of the gas leaks to the SW part of the pockmarks.

71
Carbonate/Hydrate seal

The pockmarks on the crest of Vestnesa Ridge are connected to acoustically transparent
zones in the sediment that extend from the seabed to depths below the BSR. These
conduits are interpreted as gas chimneys where free gas is migrating through the HSZ
(Bünz et al., 2012). Seismic data suggest that these chimneys are fed by a critically
pressured free-gas column beneath the BSR (Hustoft et al., 2009; Bünz et al., 2012). The
heterogeneous distribution of high-amplitude reflections above the BSR and at
shallower depth suggests formation of massive hydrate and/or authigenic carbonate in
the vicinity of multi-fractured fluid pathways (Petersen). Geochemical analyses by Smith
et al has shown that a thermogenic source is supplying methane and other light
hydrocarbons to the ridge, and piston and gravity cores recovered gas hydrate and
carbonates (Smith et al., 2014).

Fluid migration can be influenced by carbonate precipitation (Hovland et al., 2002) and
the build-up of an internal reservoir (Leifer et al., 2004). Carbonate precipitation that
over time cements the migration pathways, gradually reducing fluid escape and leading
to self-sealing of seeps (Hovland et al., 2002). In other cases, the fluid flow is controlled
by a capacitor, which is described as a reservoir that has to fill up first before conditions
for fluid release are met, gas hydrates acting as such capacitor (Klaucke et al., 2010).

Backscatter data has shown a possible gas hydrate or carbonate precipitate inside the
pockmarks in the study area. Although the backscatter values are not very high, there is
apparent contrast in backscatter inside the pockmarks. Information from other studies
(presence of carbonate and gas hydrate in the subsurface, active methane gas leaks,
fluid migration through faults, gas chimneys, inactive pockmarks), combined with the
backscatter data and some of the observations in this paper (apparent preferred leak
location in the pockmarks, influence of bottom currents on the pockmarks) point to a
mechanism where carbonate formation leads to self-sealing, followed by relocation of
the fluid pathways, or eventual inactivity.

72
73
6 CONCLUSION

 The pockmarks on the crest of the southeastern part of the Vestnesa Ridge show
a preferred SW-NE orientation.

 The pockmarks have asymmetrical profiles with the steeper part upstream and
erosion on the downstream part.

 The orientation and shape of the pockmarks is controlled by bottom currents of

the West Spitsbergen Current flowing northeast above the ridge.

 Upwelling is likely causing a relatively low deposition rate on the pockmarks.

 Continuous gas release from the active pockmarks is apparent when the
bathymetric surfaces from 2012 to 2013 were compared. The section of the
pockmarks where the gas flares originate show no net deposition.

 Backscatter data show a medium backscatter value material, possibly gas

hydrate or carbonate precipitate, inside the pockmarks.

 Backscatter recording without interference from simultaneous bottom surveys

yield a higher resolution data.

 Gas leaks has a preferred location of release on the pockmarks that could relate
to the orientation of faults on the ridge.

 The inactivity in some pockmarks or in some parts of the pockmarks is possibly

caused by carbonate or hydrate clogging on the surface or the subsurface.

74
75
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