The BGS Lexicon of Named Rock Units — Result Details
Happisburgh Glacigenic Formation
| Computer Code: | HPGL | Preferred Map Code: | notEntered |
|---|---|---|---|
| Status Code: | Full | ||
| Age range: | Pleistocene Epoch (QP) — Pleistocene Epoch (QP) | ||
| Lithological Description: | Consists of a range of diamictons, sands and gravels, sands and laminated silts and clays. The diamictons (Happisburgh Till, Corton Till and California Till members) are typically sandy matrix-supported diamictons that contain a high abundance of flint and quartzose lithologies relative to chalk, distinguishing them from the more chalky tills of the overlying Lowestoft Formation. | ||
| Definition of Lower Boundary: | The lower boundary of the Happisburgh Formation is commonly erosional in northeast Norfolk and the Waveney Valley and truncates shallow marine deposits of the Wroxham Crag Formation. More rarely, such as at sites like Leet Hill in southern Norfolk, coarse-grained outwash deposits (the Leet Hill Sand and Gravel Member) exhibit a gradational lower contact with river terrace deposits of the Bytham Catchment Subgroup. | ||
| Definition of Upper Boundary: | The upper boundary of the Happisburgh Formation is erosional and angular, and truncated by the more chalky tills of the Lowestoft Formation. | ||
| Thickness: | To about 20m | ||
| Geographical Limits: | The southern limit of the Happisburgh Glacigenic Formation occurs within the Lowestoft district. From there it can be traced northwards across the Great Yarmouth, North Walsham and Mundesley districts, and westwards onto the Norwich and Diss sheets. In coastal sections, deposits of the formation can be observed discontinuously between Pakefield (near Lowestoft) to Overstrand in northeast Norfolk. | ||
| Parent Unit: | Albion Glacigenic Group (ALBI) | ||
| Previous Name(s): | Cromer Till [Obsolete Name And Code: See Revision Note]
(CMT)
Corton Formation [Obsolete Name And Code: Use HPGL] (CORF) |
||
| Alternative Name(s): | none recorded or not applicable | ||
| Stratotypes: | |||
| Type Section | Coastal cliff sections beneath Happisburgh lighthouse, located 1km southeast of Happisburgh village. At this locality an 8m-thick sequence is evident, comprising Happisburgh Till Member, Ostend Clay Member, Happisburgh Sand Member, Corton Till Member and Corton Sand Member. Lee, 2003. | ||
| Reference(s): | |||
| McMillan, A A, Hamblin, R J O, and Merritt, J W. 2011. A lithostratigraphical framework for onshore Quaternary and Neogene (Tertiary) superficial deposits of Great Britain and the Isle of Man. British Geological Survey Research Report, RR/10/03. 343pp. | |||
| Lee, J R, Booth, S J, Hamblin, R J O, Jarrow, A M, Kessler, H, Moorlock, B S P, Morigi, A N, Palmer, A, Riding, J B and Rose, J. 2004. A new stratigraphy for the glacial deposits around Lowestoft, Great Yarmouth, North Walsingham and Cromer, East Anglia, UK. Bulletin of the Geological Society of Norfolk, Vol.53, 3-60. | |||
| 1:50K maps on which the lithostratigraphical unit is found, and map code used: | |||
| none recorded or not applicable | |||