Morphostructures and Sedimentary Cover Structure of the Inner Shelf of Western Crimea

Abstract

The article presents the results of geophysical and geomorphological works on the western shelf of the Crimean Peninsula (Yevpatoriya–Balaklava). The sedimentary sequence structure, seafloor topography, and paleogeographic reconstructions of the formation conditions of the western shelf in the Late Pleistocene–Holocene are considered. Geoacoustic profile analysis aided in identifying the main shelf morphostructures; a brief description is presented. The abrasion–accumulative complex is identified, which consists of the abrasion platform and associated accumulative clinoform, the formation of which is related to the coastline of Late Pleistocene Black Sea regression to depths of about 90 m, traced from Yevpatoriya to Yalta. On the shelf of Kalamita Bay, fragments of a drowned river network and coastal accumulative landforms such as bars were studied.