Pingos in Denmark: A comparison between pingo remnants in the Netherlands and circular depressions in South Jutland

Abstract

Continuous and discontinuous permafrost zones extended over large parts of north-western Europe during the Weichselian glaciation, presumably as a result of hydrostatic groundwater pressure in partially frozen aquifers. This led to the formation of pingos regionally, in a fringe around the maximum extent of the ice sheet. In addition to the Netherlands, hardly any studies (Kolstrup, 1985) have focussed on the possible presence of pingo remnants further north, closer to the Sciandinavian Ice Sheet front, like Denmark. This study aims to present evidence of pingo remnants in Denmark and to compare this evidence with pingo remnants found in the Netherlands. A DEM and field survey in Southern Jutland revealed some of the characteristic geomorphological pingo remnant features, such as large isolated circular depressions. Moreover, the infill of one of the circular depressions appears to be comparable to that of pingo remnants in the Netherlands. The palynological results show a typical Late Glacial infill at the base. These first results are not conclusive, but they indicate that it is likely that some circular depressions in Denmark can be regarded as pingo remnants.