Imprints of post-glacial sea-level changes in the Visakhapatnam Bay (VB) basin: first documentation from multibeam bathymetry data

The stable continental margins, such as the Eastern continental margin of India, are an important archive of the past climates, sedimentation, and glacio-eustatic sea-level oscillations. This study uses high-resolution bathymetry data to report palaeoshorelines in the Visakhapatnam Bay basin at 90 m and 105 m water depths. The trend of the shorelines is continuous and very distinct and provides a valuable base map for the systematic collection of sediment samples to confirm the periods of sea-level rise, post the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) in the Indian continental margin (LGM spans ca. 29-19 ka BP interval). The newly collected single-beam and multibeam echosounder data indicate that the linear trending features running parallel to the coast are palaeoshorelines representing different phases of the sea-level transgression. We believe that the palaeoshorelines at 90 m and 105 m are a result of a sluggish post-glacial sea-level transgression during the late Pleistocene.

Automated summary

This study reports paleoshorelines in the Visakhapatnam Bay basin at 90 m and 105 m water depths using high-resolution bathymetry data. The shorelines are continuous and distinct, providing a valuable base map for confirming sea-level rise periods after the Last Glacial Maximum. The newly collected echo sounding data indicates that the linear trending features parallel to the coast represent different phases of sea-level transgression. We believe that the paleoshorelines at 90 m and 105 m are a result of a sluggish post-glacial sea-level transgression during the late Pleistocene.