earth science

Sainte-Barbe Clays Formation

Sainte-Barbe Clays Formation is a earth science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Sainte-Barbe Clays Formation rather than just read about it. In short: The Sainte-Barbe Clays Formation is a geological formation in Belgium. It is found in localised areas of the northern margin of the Mons Basin, alongside the equivalently aged Hautrage and Baudour Clay Formations.

Key takeaways

Sainte-Barbe Clays Formation belongs to earth science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Sainte-Barbe Clays Formation to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Sainte-Barbe Clays Formation from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The Sainte-Barbe Clays Formation is a geological formation in Belgium. It is found in localised areas of the northern margin of the Mons Basin, alongside the equivalently aged Hautrage and Baudour Clay Formations. It is Upper Barremian-Lower Aptian in age. It predominantly consists of laminated clay, with some lignite. It is well known for the "Iguanodon sinkhole" locality near Bernissart where many specimens of Iguanodon bernissartensis were described by Louis Dollo in the late 19th century.

Geologic context The Sainte-Barbe Clays Formation are part of the stratigraphy of the Mons Basin, a Cretaceous-Cenozoic sedimentary basin in western Belgium. The subsidence of the basin floor is caused by the dissolution of anhydrite in the Carboniferous basement. Wealden facies are the oldest units within the basin, and are only found on the northern margin of the basin, being absent from the central and southern parts of the basin. Localised areas of significant subsidence, referred to as "sinkholes" are observed. The Wealden facies are overlain by "mixed siliciclastic–carbonate formations" called Meules dating to the Albian.

Fossil content

Tetrapods

Fish

Other fish

Insects The Tettigarctid cicada Hylaeoneura lignei is known from the formation.

Parasites

Flora

Ichnofossils Algites sp.

See also List of dinosaur bearing rock formations List of fossiliferous stratigraphic units in Belgium

References

Bibliography Poinar, G.; Boucot, A. J. (2006), "Evidence of intestinal parasites of dinosaurs", Parasitology, 133 (Pt 2): 245–249, doi:10.1017/S0031182006000138, PMID 16623965 Yans, J.; Dejax, J.; Pons, D.; Taverne, L.; Bultynck, P. (2006), "The iguanodons of Bernissart (Belgium) are middle Barremian to earliest Aptian in age", Bulletin de l'Institut Royal des Sciences Naturelles de Belgique, Sciences de la Terre, 76: 91–95 Quinet, G.-E (1969), Bernissart...il y a 125.000.000 d'Années. Le Règne des Iguanodons - Bernissart...125,000,000 Years Ago. The Reign of the Iguanodon, ., pp. 1–86 du Pauw, L. F (1902), Notes sur les Fouilles du Charbonnage de Bernissart. Découverte, Solidification et Montage des Iguanodons - Notes on the excavations of the Bernissart coal mine. Discovery, solidification, and mounting of the Iguanodons, ., pp. 1–25 Lameere, A.; Severin, G. (1897), "Les insectes de Bernissart", Annales de la Société Entomologique de Belgique, 41: 35–38 Dupont, É (1892), "Le gisement des Iguanodons de Bernissart - The locality of the Iguanodons of Bernissart", Bulletin de la Société Belge de Géologie, de Paléontologie et d'Hydrologie, 6: 86–92 Woodward, H (1885), "On Iguanodon mantelli, Meyer", Geological Magazine, Decade 3, 2 (1): 10–15, Bibcode:1885GeoM....2...10W, doi:10.1017/S0016756800188211

Further reading P.-J. Van Beneden. 1878. Sur la découverte de reptiles fossiles gigantesques dans le charbonnage de Bernissart près de Péruwelz [On the discovery of gigantic fossil reptiles in the Bernissart coal mine near Péruwelz]. Bulletin de l'Academie Royale des Sciences, des Lettres et des Beaux-Arts de Belgique, série 2 45:578-579

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Sainte-Barbe Clays Formation

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Sainte-Barbe Clays Formation claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In earth science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Sainte-Barbe Clays Formation before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Sainte-Barbe Clays Formation ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Sainte-Barbe Clays Formation

In research: Sainte-Barbe Clays Formation appears in earth science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Sainte-Barbe Clays Formation in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Sainte-Barbe Clays Formation is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Aptian Stage, Barremian Stage, Coal formations, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Sainte-Barbe Clays Formation outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Sainte-Barbe Clays Formation in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Sainte-Barbe Clays Formation means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Sainte-Barbe Clays Formation out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Sainte-Barbe Clays Formation in simple terms?

Why does Sainte-Barbe Clays Formation matter?

Because it connects several earth science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Sainte-Barbe Clays Formation?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Sainte-Barbe Clays Formation.