earth science

Wellheim Formation

Wellheim 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 Wellheim Formation rather than just read about it. In short: The Wellheim Formation is a geological formation in southern Germany deposited during the Cenomanian to earliest Turonian stages of the Upper Cretaceous. The Formation is subdivided into three member units: unnamed basal marine sandstone, the Neuburg Kieselerde Member, and an upper silicified conglomerate (Homsand facies).Geographically, this formation is located in the central southernmost part of the Franconian Ju…

Key takeaways

Wellheim 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 Wellheim Formation to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Wellheim Formation from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The Wellheim Formation is a geological formation in southern Germany deposited during the Cenomanian to earliest Turonian stages of the Upper Cretaceous. The Formation is subdivided into three member units: unnamed basal marine sandstone, the Neuburg Kieselerde Member, and an upper silicified conglomerate (Homsand facies).Geographically, this formation is located in the central southernmost part of the Franconian Jura, on the left bank of the Danube, roughly between the towns of Wellheim and Neuburg in Bavaria.The formation is commercially quarried for siliceous earth, which has a variety of applications.

Stratigraphy The formation infills karstic voids found in Upper Jurassic limestones. Its upper contact is with either Miocene Upper Freshwater Molasse clays and marls or Pleistocene glacial deposits while the lower contact is with the Jurassic limestones, or the Lower Cretaceous Schutzfels Formation, a terrestrial unit which also infills the karstic terrain.

Depositional Environment The Wellheim Formation was formed in a quiet water environment by deposition of pelagic sediments into a number of submerged karsts in the ocean floor over several million years. Wilmsen et al (2010) identified the primary sediment composition as sandy and spiculitic sediments, with notably little terrigenous input. It consists of marine sediments classified as opoka. Opoka refers to Upper Cretaceous sponge spicule-rich, siliceous, marine limestones found in Poland and western Ukraine. Lüttig (2007) called the scientific view of the formation of the Neuburg Kieselerde Member "contested" however that position has not been supported by subsequent authors.

Fossils The Wellheim Formation is fossiliferous with the Neuburg Kieselerde Member having one of the most diverse invertebrate assemblages in the Danubian Cretaceous Group. Schneider et al. (2013) mapped fossil yielding localities associated with this member in a rough triangle between Wellheim, Rennertshofen and Neuburg.

Age and correlation It was deposited between about 93 to 98 million years ago during the Cenomanian, the lowest stage of the Upper Cretaceous. The index fossil associated with these sediments is Inoceramus crippsi, a wing-shaped (pteriomorph) salt-water bivalve.

Commercial exploitation

Mining of Neuburg Kieselerde Member sediments takes place at an industrial scale around Neuburg an der Donau. The products are marketed under the umbrella term siliceous earth (German: Kieselerde). The sediment is used as a filler material, an abrasive and polishing medium, a paint and varnish additive and as a nutritional supplement. It is generally composed of silicic acid (80 percent by weight or less) and kaolinite. In 2015, 55,000 tons of the purified material were produced. This required the open-pit mining of 120,000 tons of raw siliceous earth. The producer has claimed a non-biogenic, mineral origin for their product, while most other sources assert a biogenic origin for the material. Substances called siliceous earths are usually defined as having a biogenic origin, with material of a similar composition usually being termed diatomaceous earth. The producer also has repeatedly claimed a unique "one-of-a-kind worldwide" status of their product, but Lüttig refuted this in 2007 for the material that is produced, saying that several similar material deposits are known, naming Heiligenhafener Gestein as an example. On the other hand he agreed that the very special formation circumstances could indeed be called unique. It has historically been used for the production of glass, ceramics and color pigments like ultramarine.

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Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Wellheim Formation

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Wellheim 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 Wellheim 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 Wellheim 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 Wellheim Formation

In research: Wellheim 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 Wellheim 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: Wellheim Formation is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Cenomanian Stage, Cretaceous Germany, Fossiliferous stratigraphic units of Europe, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Wellheim 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 Wellheim Formation in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Wellheim 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 Wellheim Formation out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Wellheim Formation in simple terms?

Why does Wellheim 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 Wellheim 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 Wellheim Formation.