Evolution of an overdeepened trough in the northern Alpine Foreland at Niederweningen, Switzerland

Quaternary deposits in the overdeepened Wehntal, Switzerland, were investigated using both seismic profiling and the analysis of 93.6 m long drill core using sedimentology, geochemistry, palynology, magnetic properties, and luminescence dating. The sediments reveal evidence for two glacial advances that reached the area during Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 6. The first advance (∼185 ka) may have carved out the basin or at least removed the entire previous Quaternary sediment filling. This first advance likely reached far beyond the limit of the maximum of the Last Glaciation. The second advance (∼140 ka) was of smaller extent, possibly of cold-based nature, and likely reached only slightly beyond the limits of the Last Glaciation.

► A record of glacial history of the northern Swiss Alpine Foreland extending back to late MIS 6.
► New insights into the timing and extent of the penultimate glaciation in Switzerland.
► Complete infill record of an overdeepened glacial trough.
► Combined seismic, sedimentological, palynological, palaeomagnetic and luminescence dating approach.
► Environmental reconstructions of the northern Swiss Alpine Foreland dating back to ∼180 ka.