Sediment grain-size distribution analysis at the shallow sandy shelf of the North Sea using multivariate geostatistics

Abstract The objective of this study is to improve the quality of surficial sediment grains-size distribution mapping over complex seabed morphology of the nearshore sandy shelf of the North Sea using Co- Kriging method. We analyse the correlation between median sediment grain-size and seabed forms, and finally to demonstrate if the correlation between the two can be used to enhance the seabed habitat mapping. The results of this study show that median grain-size distribution is moderately correlated with the seabed form. The finest sediment occurs on the crests and seaward flanks while the coarsest sediment occurs on the troughs and landward flanks.