Fróðskaparrit - 01.01.1975, Síða 96

104
Glacial Erratics
a low threshold (Korsakov 1974) and an escarpment (Talwani
and Eldholm 1972) from the much greater basin in the Faeroe-
Shetland Channel.
The trough between the two banks has a sediment filling up
to about 200 meters thick, which is probably of Quaternary
age (Korsakov 1974).
Bathymetry
The shelf around the Faeroe Islands has a roughly triangular
outline with one of the corners pointing southwards. The shelf
and continental slope inside the 500 meters isobath measures
330 kilometers in an east-west direction and 270 kilometers
in a north-south direction. The total area is close to 45,000
square kilometers which contrasts with the area of the islands
of only 1,400 square kilometers.
The shelf attains its greatest width towards the south-east.
The outer part of the shelf is here occupied by Sandoy Bank
and SuSuroy Bank with minimum depths of about 140 meters
(fig. 2). The banks are partly separated from the inner shelf
by two troughs whose inner parts trend south-west or south-
south-west. The troughs are separated by a topographical sill
connecting the north-western corner of Suðuroy Bank with
the inner shelf. The northern trough bends at this sill towards
the south-east continuing as a transverse trough separating
the two banks from each other. It has a maximum depth ex-
ceeding 350 meters between Sandoy Bank and the inner shelf
and close to (perhaps exceeding) 350 meters between the banks.
It shallows towards the outer end and probably does not
reach the shelf edge. The southern trough has a maximum
depth of about 300 meters and likewise shallows outwards
while bending to the south-south-east.
East and south-east of the banks the shelf flattens out and
a well defined shelf break occurs at about 230 meters depth
according to a few echo profiles obtained between the dredge
stations.