Research Interests

As a marine geoscientist with a background in qualitative and quantitative geophysics, structural geology and quantitative geomorphology, I have a diverse set of skills that enables me to explore a wide range of Earth science processes. I am motived by a desire to understand the inextricable links between active tectonics, fluid flow, carbon cycling and seafloor morphology including the investigation of fluid flow in marine sediments, crustal faulting, subaqueous landslides as well as volcanic flank collapses. The involved geological processes are often intertwined and shape the morphology of continental slopes, sedimentary basins and volcanic islands but also are often associated with grand challenges for today’s society in the upcoming century.

• Sub-seafloor fluids / Hydrocarbon and submarine freshened water systems
• Activity and character of offshore fault zones
• Subaqueous landslides and volcanic flank collapses
• Quantitative geomorphology / Digital geology

Resume

• Jun. 2020 – present - PostDoc and Lecturer at Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel, Marine Geophysics and Hydroacoustics
• Nov. 2016 – Feb. 2020 - Ph.D. student funded by the EC-funded “STEMM-CCS” project. Employee at GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel.
• Apr. 2014 – Oct. 2016 -  M.Sc. Geophysics at Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel, Germany
• Aug. 2015 – Dec. 2015 - Erasmus+ student abroad at the University of Iceland, Reykjavik
• Oct. 2010 – Mar. 2014 - B.Sc. Physics of the Earth system: Oceanography, Meteorology, and Geophysics at Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel, Germany

Professional experience

• Mai 2019 – Oct. 2019 - Organization committee of Early Career Researcher Meeting on carbon dioxide capture and storage in Winchester, United Kingdom. Convener & Co-Chair in charge of the scientific program.
• Apr. 2013 – Jul. 2015 - Student assistant at GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel, RD4 / Marine geophysics. Data management, Development of new work flows for seismic data interpretation and archiving, Hydroacoustic data acquisition, processing and interpretation
• September 2012 - Internship at Deutsches GeoForschungsZentrum Potsdam (GFZ), Potsdam, Germany, Tsunami Early Warning System (Tide gauge systems). Comparison of automated alert algorithms for tsunami waves (near field vs. far field)

Funding and Projects

• ECORD - ESSAC (IODP workshop) - ECORD scholarship and travel grant for the ECORD Petrophysics Summer School 2017, Leicester, UK.
• GRAPA (UAV-based photogrammetry of pipe structures in Varna, Bulgaria) - Proponent of research grant to conduct field work to answer open questions that arose from my doctoral project (Jun. 2019-Aug. 2019). Application to Integrated School of Ocean Sciences (ISOS) Kiel. Topic: Quantification and detailed mapping of fracture networks in outcrops of vertical fluid conduits in Varna, Bulgaria, by unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV).
• FLARES – Fluid escape across the Malta Plateau and Escarpment: Insights into the hydrogeology and hydrogeochemistry of carbonate platforms - Co-proponent to conduct research within the Eurofleets – European marine research infrastructure framework (PI: Prof. Dr. Aaron Micallef, University of Malta). Decision pending.

Expeditions

• AL404 (RV Alkor) - Nov. 2012 – Baltic Sea, Germany - Hydro-acoustics / Seismics - Assistant

• MSM32 (RV Maria S. Merian) - Sept. 2013 – Oct. 2013 – Offshore Morocco / Agadir Canyon - Seismics / Hydro-acoustic - Assistant

• OR5.2 (FS Ocean Researcher V) - Sep. 2014 – Oct. 2014 – Offshore Taiwan - 3-D P-Cable Seismics - Assistant

• SO241 (RV Sonne) - Jun. 2015 – Jul. 2015 – Guaymas Basin / Offshore Mexico - 3-D P-Cable Seismics - Hydroacoustics Multibeam/Subbottom profiler - Lab leader

• MSM58 (RV Maria S. Merian) - Sep. 2016 – Oct. 2016 – Mid-Atlantic Ridge / Azores islands - Hydroacoustics Multibeam/Subbottom profiler - Assistant

• SO252 (RV Sonne) -  Nov. 2016 – Dec. 2016 – Ritter Island / Papua-New Guinea - 3-D P-Cable Seismics - Hydroacoustics Multibeam/Subbottom profiler - Lab co-leader

• MSM63 (RV Sonne) -  Apr. 2017 – May 2017 – Central North Sea - Hydroacoustics Multibeam/Subbottom profiler - Lab leader

• POS518 (RV Poseidon) - Sep. 2017 – Oct. 2017 – Southern and Central North Sea - Hydroacoustics Multibeam - Lab leader

• AL512 (RV Alkor) - Jul. 2018 – Southern North Sea - 3-D P-Cable Seismics - Hydroacoustics Multibeam/Subbottom profiler - Lab co-leader

• MSM78 (RV Maria S. Merian) - Oct. 2018 – Central North Sea - Hydroacoustics Multibeam/Subbottom profiler - Lab leader

• M154 (RV Meteor) - Apr.2019 – May 2019 – Lesser Antilles / Montserrat - Hydroacoustics Multibeam/Subbottom profiler – Lab leader

Work at sea included planning, acquisition and processing of bathymetric, echosounder, and seismic data as well as sediment sampling. During several cruises, I led the hydroacoustic group in charge of the scientific strategy.

Peer-reviewed publications

Böttner, C., Callow, B.J., Schramm, B., Gross, F., Geersen, J., Schmidt, M., Vasilev, A., Petsinski, P., & Berndt, C. (in review). Focused methane migration formed pipe structures in permeable sandstones: Insights from UAV-based digital outcrop analysis in Varna, Bulgaria. Sedimentology.

Böttner, C., Haeckel, M., Schmidt, M., Berndt, C., Vielstädte, L., Kutsch, J.A., Karstens, J., & Weiß, T. (2020, in Revision). Decommissioned hydrocarbon wells as a source for greenhouse gas release: sources, rates, and mitigation strategies. International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control.

Couvin, B., Georgiopoulou, A., Mountjoy, J. J., Amy, L., Crutchley, G. J., Brunet, M., Cardona, S., Gross, F., Böttner, C., Krastel, S., & Pecher, I. (2020). A new depositional model for the Tuaheni Landslide Complex, Hikurangi Margin, New Zealand. Geological Society, London, Special Publications, 500.

Böttner, C., Berndt., C., Reinardy, B.T.I., Geersen, J., Karstens, J., Bull., J.M., Callow, B.J., Lichtschlag, A., Schmidt, M., Elger, J., Schramm, B., Haeckel, M. (2019). Pockmarks in the Witch Ground Basin, Central North Sea. Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems, 20(4), 1698-1719.

Karstens, J., Berndt, C., Morelia, M., Watt, S.F.L., Micallef A., Ray, M., Klaucke, I., Kühn, M., Kläschen, D., Muff, S., Roth, T., Böttner, C., Schramm, B., Elger, J., Brune, S. (2019). From gradual spreading to catastrophic collapse–Reconstruction of the 1888 Ritter Island volcanic sector collapse from high-resolution 3D seismic data. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 517, 1-13.

Watt, S.F.L., Karstens, J., Micallef A., Berndt, C., Morelia, M., Ray, M., Desau, A., Sammartini, M., Klaucke, I., Böttner, C., Day, S., Downes, H. (2019). From catastrophic collapse to multi-phase deposition: Flow transformation, seafloor interaction and triggered eruption following a volcanic-island landslide. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 517, 135-147.

Böttner, C., Gross, F., Geersen, J., Crutchley, G. J., Mountjoy, J. J., & Krastel, S. (2018). Marine Forearc Extension in the Hikurangi Margin: New Insights From High‐Resolution 3‐D Seismic Data. Tectonics, 37(5), 1472-1491.

Gross, F., Mountjoy, J. J., Crutchley, G. J., Böttner, C., Koch, S., Bialas, J., ... & Huhn, K. (2018). Free gas distribution and basal shear zone development in a subaqueous landslide–Insight from 3D seismic imaging of the Tuaheni Landslide Complex, New Zealand. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 502, 231-243.

Krastel, S., Wynn, R. B., Feldens, P., Schürer, A., Böttner, C., Stevenson, C., ... & Unverricht, D. (2016). Flow behaviour of a giant landslide and debris flow entering Agadir Canyon, NW Africa. In Submarine Mass Movements and their Consequences (pp. 145-154). Springer, Cham.

Berndt, C., Hensen, C., Mortera-Gutierrez, C., Sarkar, S., Geilert, S., Schmidt, M., Liebetrau, V., Kipfer, R., Scholz, F., Doll, M., Muff, S., Karstens, J., Planke, S., Petersen, S., Böttner, C., Chi, W. C., Moser, M., Behrendt, R., Fiskal, A., Lever, M. A., Su, C. C., Deng, L., Brennwald, M. S. and Lizarralde, D. (2016). Rifting under steam – how rift magmatism triggers methane venting from sedimentary basins. Geology, 44 (9), 767-770.

Scientific communication

Gehrmann, R., Provenzano, G., Böttner, C., Yilo, N.,Bayrakci, G., Marin-Moreno, H., Bull, J., Minshull, T., & Berndt, C. (2020).Porosity estimates from marine controlled source electromagnetic dipole-dipole data at the Scanner Pockmark in the North Sea. [Display] In EGU General Assembly Conference Abstracts (EGU2020-21066), Vienna, Austria. https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-21066.

Böttner, C., Haeckel, M., Schmidt, M., Berndt, C., Vielstädte, L., Karstens, J., & Weiß, T. (2019). Decommissioned hydrocarbon wells as a source for greenhouse gas release: sources, rates, and mitigation strategies. [Poster] In: AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts, 08.12.-13.12.2020, San Francisco, USA

Elger, J., Crutchley, G. J., Böttner, C., Gross, F., Mountjoy, J. J., Krastel, S., ... & Pecher, I. A. (2019). Fluid migration along reactivated normal faults in the gas hydrate system of the Tuaheni Landslide Complex off New Zealand. [Poster] In: AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts, 08.12.-13.12.2020, San Francisco, USA.

Schramm, B., Bayrakci, G., Dannowski, A., Berndt, C., Böttner, C., Bull, J., ... & Minshull, T. A. (2019). Imaging the 3D seismic velocity structure of the Scanner pockmark, central North Sea. [Poster] In: AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts, 08.12.-13.12.2020, San Francisco, USA.

Böttner, C., Callow, B.J., Gross, F., Vasilev, A., Petsinski, P., Karstens, J., Berndt, C., Bull, J. (2019). GRAPA – Quantifying features of a fluid flow systems using customer-grade UAV imagery. [Talk] In STEMM-CCS ECR Meeting, 04.11.-7.11.2019, Winchester, United Kingdom.

Böttner, C., Schramm, B., Berndt, C., Karstens, J., Bull, J., Callow, B.J., & Gross, F. (2019). GRAPA–Quantifying fractures using drone imagery. [Poster] In: STEMM-CCS 3. Annual Meeting, 27.2.-1.3.2019, Amsterdam, Netherlands.

Schramm, B., Berndt, C. , Dannowski, A. , Bayrakci, G., Böttner, C. und Minshull, T. (2019). Imaging the 3D seismic velocity structure of the Scanner pockmark, central North Sea. [Poster] In: STEMM-CCS 3. Annual Meeting, 27.2.-1.3.2019, Amsterdam, Netherlands.

Schramm, B., Berndt, C., Dannowski, A., Bayrakci, G., Minshull, T. und Böttner, C. (2019). Imaging the 3D seismic velocity structure of the Scanner pockmark, central North Sea. [Poster] In: 79. Jahrestagung der Deutschen Geophysikalischen Gesellschaft (DGG), 5.3. - 8.3.2019, Braunschweig, Germany.

Gehrmann, R., Yilo, N., Haroon, A., Morton, M., Djanni, A., Bull, J., Provenzano, G., Böttner, C., Schwalenberg, K., Berndt, C. and Minshull, T. (2019). Effect of acquisition uncertainties on interpretation of resistivity estimates from marine electromagnetic data. [Poster] IUGG, Montreal, Canada.

Yilo, N., Gehrmann, R., Bull, J., Minshull, T., Provenzano, G., Bayrakci, G., Böttner, C., Schramm, B. and Berndt, C. (2019). Controlled Source Electromagnetics data analysis to evaluate fluid flow pathways associated with CCS sites. [Talk] Marelec, Woods Hole, MA, USA.

Bull, J., Minshull, T., Henstock, T., Bayrakci, G., Gehrmann, R., Böttner, C., ... & Chen, B. (2018, October). Constraining leakage pathways through the overburden above sub-seafloor CO2 storage reservoirs. [Poster] In 14th Greenhouse Gas Control Technologies Conference Melbourne (pp. 21-26), Melbourne, Australia.

Böttner, C., Schramm, B., Berndt, C., Karstens, J., Schmidt, M., Haeckel, M., ... & Reinardy, B. (2018, April). Pockmark formation in the Witch Ground Basin, central North Sea. [Talk] In EGU General Assembly Conference Abstracts (Vol. 20, p. 8536), Vienna, Austria.

Micallef, A., Watt, S., Berndt, C., Urlaub, M., Brune, S., Klaucke, I., Böttner, C., Karstens, J., Elger, J. (2017). An 1888 Volcanic Collapse Becomes a Benchmark for Tsunami Models.  [Article] Eos: Earth & Space Science News, 48.

Böttner, C., Gross, F., Geersen, J. M., Mountjoy, J., Crutchley, G., & Krastel, S. (2017). An analysis of marine forearc extension on the northern Hikurangi subduction margin using high-resolution 3D seismic data. [Poster] In EGU General Assembly Conference Abstracts (Vol. 18), Vienna, Austria.

Yilo, N., Gehrmann, R., Bull, J., Minshull, T., Provenzano, G., Bayrakci, G., Böttner, C., Schramm, B. and Berndt, C. (2017). Controlled Source Electromagnetics data analysis to evaluate fluid flow pathways associated with CCS sites. [Poster] Electromagnetic induction workshop, Copenhagen, Denmark.

Gross, F., Mountjoy, J., Crutchley, G., Koch, S., Bialas, J., Pecher, I., ... & Böttner, C. (2016, April). Submarine creeping landslide deformation controlled by the presence of gas hydrates: The Tuaheni Landslide Complex, New Zealand. [Talk] In EGU General Assembly Conference Abstracts (Vol. 18), Vienna, Austria.

Berndt, C., Hensen, C., Mortera-Gutierrez, C., Sarkar, S., Geilert, S., Schmidt, M., Liebetrau, V., Kipfer, R., Scholz, F., Doll, M., Muff, S., Karstens, J., Planke, S., Petersen, S., Böttner, C., Chi, W. C., Moser, M., Behrendt, R., Fiskal, A., Lever, M. A., Su, C. C., Deng, L., Brennwald, M. S. and Lizarralde, D. (2015, December). Hydrothermal Activity in the Northern Guaymas Basin. [Poster] In AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts, San Francisco, USA.

Theses

• Doctoral Thesis 2020 Natural and anthropogenic fluid migration pathways in marine sediments, GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research, Christian-Albrechts-Universität, Kiel.
• Master of Science 2016 Seismic attribute analysis of faults and fluid migration pathways underneath a landslide: New insight from high-resolution P-Cable seismic data at the Tuaheni Landslide Complex, offshore New Zealand, Christian-Albrechts-Universität, Kiel.
• Bachelor of Science 2014 Sediment waves and their relevance for mass wasting along the Moroccan shelf-break: An analysis of seismic and hydroacoustic data, Christian-Albrechts-Universität, Kiel.