All-Russia Research Institute of Geology and Mineral Resources of the World Ocean (VNIIOkeangeologiya) (Saint Petersburg, Russia):

Kaminskiy V. D., Director, Doctor of Geological and Mineralogical Sciences

Poselov V. A., Deputy Director on Scientific Work, Head of Department, Doctor of Geological and Mineralogical Sciences, e-mail: vap@vniio.nw.ru

Zholondz A. S., Researcher

Arctic water areas are important for solving of not only military and strategic tasks, but also mineral resource tasks. The basin of Arctic Ocean is characterized by thick sedimentary cover and high prospects for oil and gas bearing capacity, which explains the beginning of intensification of new delimitation spiral in Arctic. According to International Naval Law, mineral resources within national jurisdiction zones (12 and 200 nautical miles from baselines) are the property of coastal state, under its exclusive sovereignty. This article shares the history of substantiation of outer limit of Russian continental shelf in Arctic basin. Since the end of 2002, VNIIOkeangeologiya has began the new investigations concerning the outer limit problem in Arctic Ocean. Researches were focused on solving of the key problem: substantiation of belonging of Lomonosov Ridge and Mendeleev-Alpha Rise, together with Podvodnikov and Makarova basins, to united large megastructure, which is the natural prolongation of Eurasian continental margin. All seismic DSS profiles were processed using a ray-tracing procedure and synthetic modeling of wave fields, adopted in international practice. Results of this modeling are shown in this article with detailed description. There was also carried out the analysis of dredging samples, which results are also discussed in this article. Filming of the bottom escarps on Mendeleev Rise was carried out during the researches. This filming shows the outcrops and local nature or very small moving of most part of rocks in the samplings' areas. Continental type of the Earth crust of Central Arctic deep water rises is provided by both dredging samples and seismic data. There are considered the most important peculiarities of seismic and geological data, on the basis of which there will be developed the modern concept of revised submission, concerning extended Russian continental shelf in Arctic Ocean.

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