Geoscientist Crossword

[MissPengywin]

1d - Occurring stratigraphically above inferior strata (5) ?N?E?

[fiction-factory]

Under?
Upper if the N is wrong?

[MissPengywin]

I considered under, but the specifying of "above" makes me doubt myself. Possibly upper...

The n came from the square bracketed letter in: 7a - Rising to surface, like magma, for instance (9) ?[?]?E?L?N? to which I've put "annealing". This could very well be wrong, but the 'heating and cooling' aspect of the definition is what made me choose it.

[1ozzy]

7a) Upwelling?

[scorpiojo]

Upwelling

upwelling
ʌpˈwɛlɪŋ/
noun
1.
an instance or amount of seawater, magma, or other liquid rising up.
"an upwelling of magma has caused long-lasting volcanic activity"
adjective

[fiction-factory]

So that should allow UPPER

[MissPengywin]

Thanks all! Makes much more sense now :).