Tectonic development of the Mid-Norway continental margin

The area reviewed covers the Mid-Norway continental margin between latitudes 62°N and 68°N. Main structural elements, as defined at the base Cretaceous level, are the Tröndelag Platform, underlying the inner shelf, the Möre and Vöring Basins, located beneath the outer shelf and slope, and the Möre Platform and the Outer Vöring Plateau, forming a base of slope trend of highs. Sediments contained in the Mid-Norway Basin range in age from Late Palaeozoic to Cenozoic. The basement was consolidated during the Caledonian orogenic cycle. Devonian and Early Carboniferous wrench movements along the axis of the Arctic-North Atlantic Caledonides are thought to have preceded the Namurian onset of crustal extension. Rifting processes were intermittently active for some 270 My until crustal separation between Greenland and Fennoscandia was achieved during the Early Eocene. During the evolution of the Norwegian-Greenland Sea rift system a stepwise concentration of tectonic activities to its axial zone (the area of subsequent continental separation) is observed. During the Late Palaeozoic to Mid-Jurassic a broad zone was affected by tensional faulting. During the Late Jurassic and Cretaceous the Tröndelag Platform was little affected by faulting whilst major rift systems in the Möre and Vöring Basins subsided rapidly and their shoulders became concomitantly upwarped. During the latest Cretaceous and Early Palaeogene terminal rifting phase only the western Möre and Vöring Basins were affected by intrusive and extrusive igneous activity. Following the Early Eocene crustal separation and the onset of sea floor spreading in the Norwegian-Greenland Sea, the Vöring segment of the Mid-Norway marginal basin subsided less rapidly than the Möre segment. During the Early and Mid Tertiary, minor compressional deformations affected the Vöring Basin and to a lesser degree the Möre Basin. Tensional forces dominated the Late Palaeozoic to Early Cenozoic evolution of the Mid-Norway Basin and effected strain mainly in the area where the crust was weakened by the previous lateral displacements. The lithosphere thinned progressively and the effects of the passively upwelling hot asthenospheric material became more pronounced. Massive dyke invasion of the thinned crust preceded its rupture.     

Continental Slopes of the West Africa Region: A Unique Treasure of Hydrocarbons

The West African region embraces a number of coastal sedimentary basins, which continued in deep-water areas of the Atlantic Ocean. It includes the following oil-and-gas-bearing basins: the Gulf of Guinea, the Kwanza–Cameroonian, and the Namibian. The sedimentary cover of the basins of this passive margin is represented by Mesozoic–Cenozoic deposits. The composition of sediments accumulated in them is quite specific and surprisingly units over the vast areas. The tectonic structure of the majority of the continental margins of West Africa makes possible to refer them to the margins of epiplatform orogenic belts. The existence of two systems of linear troughs—internal and external—on the passive margins at the early stages of continent–ocean transition zones relates deep-water hydrocarbon deposits to internal troughs filled by younger sediments: the alluvial fans of submarine rivers and landslide fronts with prograde formations (turbidites, debris flows, etc.). Late Cretaceous and Middle Paleogene clay formations played the role of source beds in the region, so-called “black clays.” An analysis of over 200 hydrocarbon fields, mainly petroleum, discovered in the past 10–15 years in the region revealed a clear tendency of these fields occurring in a productive zone of oil pools extending in a sea depth interval of 400–3000 m on the continental slope and possibly to 4000 m at the continental rise. Moreover, all discovered fields have been estimated in terms of reserves from large to giant. It is also noteworthy that within the shallow of this region, which includes the shelf and the coastal plain, only a number of small, insignificant oil and gas pays have been discovered. The main of oil and gas bearing potential prospects are related to deposits in the middle and lower parts of the continental slope and possibly adjacent areas of the continental rise. In the long term, the drilling objectives will be both postsalt and presalt deep-water oil-and-gas fields.     

Potential for gas hydrate formation at the northwest New Zealand shelf margin - New insights from seismic reflection data and petroleum systems modelling

In this study we provide evidence for methane hydrates in the Taranaki Basin, occurring a considerable distance from New Zealand's convergent margins, where they are well documented. We describe and reconstruct a unique example of gas migration and leakage at the edge of the continental shelf, linking shallow gas hydrate occurrence to a deeper petroleum system. The Taranaki Basin is a well investigated petroleum province with numerous fields producing oil and gas. Industry standard seismic reflection data show amplitude anomalies that are here interpreted as discontinuous BSRs, locally mimicking the channelized sea-floor and pinching out up-slope. Strong reverse polarity anomalies indicate the presence of gas pockets and gas-charged sediments. PetroMod™ petroleum systems modelling predicts that the gas is sourced from elevated microbial gas generation in the thick slope sediment succession with additional migration of thermogenic gas from buried Cretaceous petroleum source rocks. Cretaceous–Paleogene extensional faults underneath the present-day slope are interpreted to provide pathways for focussed gas migration and leakage, which may explain two dry petroleum wells drilled at the Taranaki shelf margin. PetroMod™ modelling predicts concentrated gas hydrate formation on the Taranaki continental slope consistent with the anomalies observed in the seismic data. We propose that a semi-continuous hydrate layer is present in the down-dip wall of incised canyons. Canyon incision is interpreted to cause the base of gas hydrate stability to bulge downward and thereby trap gas migrating up-slope in permeable beds due to the permeability decrease caused by hydrate formation in the pore space. Elsewhere, hydrate occurrence is likely patchy and may be controlled by focussed leakage of thermogenic gas. The proposed presence of hydrates in slope sediments in Taranaki Basin likely affects the stability of the Taranaki shelf margin. While hydrate presence can be a drilling hazard for oil and gas exploration, the proposed presence of gas hydrates opens up a new frontier for exploration of hydrates as an energy source.     

Seabed morphology and gas venting features in the continental slope region of Krishna–Godavari basin,Bay of Bengal: Implications in gas-hydrate exploration

Increased oil and gas exploration activity has led to a detailed investigation of the continental shelf and adjacent slope regions of Mahanadi, Krishna–Godavari (KG) and Cauvery basins, which are promising petroliferous basins along the eastern continental margin of India. In this paper, we analyze the high resolution sparker, subbottom profiler and multibeam data in KG offshore basin to understand the shallow structures and shallow deposits for gas hydrate exploration. We identified and mapped prominent positive topographic features in the bathymetry data. These mounds show fluid/gas migration features such as acoustic voids, acoustic chimneys, and acoustic turbid layers. It is interesting to note that drilling/coring onboard JOIDES in the vicinity of the mounds show the presence of thick accumulation of subsurface gas hydrate. Further, geological and geochemical study of long sediment cores collected onboard Marion Dufresne in the vicinity of the mounds and sedimentary ridges shows the imprints of paleo-expulsion of methane and sulfidic fluid from the seafloor.     

中国海域及邻区主要含油气盆地与成藏地质条件

中国海域及邻区分布有近５０个沉积盆地,其中大部分发育在大陆边缘,而主要含油气盆地则分布在大陆架部位。盆地的起源,发生,发展受控于大地构造不同时期的构造运动,形成诸如裂谷型断陷盆地,走滑盆地以及非典型前陆盆地等多类型沉积盆地。从区域广度阐述了盆地沉积的有利相带对油气成藏的重要性,尤其是陆架盆地的成藏地质条件所形成的富集油气藏包括已发现的一大批大中型油气田,更具有的开发前景。     

The Norwegian–Barents–Svalbard (NBS) continental margin: Introducing a natural laboratory of mass wasting, hydrates, and ascent of sediment, pore water, and methane

Side-scan sonar mapping and ground-truthing of the Norwegian–Barents–Svalbard continental margin shed new light on shelf glaciation, mass wasting, hydrates, and features like the Håkon Mosby mud volcano (HMMV), reflecting upward mobility of gas, pore fluids, and sediments. Detailed HMMV examination revealed thermal gradients to 10°/m, bottom-water CH₄ and temperature anomalies, H₂S- and CH₄-based chemosynthetic ecosystems, and subbottom methane hydrate (to 25%). Seismic and chemical data suggest HMMV origins at 2–3?km depth within the 6-km-thick depocenter. The HMMV and mound fields bordering the Bjørnøyrenna slide valley and pockmarks bordering the Storegga slide may all have formed in response to sediment failure.     

Sedimentary basins and prospects of oil and gas deposits on the shelf of the Eastern Arctic

Numerous riftogenic structures of different ages and orientations are widespread on the vast shelf of the Eastern Arctic region. A schematic tectonic map presents the main structural elements of the Upper Brooksian (Cretaceous-Cenozoic) unit, through which contours of the Ellesmerian (Late Devonian-Jurassic) structures, being the most enriched in hydrocarbon resources in the region under consideration, are seen. Three large sedimentation basins are identified in the upper unit: the Vil’kitskii-North Chukchi, the South Chukchi, and the East Chukchi basins separated by the Central Chukchi Rise, which was most active at the Ellesmerian stage. By analogy with the areas studied both on the shelf and on the continental slope, models of the formation and accumulation of hydrocarbons are presented for each of these three basins, thus, allowing one to outline the zones prospective for gas and oil accumulation.     

Sedimentary environment and glacial history during the last 40 ka of the Vøring continental margin,mid-Norway

This study is based on detailed investigation of sediment cores and high resolution seismics. We identified and describe five lithofacies on the Vøring Plateau and eight on the mid-Norwegian continental slope. The various lithofacies are mainly related to the fluctuations of the Fennoscandian Ice Sheet and the varying intensity of bottom currents and inflow of Atlantic water masses. Ocean circulation was highly variable between 40 and 22 ¹⁴C ka BP, being vigorous during interstadials and sluggish during stadials. Between ca 22 and 15 ¹⁴C ka BP the sedimentary environment was significantly influenced by fluctuations of the Fennoscandian Ice Sheet, repeatedly reaching the outermost shelf. These fluctuations are reflected in the sedimentary record as ice-rafted debris (IRD) accumulation peaks, deposition of stratified diamicton, and glacigenic debris flows on the continental slope. During this period the sediment accumulation rate increased, bottom currents influenced the sedimentary pattern, and surface waters were seasonally ice-free, indicating inflow of Atlantic waters. Subsequent to ca 15 ¹⁴C ka BP the glacier influence decreased as the margin of the Fennoscandian Ice Sheet retreated to reach the coast before 12.5 ¹⁴C ka BP. The modern sedimentary environment is characterised by relatively strong bottom current action, causing winnowing or non-deposition down to approximately 1000 m water depth.     

Physiography of the Exmouth and Scott Plateaus,Western Australia,and adjacent northeast Wharton Basin

The continental margin of Western Australia is a rifted or “Atlantic”-type margin, with a complex physiography. The margin comprises a shelf, an upper and lower continental slope, marginal plateaus, a continental rise, and rise or lower slope foothills. Notches or terraces on the shelf reflect pre-Holocene deposition of prograded sediment, whose seaward limit was determined by variations in relative sea level, wave energy, and sediment size and volume. The upper continental slope has four physiographic forms: convex, due to sediment outbuilding (progradation) over a subsiding marginal plateau; scarped, due to erosion of convex slopes; stepped, due to deposition at the base of a scarped slope; and smooth, due to progradation of an upper slope in the absence of a marginal plateau. Lying at the same level as the upper/lower slope boundary are two extensive marginal plateaus: Exmouth and Scott. They represent continental crust which subsided after continental rupture by sea-floor spreading. Differential subsidence, probably along faults, gave rise to the various physiographic features of the plateaus. The deep lower continental slope is broken into straight northeasterly-trending segments, that parallel the Upper Jurassic/Lower Cretaceous rift axis, and northwesterly-trending segments that parallel the transform direction. The trends of the slope foothills are subparallel to the rift direction. The four abyssal plains of the region (Perth, Cuvier, Gascoyne and Argo) indicate a long history of subsidence and sedimentation on Upper Jurassic/Lower Cretaceous oceanic crust.     

The stratigraphic and geographic distribution of giant craters and remobilised sediment mounds on the mid Norway margin,and their relation to long term fluid flow

Large craters associated with mounds of remobilised sediment have been recently mapped on the mid Norway margin in the Møre Basin. These craters and mounds may be linked to the long term migration of fluids upwards from the lower levels of the Møre Basin which exploit hydrothermal vent complexes emplaced in the late Paleocene and early Eocene. All of the craters are located on a regionally correlative seismic surface that is correlated with the basal shear plane of Slide W, a slide located at the base of the Plio-Pleistocene Naust Formation. The Craters are positioned in the western area of the Møre Basin at the foot of the continental slope on the crests and flanks of Miocene domes, where Oligocene biosiliceous ooze subcrops on the basal shear surface of Slide W. Not all of the craters are filled by Slide W. Mounds are emplaced above those craters which are filled by Slide W on the top surface of Slide W. Stratal relationships show that the mounds were emplaced on the paleo-seabed. We present and discuss two models that illustrate processes that may have been involved in the formation of craters and remobilisation of sediments. In one model, an eruption of fluid from beneath remobilises ooze into ooze mounds in a single event triggering slope failure, whereas in the other model the emplacement of Slide W and later slides loads low density ooze causing it to undergo liquefaction, a process which may have been facilitated by the trapping of continuous long term fluid migrating from beneath, causing the ooze to remobilise into ooze mounds in two or more events.     

Stratigraphic division and depositional processes for the Mesozoic basin in Northern South China Sea

This paper divided the age of Mesozoic strata in the Northern South China Sea into epochs by the stratigraphic correlation between land and sea areas. A Mesozoic stratigraphic profile from South China to the northern continental slope of the South China Sea was constructed by ground and seismic surveys. The depositional process was illustrated by the chronostratigraphic framework of the Mesozoic basin, and the oil and gas exploration prospect was discussed. Results indicate that the depositional process from the initial transgression in the Late Triassic to the Mesozoic maximum flooding event that occurred in the Early Jurassic period formed a continuous transgression when the depositional environment varied from littoral to semi-closed gulf and shelf. After this maximum flooding event, a continuous marine regressive process developed, including seawater withdrawal from the South China epicontinental region at the end of the Early Jurassic period, seawater withdrawal to the outer shelf of the Northern South China Sea at the end of the Early Cretaceous period, and seawater withdrawal to the slope trough at the end of the Cretaceous period. Research achievement not only connects major Mesozoic geological events but also specifies the time nodes of such events. Thus, an investigation of this event is significant to the Mesozoic tectonic evolution study of the South China Sea and Paleo-Pacific Ocean.     

Geological structure and petroleum resource potential of the North Sea basin

The North Sea basin occupies a spacious depression almost isometric in shape. In the west and northwest, the basin is bordered by the continental crust consolidated during the Precambrian, Caledonian, and Hercynian orogenic epochs, which now forms epiplatformal orogenic structures. They are represented by the London-Brabant uplift and the Arden massif in the southwest and south and the Baltic Shield in the east and northeast. The North Sea basin may be considered as an ancient aulacogen that was transformed in the Early Mesozoic into a complex system of continental rifts and grabens. The sedimentary cover of the basin is represented by a thick (8.5?C12.5 km) Ordovician-Quaternary sequence. Oil and gas generation in the sedimentary cover of the basin is likely connected with four main productive sequences: the coaliferous Upper Carboniferous (Westphalian), the subsalt Zechstein, the Jurassic-Lower Cretaceous (Lotharingian, Toarcian, Kimmeridgian, and Weldian bituminose shales), and the shaly Cenozoic. The large oil and gas reserves in the North Sea??s sedimentary cover (over 280 fields) implies that the above-mentioned sequences have realized their oil-generating potential. The present-day position of the main oil and gas generation zones in the sedimentary section of the North Sea explains the distribution of the oil and gas fields through the basin from the genetic standpoint. The petroleum resource potential of the basin is still significant. In this regard, most promising are the spacious shelf areas, turbidite sediments, deep Paleozoic sequences, and continental slopes in the northern part of the basin, which remains insufficiently investigated.     

南海深海盆地沉积柱样中的浊流沉积

本文根据南海深海盆地三个沉积柱样的粒度结构、地球化学、微体古生物等特征分析,深讨了南海深海盆地细粒沉积物的浊积现象。结果表明,位于南海北部陆架斜坡上KL37孔的浊流沉积现象并不明显;位于陆架斜坡和深海盆地交界处的KL29孔存在着大量的浊积层,属于浊流沉积和半远洋沉积环境;位于南海盆地中部的KL91孔虽然已属于远洋性沉积环境,但除出现火山灰沉积外,浊流沉积作用仍然是相当活跃的。     

The structural features and petroleum resource potential of basins in the western and northwestern Australian margins

The oil and gas basins of Australia are confined to its western and northwestern margins. They are typical pericontinental depressions in the continent-ocean transition zone with a passive tectonic regime. The following oil and gas basins are definable from the south to northward: the Perth, Carnarvon, Canning, Browse, and Bonaparte. All these basins are well studied. Among them, the Carnarvon basin is the most productive. Despite the discovery of approximately a hundred oil and gas fields in this basin, its continental slopes are still insufficiently known. In this connection, the morphostructural features of the productive areas were analyzed using a specialized GIS technique. The performed analysis of the Carnarvon hydrocarbon-bearing basin demonstrated the efficiency of this technique and allowed several promising zones located west, north, and south of the discovered oil and gas fields and forming a single trend with them to be outlined. The total reserves of the country are as high as 2.1 × 10⁹ t of oil and 840 × 10⁹ m³ of gas. The annual oil production in Australia by January 1, 2008 was 22.25 × 10⁶ t of oil and 14 × 10⁹ m³ of gas. Approximately 95% of the oil and 80% of the gas produced in Australia by the beginning of 2008 were obtained from offshore parts of its basins.     

国内外深水区油气勘探新进展

深水区油气资源丰富，近年来深水油气勘探不断升温。在全球6大洲18个深水盆地中已发现约580亿桶油当量的油气资源。目前，巴西、美国墨西哥湾的深水油气田已经投入生产，而且产量不断增加，西非地区也已进入开发阶段，西北欧、地中海以及亚太地区的许多国家也都在积极开展深水油气勘探或开发。海上油气钻探不断向深水区和超深水区发展，探井数目也在继续增加，投资力度不断加强，储量每年也有很大的增长。深水油气勘探成功率平均达到30％，其中，西非的勘探成功率最高。深水区烃源岩生烃潜力较好，最好的烃源岩主要分布于侏罗系、白垩系和第三系的地层中，储层以浊积岩储层为主，盖层通常比较发育，大多数圈闭都与地层因素有关。我国南海北部陆坡深水区盆地属准被动边缘盆地，从烃源岩、储层、盖层、圈闭到运聚条件等都具备了形成大型油气田的基本地质条件，具有丰富的资源前景。     

The petroleum resource potential of the Bering Sea region

The Bering Sea sedimentary basin comprises the Bering Sea and the adjacent intermontane depressions on the continents. It includes the following subordinate sedimentary basins: the Norton; Bethel; Saint Lawrence; Anadyr; Navarin; Khatyrka; Saint George; Bristol; Cook Inlet; and Aleutian consisting of the autonomous Aleutian, Bowers, and Komandor basins. All of them exhibit significant geological similarity. The Middle and Upper Miocene terrigenous sequences, which are petroliferous through the entire periphery of the Pacific Ocean, are characterized by their high petroleum resource potential in the Bering Sea continental margin as well, which is confirmed by the oil and gas pools discovered in neighboring onshore lowlands. The younger (Pliocene) and older (up to Upper Cretaceous) sedimentary formations are also promising with respect to hydrocarbons. The integral potential oil and gas resources of the Bering Sea sedimentary basin, including the continental slopes, are estimated by the US Geological Survey to be 1120 × 10⁶ t and 965 × 10⁹ m³, respectively.     

Late Cretaceous–Paleocene tectonic development of the NW Vøring Basin

The Late Cretaceous–Paleocene rifting in the NW Vøring Basin is characterized by four main fault complexes and pronounced upper-crustal structural segmentation. The fault complexes are linked by accommodation zones, which separate fault systems of different polarities and thick from thinner coeval sedimentary successions. Structural and stratigraphic analyses suggest that the early rift phase (∼81 to 65 Ma) was characterized by large-scale normal faulting, along-margin segmentation and varying structural styles; whereas the late rift phase (∼65 to 55 Ma) was associated with continued extension, regional uplift, intrusive igneous activity and subsequent erosion. The rifting ended with breakup at ∼55 Ma accompanied by massive, but gradually waning extrusive igneous activity over the next 3 Myr. The mode of rifting appears to have changed from brittle to more ductile extensional deformation from the early to late rift phase. The changing rift rheology is probably related to the arrival of the Iceland mantle plume and initiation of associated igneous activity. Hence, the NW Vøring Basin provides an example of complex interaction of structural and magmatic relationships during rifting and breakup.     

Late Cenozoic geological development of the south Vøring margin,mid-Norway

Late Cenozoic seismic stratigraphy of the Vøring continental margin has been studied in detail, with emphasis on the geological development of the Naust Formation deposited during the last 3 million years. The Kai Formation (15–3 Ma) comprises mainly biogenic ooze deposited in the Møre and Vøring Basins. In Naust time, there was a marked increase in supply of sediments from the inner shelf areas and the western part of the Scandinavian mountain range, and glaciers expanded to the shelf and reached the shelf edge several times during the last 1.5–2 million years. During early to mid Naust time the shelf was widened by westerly prograding sediment units, but for a long period the shallowest part of the Helland-Hansen Arch (HHA) formed a barrier preventing glacially derived debris from being distributed farther west. West of the HHA, mainly stratified marine and glacimarine sediments were deposited. A substantial part of these sediments were transported by the north-flowing Norwegian Atlantic Current, which redistributed suspended particles from ice streams, rivers, coastal erosion and seabed winnowing. After burial of the crest of the HHA at c. 0.5 Ma, glacial debris and slide deposits were also deposited west of this high. In the north, massive units of glacial debris were distributed beyond the crest of the HHA, also in mid Naust time, thinning westwards and interfingering with fine-grained sediments on the lower slope. The Sklinnadjupet Slide, inferred to be c. 250,000 years old, corresponds in age with an earlier huge slide in the Storegga area. An elongated area of uneven seabed topography previously interpreted as diapirs (Vigrid diapirs) on the slope west of the HHA is shown to be formed by ooze eruption from the crest of the arch and submarine sliding.     

Input, accumulation and cycling of materials on the continental slope off Cape Hatteras: An introduction

The studies reported in this special issue ofDeep-Sea Research are largely derived from data collected as part of programs supported by the U.S. Department of the Interior, Minerals Management Service (MMS) in response to concerns about the effect of oil and gas exploration on the largely unknown continental slope environment. Results of the MMS U.S. South Atlantic continental slope and rise program conducted off the Carolinas from Cape Hatteras to off Charleston in depths ranging from 600–3500 m identified the importance of the slope off Cape Hatteras in cycling of materials from the shelf to the deep sea. Other more detailed investigations followed which filled numerous gaps in our knowledge of the role played by such special regions of the continental slope in the global cycling of carbon and other materials.     

珠江口盆地陆架坡折带海底滑坡及其影响因素

为了解海底滑坡在陆架坡折演化过程中所起的作用并分析影响海底滑坡发育的因素,以最新采集的二维和三维地震资料为基础,综合运用了地貌分析和地震解释技术,通过对滑坡的地貌形态特征及地震响应特征进行详细刻画,在珠江口盆地陆架坡折带新近纪地层中识别出多处海底滑坡,明确了其分布范围并建立了滑坡发育的地质模式。分析认为,珠江口盆地相对海平面变化和流体活动的综合作用是导致研究区海底不稳定的主要因素。海底滑坡发源于海底峡谷的朔源侵蚀,向上陆坡扩展并终止于陆架坡折带。