Variations of continental discharge pattern in space and time: implications from the Laptev Sea continental margin, Arctic Siberia

Variations in sediment input and distribution to the Laptev Sea continental margin during the Holocene and Termination I could be identified based on radiocarbon dated magnetic susceptibility logs and sediment thickness in high-resolution seismic profiles. Magnetic susceptibility of surface samples reveals an increased input of magnetic grains to the Laptev Sea deriving from the Anabar and Khatanga river catchments. Exposed magnetite schists and volcanic rocks of the Anabar shield and Putoran Plateau, respectively, function as major source of magnetic material. The distribution of magnetic susceptibility in association with the thickness of the Holocene sediments indicates bottom-current induced sediment transport guided by major submarine valleys on the Laptev Sea shelf. The sites of filled paleoriver channels identified in the seismic profiles suggest that during the Late Weichselian sea-level lowstand river runoff continued through four of the major valleys on the exposed Laptev Sea shelf. The sediments at the top of the lowstand deposits in front of the Anabar-Khatanga valley, represented in the seismic profiles by prograding deltas, are characterized by outstandingly high magnetic susceptibility values. Radiocarbon datings approximate the deposition of these high magnetic sediments between 10 and 13.4 ka. It is suggested that this increased input of magnetic material is related to the deglaciation of the Anabar shield and the Putoran Plateau and thus support their glaciation during marine isotope stage (MIS) 2.     

Depositional environment of the Laptev Sea (Arctic Siberia) during the Holocene

The Holocene depositional setting of the Laptev Sea was studied using three marine sediment cores from water depths between 77 and 46 m. Based on sedimentary parameters (TOC content, δ¹³C_org, sedimentation rates) controlled by radiocarbon age models the palaeoenvironment of a strongly coupled river-shelf system was reconstructed since ˜11 ka BP. Caused by a transgressing sea after the last glaciation, all cores reveal progressive decreases in sedimentation rates. Using the sedimentary records of a core from the Khatanga-Anabar river channel in the western Laptev Sea, several phases of change are recognized: (1) an early period lasted until ˜10 ka BP characterized by an increased deposition of plant debris due to shelf erosion and fluvial runoff; (2) a transitional phase with consistently increasing marine conditions until 6 ka BP, which was marked at its beginning near 10 ka BP by the first occurrence of marine bivalves, high TOC content and an increase in δ¹³C_org; (3) a time of extremely slow deposition of sediments, commencing at ˜6 ka BP and interpreted as Holocene sea-level highstand, which caused a southward retreat of the depositional centres within the now submerged river channels on the shelf; (4) a final phase with the establishment of modern conditions after ˜2 ka BP.     

Variability of fluvial sediment supply to the Laptev Sea continental margin during Late Weichselian to Holocene times: implications from clay–mineral records

Three sediment cores from the Laptev Sea continental margin were investigated for their clay mineralogy by X-ray diffraction to study the fluvial sediment supply since the late Weichselian. In the study area, the clay-mineral composition of surface sediments is characterized by distinct regional variations. The source area for smectite in the eastern Eurasian Basin is the Putoran Plateau drained by the Khatanga and Yenisei rivers. Currents caused by river discharge and the inflow of Atlantic water masses along the Eurasian continental margin are responsible for sediment distribution. In the sediment cores, smectite and illite contents show an opposite trend which mainly results from variable smectite supply. During MIS 2 the amount of smectite on the Laptev Sea continental margin never exceeds 10 rel.%. Probably, reduced river discharge and the lowered sea level during MIS 2 caused a decreased sediment supply to the Laptev Sea. Additionally, the Putoran Plateau was covered by an ice sheet during the Late Weichselian preventing the erosion of smectite-rich soils. In contrast, maximum smectite contents (up to 30 rel.%) in Holocene sediments result from increased sediment input by the Khatanga River and from the Kara Sea through the Vilkitsky Strait and via St. Anna Trough into the western Laptev Sea.     

Initial geologic hydrocarbon resources of the Laptev Sea shelf

Formation of the passive continental margin of the Laptev Sea (Laptev Plate), which was part of the Siberian Platform till the Late Cretaceous, was related to the Late Mesozoic–Cenozoic rifting of the Arctic geodepression. The regime of the passive continental margin still continues. The maximum thickness of the deposits of this age seems to exceed 6 km in the northeastern part of the shelf. The hydrocarbon resources of the Late Precambrian–Cenozoic deposits forming the Laptev Plate cover are evaluated. Based on the concept of the similar evolution of the Laptev Plate and Vilyui syneclise, the geochemical characteristics of dispersed organic matter of the coeval deposits of the Vilyui syneclise are used.     

Paleogeography of the Laptev Sea eastern shelf in the first half of Holocene based on faunal and palynological evidence

The Holocene paleogeography of the Laptev Sea eastern shelf is reconstructed based on mollusks, foraminifers, ostracodes, spores and pollen found for the first time. Environmental changes in the course of the postglacial (Holocene) transgression are detectable from quantitative analysis of three ostracod assemblages. Three phases of the transgression are established based on ostracode assemblages from the AMS ¹⁴C-dated core from the ancient valley of Yana River, central part of the Laptev Sea eastern shelf. After the first phase of coastal brackish-water environment (11.3–11.1 ka), shallow-water marine taxa appeared in the transitional phase (11.1–10.3 ka), and the third phase of modern sea conditions commenced 10.3 ka ago. Spore and pollen assemblages from the core indicate that the early Holocene land vegetation was dominated by tundra plant communities adapted to climatic conditions not warmer than at present. In the interval of 9.3–8.0 ka, climate was increasingly humid and warm, and forest-tundra vegetation occupied more favorable zones of the region.     

Late Quaternary changes in sediment composition on the NE Greenland margin (~73° N) with a focus on the fjords and shelf

In order to document changes in Holocene glacier extent and activity in NE Greenland (~73° N) we study marine sediment records that extend from the fjords (PS2631 and PS2640), across the shelf (PS2623 and PS2641), to the Greenland Sea (JM07‐174GC). The primary bedrock geology of the source areas is the Caledonian sediment outcrop, including Devonian red beds, plus early Neoproterozoic gneisses and early Tertiary volcanics. We examine the variations in colour (CIE*), grain size, and bulk mineralogy (from X‐ray diffraction of the <2 mm sediment fraction). Fjord core PS2640 in Sofia Sund, with a marked red hue, is distinct in grain size, colour and mineralogy from the other fjord and shelf cores. Five distinct grain‐size modes are distinguished of which only one is associated with a coarse ice‐rafting signal – this mode is rare in the mid‐ and late Holocene. A sediment unmixing program (SedUnMixMC) is used to characterize down‐core changes in sediment composition based on the upper late Holocene sediments from cores PS2640 (Sofia Sund), PS2631 (Kaiser Franz Joseph Fjord) and PS2623 (south of Shannon Is), and surface samples from the Kara Sea (as an indicator of transport from the Russian Arctic shelves). Major changes in mineral composition are noted in all cores with possible coeval shifts centred c. 2.5, 4.5 and 7.5 cal. ka BP (±0.5 ka) but are rarely linked with changes in the grain‐size spectra. Coarse IRD (>2 mm) and IRD‐grain‐size spectra are rare in the last 9–10 cal. ka BP and, in contrast with areas farther south (~68° N), there is no distinct IRD signal at the onset of neoglaciation. Our paper demonstrates the importance of the quantitative analysis of sediment properties in clarifying source to sink changes in glacial marine environments.     

Ostracod palaeoecology and environmental change in the Laptev and Kara seas (Siberian Arctic) during the last 18 000 years

Fossil ostracod assemblages were investigated in five AMS ¹⁴ C‐dated cores from various water depths of the Laptev and Kara seas ranging from the upper continental slope (270 m) to the present‐day shelf depth (40 m). Six fossil assemblages were distinguished. These represent the varying environmental conditions at the North Siberian continental margin since about 18 ka. In the cores from the shelf the ostracod assemblages reflect the gradual transition from an estuarine brackish‐water environment to modern marine conditions since 12.3 ka, as induced by the regional early Holocene transgression. The core from the upper continental slope dates back to c. 17.6 ka and contains assemblages that are absent in the shelf cores. The assemblage older than 10 ka stands out as a specific community dominated by relatively deep‐water Arctic and North Atlantic species that also contains euryhaline species. Such an assemblage provides evidence for past inflows of Atlantic‐derived waters from as early as c. 17.2 ka, probably facilitated by upwelling in coastal polynyas, and a considerable riverine freshwater influence with enhanced surface water stratification owing to the proximity of the palaeocoastline until early Holocene times. In all studied cores, relative increases in euryhaline species dominant in the inner‐shelf regions are recorded in the mid–late Holocene sediments (<7 ka), which otherwise already contain modern‐like ostracod assemblages with relatively deep‐water species. This observation suggests euryhaline species to be largely sea‐ice‐ and/or iceberg‐rafted and therefore may provide evidence for a climate cooling trend.     

A high resolution relative paleointensity record from the Gerlache-Boyd paleo-ice stream region, northern Antarctic Peninsula

Herein we document and interpret an absolute chronological dating attempt using geomagnetic paleointensity data from a post-glacial sediment drape on the western Antarctic Peninsula continental shelf. Our results demonstrate that absolute dating can be established in Holocene Antarctic shelf sediments that lack suitable material for radiocarbon dating. Two jumbo piston cores of 10-m length were collected in the Western Bransfield Basin. The cores preserve a strong, stable remanent magnetization and meet the magnetic mineral assemblage criteria recommended for reliable paleointensity analyses. The relative paleomagnetic intensity records were tuned to published absolute and relative paleomagnetic stacks, which yielded a record of the last ∼8500 years for the post-glacial drape. Four tephra layers associated with documented eruptions of nearby Deception Island have been dated at 3.31, 3.73, 4.44, and 6.86 ± 0.07 ka using the geomagnetic paleointensity method. This study establishes the dual role of geomagnetic paleointensity and tephrochronology in marine sediments across both sides of the northern Antarctic Peninsula.     

Alkane and PAH biomarkers as tracers of terrigenous organic carbon in Arctic Ocean sediments

We present the first sedimentary biomarker study encompassing the entire Arctic Ocean. A large data set of organic markers for terrigenous, petroleum and combustion inputs [alkanes, hopanes and steranes, parent and alkyl polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs)] is examined for patterns in space and time using principal components analysis (PCA) and partial least squares (PLS). Biomarker patterns reveal the central Arctic Ocean basin sediments to be compositionally distinct from those of the Mackenzie River/Beaufort Sea and Barents Sea, but similar to those of the Laptev Sea. PAH distributions reflected in PAH ratios and PCA projections demonstrate that Arctic Ocean sediment is dominated by natural inputs to the extent that anthropogenic combustion PAHs are not significant. We find only modest changes between the glacial and post-glacial sediments for atmospherically transported hydrocarbon biomarkers, while particle associated biomarkers were captured strongly at basin edges during the glacial period, and much more evenly transported across basins during the post-glacial period. The orders of magnitude decreases in particle associated petrogenic alkanes and PAHs in central basins during glacial times, coupled with the uniformity of most petrogenic biomarker parameters for most basin and shelf locations, reflect a massive reduction in ice transport that makes the margins the most likely source of petrogenic material for the Pleistocene/Holocene central Arctic basins. The proximity of large coal deposits of various maturity levels along the Lena River, the overlap in PAH and biomarker composition of the Laptev Sea and surficial sediments from the central Arctic Ocean and the location of the Laptev Sea at the origin of the main Transpolar Drift all point to eroded coals from the Lena River/Laptev Sea as the likely source of petrogenic hydrocarbons to the central Arctic Ocean. The ubiquitous presence of allochthonous coal in Arctic Ocean surface sediments provides a major constraint on the use of petrogenic biomarkers to infer the presence of subsurface petroleum reserves.     

The Holocene history of the southwestern Baltic Sea as reflected in a sediment core from the Bornholm Basin

A study of changes in siliceous microfossil assemblages and chemical analyses in a well-dated offshore sediment core from the Bornholm Basin, southwestern Baltic Sea, is carried out with the objective of increasing knowledge of the Holocene history of the area. The core covers about 11 300 calendar years from the brackish phase of the Yoldia Sea stage to the present. The first weak marine influence in the Ancylus Lake stage is recorded about 10 100 cal. yr BP (c. 8900 ¹⁴C BP), indicating a complex transition to the Litorina Sea with different phases of brackish-water inflow. The lithology, organic carbon content and C/N and C/S ratios indicate no major changes in the sedimentary environment during the Litorina-Post-Litorina Sea stages. A high productivity event recorded in the Post-Litorina Sea stage around 950 cal. yr BP correlates with the Medieval warm event. A biostratigraphical change indicating a colder climate is recorded in the sediment at about 800 cal. yr BP, which might mark the beginning of the Little Ice Age.     

Centennial-to-millennial-scale periodicities of Holocene climate and sediment injections off the western Barents shelf, 75°N

At the western continental margin of the Barents Sea, 75°N, hemipelagic sediments provide a record of Holocene climate change with a time resolution of 10-70 years. Planktic foraminifera counts reveal a very early Holocene thermal optimum 10.7-7.7 kyr BP, with summer sea surface temperatures (SST) of 8°C and a much enhanced West Spitsbergen Current. There was a short cooling between 8.8 and 8.2 kyr BP. In the middle and late Holocene summer, SST dropped to 2.5°-5.0°C, indicative of reduced Atlantic heat advection, except for two short warmings near 2.2 and 1.6 kyr BP. Distinct quasi-periodic spikes of coarse sediment fraction (with large portions of lithic grains, benthic and planktic foraminifera) record cascades of cold, dense winter water down the continental slope as a result of enhanced seasonal sea ice formation and storminess on the Barents shelf over the entire Holocene. The spikes primarily cluster near recurrence intervals of 400-650 and 1000-1350 years, when traced over the entire Holocene, but follow significant 885-/840- and 505-/605-year periodicities in the early Holocene. These non-stationary periodicities mimic the Greenland-[Formula: See Text]Be variability, which is a tracer of solar forcing. Further significant Holocene periodicities of 230, (145) and 93 years come close to the deVries and Gleissberg solar cycles.     

Late Quaternary valley-fill succession of the Lower Tagus Valley, Portugal

The Lower Tagus Valley in Portugal contains a well-developed valley-fill succession covering the complete Late Pleistocene and Holocene periods. As large-scale stratigraphic and chronologic frameworks of the Lower Tagus Valley are not yet available, this paper describes facies, facies distribution, and sedimentary architecture of the late Quaternary valley fill. Twenty four radiocarbon ages provide a detailed chronological framework. Local factors affected the nature and architecture of the incised valley-fill succession. The valley is confined by pre-Holocene deposits and is connected with a narrow continental shelf. This configuration facilitated deep incision, which prevented large-scale marine flooding and erosion. Consequently a thick lowstand systems tract has been preserved. The unusually thick lowstand systems tract was probably formed in a previously (30,000–20,000 cal BP) incised narrow valley, when relative sea-level fall was maximal. The lowstand deposits were preserved due to subsequent rapid early Holocene relative sea-level rise and transgression, when tidal and marine environments migrated inland (transgressive systems tract). A constant sea level in the middle to late Holocene, and continuous fluvial sediment supply, caused rapid bayhead delta progradation (highstand systems tract). This study shows that the late Quaternary evolution of the Lower Tagus Valley is determined by a narrow continental shelf and deep glacial incision, rapid post-glacial relative sea-level rise, a wave-protected setting, and large fluvial sediment supply.     

Rapid climatic shifts of the northern Norwegian Sea during the last deglaciation and the Holocene

High resolution cores from the upper continental slope, northern Norwegian Sea, document rapid climatic fluctuations during the latest deglaciation and the Holocene. Based on down-core analysis of planktic and benthic foraminifera, stable oxygen and carbon isotopes, carbonate and organic carbon and radiocarbon dating, the following evolution is proposed: sea-ice cover broke up, the surface ocean warmed and an in situ benthic foraminiferal fauna was established at 12 500 BP. The Younger Dryas was characterized by reduced sedimentaion and foraminiferal production, due to surface ocean cooling. At the end of the Younger Dryas there were major shifts in both surface and bottom water conditions. The surface ocean warmed to temperatures similar to modern levels within < 100 years, reaching a maximum at about 9200 BP when foraminiferal production was high. A benthic foraminiferal assemblage indicative of bottom water conditions similar to present conditions was established at 10 000 BP. This was followed by a gradual decline in nutrients or an increase in ventilation of the bottom water throughout the Holocene. A gradual surface ocean cooling of c . 2°C ended around 6500 BP followed by a second warming that culminated at 2000 BP. The warming at the end of the Younger Dryas and the succeeding older Holocene temperature maximum correlate to a June insolation maximum in the northern hemisphere. In addition, fluctuating surface temperatures in the Holocene may be driven by variations in inflow of Atlantic Water.     

珠江口盆地裂后阶段性差异沉降及其成因机制*

位于南海北部陆缘的珠江口盆地裂后沉降特征不同于陆内典型断陷盆地。研究表明,盆地裂后期发生了阶段性有序差异沉降,可分为4个阶段: (1)渐新世早期(~33.9~27.2 Ma),以盆地整体缓慢沉降,大规模海侵为主要特征;(2)渐新世晚期(~27.2~23.0 Ma),以邻近西北次海盆的珠四坳陷强烈沉降为主要特征,差异沉降控制了陆架坡折带的发育和该时期陆架浅水和陆坡深水沉积环境的分布;(3)中新世早—中期(~23.0~10.0 Ma),陆缘强烈沉降区向北扩展至珠二坳陷,尤其是白云凹陷,导致陆架坡折带向北跃迁,并奠定了现今陆架浅水和陆坡深水的沉积格局;(4)中新世晚期—现今(~10.0~0 Ma),陆缘构造沉降逐渐减弱,陆坡由沉积区转变为沉积过路区,沉积物得以大量进入西北次海盆。渐新世2期快速沉降的初始时间,分别对应于南海扩张脊的跃迁,陆缘裂后沉降随扩张脊向南跃迁而向北扩展,并伴有岩浆作用的早强晚弱特点,而沉降量的大小则与裂陷期地壳的薄化程度正相关,反映了陆缘岩石圈经历了早期挠曲回弹的均衡调整和扩张脊跃迁导致地幔物质有序向南撤离而沉降的演化过程。珠江口盆地裂后有序差异沉降控制了陆架坡折带的发育,进而控制了浅水与深水两大沉积体系的展布。     

苏拉威西海周边地区全新世植被演化及气候变化

全新世时期的环境和气候变化是全球气候模拟、预测中不可或缺的资料.对苏拉威西海西北部MD98-2178孔(3.6200°N,118.7000°E,水深1 984 m)全新世的样品进行孢粉分析和浮游有孔虫氧稳定同位素测试,重建全新世苏拉威西海周边地区植被演化和气候变化图景.根据孢粉记录得到:在全新世早期至7 ka BP时,各孢粉组合浓度剧烈下降,指示海平面处于上升阶段;在7~4 ka BP时,各孢粉组合浓度都处于低谷,体现为高海平面期;在4 ka BP之后,孢粉记录则显示海平面有小幅的下降.在全新世中期,即5~4 ka BP,热带高山雨林花粉含量明显上升,表明是温度低值期.蕨类孢子记录显示降雨量在全新世早期是持续增加的,但在全新世中期之后,降雨量有所减少,这与陆地孢粉记录和印尼石笋记录的结果相似,体现全新世该地区降雨量受海陆格局和太阳活动共同影响.      

东海陆架第四纪地层层序的初步研究

根据我局在东海陆架所获得的区域海洋地质和工程地质调查资料,对已有的第四纪地质孔进行统一的第四纪地层划分和对比,建立了东海陆架第四纪地层层序。将第四系四分,从老到新依次为下更新统西湖组、中更新统金鸡山组、上更新统西泠组、全新统海礁组或下全新统鸡骨礁组、中全新统大戟山组、上全新统嵊泗组。     

南海北部陆架中全新世沉积记录及古环境意义

 通过分析珠江口外陆架C069孔沉积柱样的粒度、黏土矿物、主量元素及底栖有孔虫,来研究南海北部中全新世晚期古环境演化。4.2 ka前为全新世大暖期后期,气候湿润,珠江口外陆架受大量的珠江淡水影响,导致C069孔位置的水动力条件较强,形成下段粒度较粗的碎屑沉积物,高岭石含量较高,低的MgO/Al2O3比值,以及受冲淡水影响形成的底栖有孔虫。由于受4.2 ka的极冷事件的影响,C069孔上段的沉积环境受珠江冲淡水影响减小,水动力条件减弱,沉积物粒度变细,高岭石含量降低,MgO/Al2O3比值增大,形成正常浅水环境的底栖有孔虫。4.2 ka以后,台湾来源物质的贡献增多,导致沉积物中伊利石和绿泥石的含量增多,伊利石结晶度和化学指数值都明显变小。     

亚洲大陆边缘沉积学研究进展(2011-2020)

近十年来,我国在亚洲大陆边缘沉积学和古海洋学研究中取得了突破性进展.在空间上,对北起拉普捷夫海、南至孟加拉湾的广大海域进行了沉积物调查取样,开展了跨纬度"源-汇"过程研究,建立了陆架第四纪高分辨率地层层序,初步揭示了构造运动、海平面变化、亚洲季风、海冰、海流以及人类活动等因素在不同时空尺度上对亚洲大陆边缘"源-汇"过程...     

Changes in the deposition of terrestrial organic matter on the Laptev Sea shelf during the Holocene: evidence from stable carbon isotopes

Stable carbon isotope ratios in the organic fraction of surface sediments from the Laptev Sea shelf were analyzed in order to study the modern distribution pattern of terrestrial organic matter. The '¹³C_org signature of the surface sediments range from -26.6‰ near the coastal margin to -22.8‰ in the north towards the outer shelf. Characterizing the possible sources of organic matter by their '¹³C_org signature reveals that the terrestrial influence reaches further north in the eastern than in the western Laptev Sea. Downcore records of the '¹³C_org, measured on three AMS ¹⁴C-dated cores from water depths between 46 and 77 m, specify the spatial and temporal changes in the deposition of terrestrial organic matter on the Laptev Sea shelf during the past 12.7 ka. The major depositional changes of terrestrial organic matter occurred between 11 and 7 ka and comprised the main phase of the southward retreat of the coastline and of the river depocenters due to the postglacial sea level rise.     

珠江口外海域与珠江三角洲晚更新世以来的地层层序对比

本文综合运用珠江三角洲外南海北部陆架的地震测线和三角洲地区的钻孔资料进行联合解译,获得由浅海至陆地的层序地层剖面,辨识出三角洲地区4套地层层序和南海北部陆架6套地层层序及体系域,前者仅记录了2个沉积旋回和相应的2次海面变化,而后者记录了更多沉积旋回及相应的海平面波动.在海、陆层序对接和对比的基础上,文章重点把南海北部陆架6套地层层序与深海氧同位素阶段MIS6~MIS1进行了对比分析,认为珠江三角洲下旋回与南海北部陆架层序D相当,珠江三角洲下旋回对应着南海北部陆架MIS6~MIS5(距今15万年~8万年)时代的层序地层,MIS4~MIS2末次冰期低海面时期的三角洲沉积位于现今南海北部陆架之上,并未向北延伸到现代珠江三角洲地区.珠江三角洲和南海北部陆架的下沉都是南海陆缘扩张的表现.