Composition and origin of clay minerals in Holocene sediments from the south-eastern North Sea

The distribution of clay minerals varies systematically in sediments from Holocene core material taken along a profile from the East Frisian coast to the Doggerbank. The proportion of illite increases with distance from the coast at the expense of kaolinite, whereas slight variations are seen in smectite and chlorite abundances. The chemical composition changes, and the K/Rb ratio and K-Ar isotopic age of illite increase seawards. This trend results from progressive mixing processes of riverine detritus with Pleistocene fluvioglacial material reworked during the Holocene transgression. However, the clay fluvial flux only became dominant during the decreasing rate of sea-level rise in the Late Holocene, especially near the shore. For example, modern sediments in tidal flats contain 75% of river-borne Holocene-supplied clay detritus, whereas this amount is only 10% in modern marine sediments at the Doggerbank.     

16 ka以来冲绳海槽中南部沉积物物源演化及其对古气候的响应

基于有孔虫AMS14C年龄年代框架,通过冲绳海槽中南部的OKT12孔沉积物黏土矿物的分析,探讨了16 ka以来冲绳海槽细颗粒沉积物的物源变化及其对源区气候的响应。研究结果显示,10 ka时黏土矿物组成发生明显变化,伊利石、绿泥石含量增加,高岭石、蒙皂石含量减少,指示物源由之前的长江和东海陆架源转变为台湾源。受到海平面上升影响,长江河口和冲绳海槽距离增加,夏季风增强,黑潮增强,既搬运台湾来源物质,又阻碍长江物质跨陆架输运,在这些因素综合作用下,长江物质减少、台湾物质增加。高岭石/（伊利石+绿泥石）和绿泥石/（伊利石+蒙皂石）比值在4 ka以来增加指示全新世晚期台湾源区侵蚀强度发生变化。4 ka前后物源判别显示,OKT12孔沉积物来源由台湾东北部河流变为台湾东南部河流,反映了该时期季风降雨导致源区台湾不同区域的侵蚀差异,可能与ITCZ南移、ENSO活动增强有关。     

钱塘江下切河谷SE2孔全新世沉积物黏土矿物特征及其意义*

通过X射线衍射系统分析了杭州湾地区SE2孔全新世沉积物的黏土矿物组成,结果显示研究层段黏土矿物主要由伊利石、绿泥石、高岭石和蒙脱石组成;伊利石结晶度较好,化学风化指数普遍大于0.5,表明以化学风化为主,且风化趋势自下而上呈递减趋势。通过对比中国东南部主要河流沉积物的黏土矿物组成,认为钱塘江下切河谷全新世沉积物的黏土矿物组成具有较好的物源指示意义: 全新世 Ⅰ 段(即古河口湾和河漫滩)沉积物主要来自钱塘江上游,特征黏土矿物为高岭石,河口外物质贡献不大;Ⅱ 段(即现代河口湾和近岸浅海)沉积物包含较多蒙脱石,表明不仅包括钱塘江上游物质,河口外长江物质也开始进入钱塘江河口。黏土矿物中,高岭石对气候有较好的指示作用:中全新世高岭石含量达到最高值,反映气候最为湿热,化学风化程度最高;晚全新世含量逐渐降低,反映气候逐渐回冷,化学风化强度降低。     

钱塘江下切河谷SE2孔全新世沉积物黏土矿物特征及其意义*

通过X射线衍射系统分析了杭州湾地区SE2孔全新世沉积物的黏土矿物组成,结果显示研究层段黏土矿物主要由伊利石、绿泥石、高岭石和蒙脱石组成;伊利石结晶度较好,化学风化指数普遍大于0.5,表明以化学风化为主,且风化趋势自下而上呈递减趋势。通过对比中国东南部主要河流沉积物的黏土矿物组成,认为钱塘江下切河谷全新世沉积物的黏土矿物组成具有较好的物源指示意义: 全新世 Ⅰ 段(即古河口湾和河漫滩)沉积物主要来自钱塘江上游,特征黏土矿物为高岭石,河口外物质贡献不大;Ⅱ 段(即现代河口湾和近岸浅海)沉积物包含较多蒙脱石,表明不仅包括钱塘江上游物质,河口外长江物质也开始进入钱塘江河口。黏土矿物中,高岭石对气候有较好的指示作用:中全新世高岭石含量达到最高值,反映气候最为湿热,化学风化程度最高;晚全新世含量逐渐降低,反映气候逐渐回冷,化学风化强度降低。     

浙闽泥质区全新世物源和古气候演化研究进展

浙闽泥质区是全新世高海平面以来沉积物的汇。受东亚季风影响,浙闽沿岸流和台湾暖流具有季节性变化,长江口"夏储冬输"的沉积物输运模式对东海内陆架泥质区的形成有关键作用。浙闽泥质区的潜在物源主要有长江、浙闽河流以及台湾西部山地河流,以长江物质为主。黏土矿物、稀土元素、Sr-Nd同位素、环境磁学等方法是物源研究的重要手段。长江物质以伊利石为主,蒙脱石含量较少,高岭石和绿泥石含量中等;而台湾物质以伊利石和绿泥石为主,没有蒙脱石。磁黄铁矿是台湾河流沉积物特有的磁性矿物,可作为大陆河流与台湾河流物源识别的指标。泥质区位于东亚季风区,受低纬热带过程和高纬大气环流的影响,气候变化具有波动性。沉积物敏感粒级反演的东亚冬季风（EAWM）只记录了泥质区形成以来的气候变化,不能代表整个全新世。受台湾暖流和浙闽沿岸流的双重影响,敏感粒级作为EAWM演化的指标需进一步深入研究。     

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.     

南海陆坡中新世以来沉积物特性与气体水合物分布初探

通过对南海陆坡地区中新世以来沉积物的一些属性和特征的研究,获得了下面的初步认识：（1）南海陆坡有几个沉积速率较高的地区, 如东沙一带、西沙海槽、中建南地区,以及南沙西南部和西北部（曾母、万安盆地）;（2）大洋钻探钻井资料的研究表明,中新世与早上新世为高碳酸盐比值的低速堆积期,而近200万a以来为低碳酸盐比值的高速堆积期,上新世晚期至全新世沉积物以粘土质粉砂和粉砂质粘土为最主要成分;（3）南海不同时期的沉积速率不同,全新世为沉积速率最高的时期,其次为更新世;上新世和中新世为沉积速率较低的时期。南海利于气体水合物存藏的沉积可能为全新世和更新世的沉积;（4）对南海晚第四纪以来沉积物的综合研究表明南海陆坡的A区（东沙附近）、B区（西沙海槽）、D区（南海西部、越南以东）等地区可能利于气体水合物的形成和分布;而E区（南沙西南部）、F区（南沙中上部）和G区(南沙海槽)则是气体水合物调查值得关注的地区。     

Climate signals in sediment mineralogy of Lake Baikal and Lake Hovsgol during the LGM-Holocene transition and the 1-Ma carbonate record from the HDP-04 drill core

Modeling the bulk sediment XRD patterns allows insight into the environmental and depositional histories of two neighboring rift lake basins within the Baikal watershed. Parallel ¹⁴C-dated LGM-Holocene records in Lakes Baikal and Hovsgol are used to discuss the mineralogical signatures of regional climate change. In both basins, it is possible to distinguish ‘glacial’ and ‘interglacial’ mineral associations. Clay minerals comprise in excess of 50% of layered silicates in bulk sediment.The abundance of smectite (expandable) layers in mixed-layer illite–smectites and the total illite abundance are the main paleoclimatic indices in the clay mineral assemblage. Both indices exhibit coherent responses to the Bølling–Allerød and the Younger Dryas. The smectite layer index is not equivalent to the abundance of illite–smectite, because illite–smectite tends to transform into illite. Repeated wetting–drying cycles in soils and high abundance of expandable layers in illite–smectites (>42%) favor the process of illitization. This relationship is clearly shown in both Baikal and Hovsgol records for the first time. The opposite late Holocene trends in illite abundance in Lake Baikal and Lake Hovsgol records suggest that a sensitive optimal regime may exist for illite formation in the Baikal watershed with regard to warmth and effective moisture.The Lake Hovsgol sediments of the last glacial contain carbonates, suggesting a positive trend in the lake's water budget. A progressive change towards lower Mg content in carbonates indicates lowering mineralization of lake waters. This trend is consistent with the lithologic evidence for lake-level rise in the Hovsgol basin.The pattern of mineralogical changes during the past 20 ka is used to interpret bulk sediment and carbonate mineralogy of the long 81-m Lake Hovsgol drill core (HDP-04) with a basal age of 1 Ma. The interglacial-type silicate mineral associations are confined to several thin intervals; most of the sediment record is calcareous. Carbonates are represented by six main mineral phases: calcite, low-Mg calcite, intermediate/high-Mg calcite, dolomite, excess-Ca dolomite and metastable monohydrocalcite. These mineral phases tend to form stratigraphic successions indicative of progressive changes in lake water chemistry. Five sediment layers with abundant Mg-calcites in the HDP-04 section suggest deposition in a low standing lake with high mineralization (salinity) and high Mg/Ca ratios of lake waters. Lake Hovsgol sediments contain the oldest known monohydrocalcite, found tens of meters below lake bottom in sediments as old as 800 ka. This unusual find is likely due to the conditions favorable to preservation of this metastable carbonate.     

粘土矿物在黄河源区古气候研究中的应用

沉积物中粘土矿物的组成具有一定的古气候指示意义。利用沉积物中粘土矿物的组成探讨了黄河源区全新世的古气候变迁。通过X衍射方法分析了一个全新世地层剖面的粘土矿物类型和含量的变化,这些粘土矿物主要由伊利石、伊蒙混层矿物和少量的高岭石、绿泥石组成。对粘土矿物含量变化的分析和对比研究表明,黄河源区在全新世的气候寒冷干燥,即使在大暖期也显得温凉。全新世的气候演变可划分为3个阶段,即早全新世的干冷期、中全新世的温凉期(大暖期)和晚全新世的干冷期。在大暖期,在7 0kaB P 和5 0kaB P 前后发生了两次较强的降温事件。     

Late Quaternary fluctuations of the Leeuwin Current and palaeoclimates on the adjacent land masses: Clay mineral evidence

Clay minerals eroded from soils by rivers and wind action become entrained in shallow‐ as well as deep‐water masses of the surrounding seas. Their pattern on the sea floor gives clues to their propagation by ocean currents. Clay mineral assemblages in sediment cores can be used as a useful proxy to decipher past changes in the intensity of ocean currents or in the nature of the palaeoclimatic processes on the adjacent landmasses. Three cores taken from beneath the path of the present‐day Leeuwin Current in the Timor Passage, from off the Australian North West Shelf and off the North West Cape of Western Australia are investigated. They provide a Late Quaternary record of environmental changes. Kaolinite and chlorite are transported into the Timor Passage today by the Indonesian Throughflow, while illite is provided locally from Timor. The Leeuwin Current leaves the Timor Passage with a characteristic clay mineral signature acquired in the Indonesian Archipelago (kaolinite, chlorite and illite). Uptake of clay minerals along its way through the Timor Sea, e.g. illite from the Kimberley area, changes this signature. South of North West Cape chlorite, injected by the rivers of the Pilbara region into the path of the Leeuwin Current, is prominent in surface sediments in less than 1000 m water depth and outlines the flow of the current today. During the last glacial period, the volume of the Indonesian Throughflow decreased and less kaolinite and chlorite reached the Timor Passage. Offshore from North West Cape, a reduction in chlorite during the last glacial may indicate a decrease or absence of the Leeuwin Current and/or a reduction in the input of chlorite due to drier conditions on land. A maximum of illite in recent sediments and the Holocene offshore from North West Cape results from the input of material from rivers periodically draining the adjacent hinterland. Again, a reduction in illite points to a drier climate in the area during the last glacial.     

Deglaciation of the southeastern Norwegian Sea towards the end of the last glacial age

In a region of generally thin Holocene sediment cover along the outer Norwegian continental margin, a 565 cm long piston core was taken, which contained more than 4 m of Holocene clayey silty sediments. A several decimetres thick sandy horizon separated the glacial marine clays with ice-dropped components and the fine-grained Holocene sediments which have bulk sedimentation rates of more than 40 cm/1000 years. The scarcity of biogenous sediment components in the glacial sediments and the increasing frequency of benthonic as well as planktonic fossils in the Holocene deposits points to important changes in the Norwegian Sea hydrography during the time of the Scandinavian deglaciation.     

Clay mineralogy of the late pleistocene red sediments of the Visakhapatnam region,east coast of India

The fine-fraction mineralogy of the red sediments and of the upland soils along the Visakhapatnam—Bhimunipatnam coastal region has been studied by X-ray analysis. Dominant kaolinite with subordinate illite is the general clay-mineral assemblage in both the red sediments and the soils. The similar clay-mineral composition indicates that the upland soils are the source for the clay material in the red sediments. Montmorillonite is present in some samples and shows greater abundance in the red sediments than in the soils. The additional montmorillonite is considered to have been formed by post-depositional diagenesis in the red sediments at the expense of illite. Differences in the intensity of the weathering process controlled by the gradient in the source area have been suggested as being responsible for the variation in type and abundance of the clay minerals in the red sediments. It is inferred that humid and tropical to subtropical climatic conditions prevailed and persisted throughout the Late Pleistocene and Holocene in the Visakhapatnam region.     

Late Quaternary sedimentation on the Mid-Atlantic Reykjanes Ridge: clay mineral assemblages and depositional environment

Sediment samples from the Mid-Atlantic Reykjanes Ridge (59°N) were taken to get information about sediment genesis and to identify different sources during the late Quaternary. Samples were investigated by X-ray diffraction and grain-size analyses. The clay mineral assemblages in sediments of the Reykjanes Ridge reflect paleoceanographic changes during the late Quaternary. Holocene sediments are characterized by high contents of smectite, mainly of less developed crystallinity. In the spatial distribution of clay minerals high smectite concentrations on the eastern flank and slightly decreasing concentrations on the western flank of the Reykjanes Ridge indicate the action of bottom-water transport. The smectite originates mainly from the volcanogenous Icelandic shelf and reflects the influence of Iceland-Scotland Overflow Water (ISOW). Stratigraphic variability in the clay mineral composition reflects predominantly the influence of different sources, resulting from oceanographic and glacial transport processes. During glacial time sediment transport is due mainly to input by icebergs. Increasing amounts of illite, chlorite, and kaolinite characterize ice-rafted sediments of the “Heinrich layers”. In these sediments smectite crystallinity is well developed. In contrast, several other ice-rafted layers contain smectite with low crystallographic order, similar to smectites of Holocene age. The icelandic source was proved by distinct amounts of basaltic glass in the coarse-grained sediment. At approximately 55 ka increasing amounts of chlorite and kaolinite suggest an enhanced influx of warm North Atlantic surface waters. This hypothesis is supported by a high carbonate shell production at this time. Relative low concentrations and the well-developed crystallinity of smectite minerals characterize the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM; 18–16 ka), indicating a reduced supply of fine icelandic material. Shortly after the LGM, at the beginning of termination IA, a distinct increase in fine-grained quartz (<2μm) and smectite are visible, which are proposed to reflect a supply of fine-grained ice-rafted material. At 13 ka linear increasing smectite concentrations of lower crystallographic order indicate increasing supply of fine-grained material from Iceland, linked to reinitiation of bottom currents of the ISOW. Full reinitiation is indicated at around 10 ka, where a strong increase in smectite of low crystallographic order is detected.     

Changes in the source and transport mechanism of terrigenous input to the Indian sector of Southern Ocean during the late Quaternary and its palaeoceanographic implications

Changes in the terrigenous sediment source and transport mechanisms during the late Quaternary have been investigated using four sediment cores within the Indian sector of Southern Ocean, using the magnetic susceptibility (MS) and sedimentological records. Sediments deposited during the Holocene and other interglacial periods were characterised by low MS, low sand content, reduced ice-rafted detritus (IRD) input and increased illite possibly transported via hydrographic advection from the south. The glacial intervals are characterised by high MS, high sand content, increased IRD input and reduced illite clays, derived from both local as well as Antarctic sources. Significant reduction in clay fraction and illite content during glacials suggests that the erosive and transporting capabilities of the deep and bottom waters could have reduced compared to the interglacial times. The changes in terrigenous influx to this region were significantly influenced by the rhythmic glacial-interglacial fluctuations in bottom circulation and the position of the Polar Front.     

Holocene sedimentation in the Skagerrak interpreted from chirp sonar and core data

High‐resolution chirp sonar profiling in the northeastern Skagerrak shows acoustically stratified sediments draping a rough‐surfaced substratum. A 32 metre long sediment core retrieved from the survey area encompasses the entire Holocene and latest Pleistocene. The uppermost seismo‐acoustic units in the chirp profiles represent Holocene marine sediments. The lowermost unit is interpreted as ice‐proximal glacial‐marine sediments rapidly deposited during the last deglaciation. The end of ice‐proximal sedimentation is marked by a strong reflector, interpreted to have been formed during latest Pleistocene time as a consequence of rapid ice retreat and drastically lowered sedimentation rate. The subsequent distal glacial‐marine sediments were deposited with initially high sedimentation rates caused by an isostatic rebound‐associated sea‐level fall. Based on correlation between the core and the chirp sonar profiles using measured sediment physical properties and AMS ¹⁴C dating, we propose a revised position for the Pleistocene/Holocene boundary in the seismo‐acoustic stratigraphy of the investigated area. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Holocene Environmental Change and River-Mouth Sedimentation in the Baie des Anges, French Riviera

River mouths on the steep, high-relief coast of the French Riviera exhibit thick sequences of Holocene marine, estuarine, deltaic, and river channel-floodplain sediments that overlie basal fluvial Pleistocene gravel. Gravel is uncommon in most of the early to middle Holocene aggradational-progradational marine, estuarine, deltaic sediments, despite an ample supply from rock units in the steep adjoining uplands. River-mouth gravel is common only in late Holocene river channels and in barrier beaches perched on finer-grained nearshore sediments. Neither downslope grain-size fining on alluvial fans nor sediment stacking patterns during sea-level (base-level) rise readily account for the lack of early to middle Holocene gravel in the river-mouth sediment wedges. Holocene sea-level rise led to the storage of fine-grained sediments in shallow marine, estuarine, and deltaic environments in the present coastal zone. We infer that humid temperate conditions, a dense forest cover, landscape stabilization, and a regular quiescent river flow regime associated with the Atlantic climatic optimum limited gravel supply in the adjoining catchments and gravel entrainment downstream during the early Holocene. Sea-level stabilization in the middle and late Holocene coincided with a marked change in bioclimatic conditions toward the present Mediterranean-type regime, which is characterized by a less dense forest cover, soil erosion, and episodic catastrophic floods. The late Holocene was thus a time of downstream bedload channel aggradation, fine-grained floodplain and paludal sedimentation, and seaward flushing of clasts leading to the formation and consolidation of the gravel barrier beaches that bound the rivermouths and embayments.     

Clay minerals in SW Indian continental shelf sediment cores as indicators of provenance and palaeomonsoonal conditions: a statistical approach

Two sediment cores from the inner continental shelf of SW India, SK‐148/13 (4.66 m long; from 50 m water depth) and SK‐148/14 (5.37 m long; from 22 m water depth), were studied for provenance and palaeomonsoonal implications. Sediment layers at different depth intervals in these cores were estimated for clay minerals and organic matter content. Five surface sediment samples from the nearby Kali River estuary of the adjacent hinterland were also analysed for clay mineral contents. In both cores and Kali River sediments, smectite is the dominant clay followed by illite, and kaolinite or chlorite. Based on the similarities of the abundances of clay minerals and their relative wt‐% in the inner shelf sediment cores and in surface sediments of the estuary as demonstrated by significance tests, Al‐rich illite, and negligible contribution of clay from the deep‐sea and aeolian sources, it can be inferred that the sediments of the two inner continental shelf cores were derived from the adjacent hinterland. Application of statistical discordancy and significance tests on the down‐core variations in the crystallinity index (CI) of illite and organic matter content in the sediment cores indicates intense monsoonal (high rainfall) conditions at the adjacent hinterland during about 4300–6200 and 9300–10,400 years BP. These inferences are comparable to those from other well‐established palaeomonsoonal indicators such as sedimentation rates and mineral magnetic properties. The CI of illite, an easily determinable and climatically sensitive parameter, can thus be a reliable palaemonsoonal indicator for inner shelf sediment cores. The statistical methodology used in this work highlights the advantages of a quantitative interpretation of the data instead of the conventional qualitative visual examination.     

Clay mineralogy of Gulf of Papua Shelf and Pandora Trough deposits constrains sediment routing during the last sea-level cycle

The Gulf of Papua inner mid-shelf clinothem and lowstand deposits in Pandora Trough record sediment source and routing through the last sea-level cycle on 20 kyr cycles. Clay mineralogy tracked dispersal of sediment from the two types of rivers (wide versus narrow floodplains) to constrain the contributions of river systems to the Gulf of Papua clinothem and Pandora Trough deposits. Fly River sediment has higher illite:smectite than clays from the small mountainous rivers (Bamu, Turama, Kikori and Purari rivers) that drain regions with more limestones. X-ray diffraction shows high illite:smectite proximal to the Fly River delta that decrease towards the north-east. Downcore mineralogy of inner mid-shelf cores reveals that the largest shifts in illite:smectite correspond to changes in sediment units. The relict clinothem emplaced on the Gulf of Papua shelf during Marine Isotope Stage 3 has lower illite:smectite than the Holocene clinothem that has been building since 2 ka and the Marine Isotope Stage 5a relict clinothem. In the inner mid-shelf, downcore decreases in illite:smectite during Marine Isotope Stage 3 suggest that this region received less clay from the Fly River and more contributions from small mountainous rivers. During Marine Isotope Stage 3, the exposed physiography and narrower shelf in this region may have deflected Fly River sediment more south-eastward, where it bypassed the inner shelf via the Kiwai, Purutu and Umuda valleys and was deposited in the Pandora Trough. The Fly River may have been more susceptible to valley incision because of its limited shelf accommodation and higher ratio of water to sediment discharge. Such bypass of the inner mid-shelf by Fly River sediment during the Marine Isotope Stage 2 sea-level lowstand is recorded in Pandora Trough deposits with high illite:smectite ratios. Inner mid-shelf clinothems with compositional shifts on the order of 20 kyr may be influenced by shelf physiography, accommodation and the variable incision by small and large rivers.     

Provenance signatures and changes of the southwestern sector of the Barents Ice Sheet during the last deglaciation

Southwestern Barents Sea sediments contain important information on Lateglacial and Holocene environmental development of the area, i.e. sediment provenance characteristics related to ice‐flow patterns and ice drifting from different regional sectors. In this study, we present investigations of clay, heavy minerals, and ice‐rafted debris from three sediment cores obtained from the SW Barents Sea. The sediments studied are subglacial/glaciomarine to marine in origin. The core sequences were divided into three lithostratigraphical units. The lowest, Unit 3, consists of laminated glaciomarine sediments related to regional deglaciation. The overlying Unit 2 is a diamicton, dominated by mud and oversized clasts. Unit 2 reflects a more ice‐proximal glaciomarine sedimentary environment or even a subglacial depositional environment; its deposition may indicate a glacial re‐advance or stillstand during an overall retreat. The uppermost Unit 1 consists of Holocene marine sediments and current‐reworked sedimentary material with a relatively high carbonate content. A significant proportion of the sedimentary material could be derived from Svalbard and transported by sea ice or icebergs to the Barents Sea during the late deglacial phase. The Fennoscandian sources and local Mesozoic strata from the bottom of the Barents Sea are the likely provenances of sediments deposited during the deglacial and ice re‐advance phases. Bottom currents and sea‐ice transport were the main mechanisms influencing sedimentation during the Holocene. Our results indicate that the provenance areas can be reliably related to certain ice‐flow sectors and transport mechanisms in the deglaciated Barents Sea.     

The Quaternary history of the subtidal central Wash,eastern England

The history of Quaternary sedimentation in the subtidal Wash is described using high-resolution seismic profiles. The Pleistocene sequence is divided into three depositional units, comprising Anglian till overlain by possible Late Devensian subglacial scour fill and lacustrine sediments. These latter sediments may provide further evidence for a lake in the Wash impounded by ice along the Lincolnshire–Norfolk coast. The Holocene sequence is divided into six depositional units, each truncated by the one above. Estuarine sediment resting on a marine flooding surface forms the earliest unit. This sediment was partially eroded by migration of the shoreface as the marine flooding progressed landward. The following four units comprise sand and gravel banks deposited on the erosion surface. Bank deposition was followed by an episode of tidal scour caused either by increased tidal current velocities following reclamation of the Fenland or by breakdown of postulated former offshore barriers. The youngest and most extensive Holocene unit rests on the scoured surface and comprises several types of deposit. These are: large sand banks around the periphery of the subtidal area with sediment extending seawards into two NE–SW aligned troughs; low sand banks on a central ridge dividing the troughs and partially covering the sediments in the troughs; thick gravels towards the mouth of the Wash; muddy sediments forming drapes over the sand in the centre of the Wash. The data provide information on the variety of processes related to the advance and retreat of Pleistocene ice sheets in eastern England and the subsequent Holocene marine flooding of the Wash–Fenland embayment. The Holocene sequence reveals periods of widespread sedimentation separated by periods of both local and regional erosion, with possible implications for climatic and hydrodynamic change. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.