Fluvial and lacustrine palaeoenvironments of the Miocene Siwalik Group, Khaur area, northern Pakistan

The Miocene Siwalik Group (upsection, the Chinji, Nagri, and Dhok Pathan Formations) in northern Pakistan records fluvial and lacustrine environments within the Himalayan foreland basin. Thick (5 m to tens of metres) sandstones are composed of channel bar and fill deposits of low-sinuousity (1·08–1·19), single-channel meandering and braided rivers which formed large, low-gradient sediment fans (or ‘megafans’). River flow was dominantly toward the south-east and likely perennial. Palaeohydraulic reconstructions indicate that Chinji and Dhok Pathan rivers were small relative to Nagri rivers. Bankfull channel depths of Chinji and Dhok Pathan rivers were generally ≤ 15 m, and up to 33 m for Nagri rivers. Widths of channel segments (including single channels of meandering rivers and individual channels around braid bars) were 320–710 m for Chinji rivers, 320–1050 m for Nagri rivers, and 270–340 m for Dhok Pathan rivers. Mean channel bed slopes were on the order of 0·000056–0·00011. Bankfull discharges of channel segments for Chinji and Dhok Pathan rivers were generally 700–800 m³s^?1, with full river discharges possibly up to 2400 m³s^?1. Bankfull discharges of channel segments for Nagri rivers were generally 1800–3500 m³s^?1, with discharges of some larger channel segments possibly on the order of 9000–32 000 m³s^?1. Full river discharges of some of the largest Nagri braided rivers may have been twice these values. Thin (decimetres to a few metres) sandstones represent deposits of levees, crevasse channels and splays, floodplain channels, and large sheet floods. Laminated mudstones represent floodplain and lacustrine deposits. Lakes were both perennial and short-lived, and likely less than 10 m deep with maximum fetches on the order of a few tens of kilometres. Trace fossils and body fossils within all facies indicate the former existence of terrestrial vertebrates, molluscs (bivalves and gastropods), arthropods (including insects), worms, aquatic fauna (e.g. fish, turtles, crocodiles), trees, bushes, grasses, and aquatic flora. Palaeoenvironmental reconstructions are consistent with previous palaeoclimatic interpretations of monsoonal conditions.     

Evolution of Miocene fluvial environments, eastern Potwar plateau, northern Pakistan

The Miocene-Pliocene Siwalik Group records changing fluvial environments in the Himalayan foreland basin. The Nagri and Dhok Pathan Formations of this Group in the eastern Potwar Plateau, northern Pakistan, comprise relatively thick (tens of metres) sandstone bodies and mudstones that contain thinner sandstone bodies (metres thick) and palaeosols. Thick sandstone bodies extend for kilometres normal to palaeoflow, and are composed of large-scale stratasets (storeys) stacked laterally and vertically adjacent to each other. Sandstone bodies represent single or superimposed braided-channel belts, and large-scale stratasets represent channel bars and fills. Channel belts had widths of km, bankfull discharges on the order of 10³ cumecs and braiding parameter up to about 3. Individual channel segments had bankfull widths, maximum depths, and slopes on the order of 10² m, 10¹ m and 10^?4 respectively, and sinuosities around 1-1. These rivers are comparable to many of those flowing over the megafans of the modern Indo-Gangetic basin, and a similar depositional setting is likely. Thin sandstone bodies within mudstone sequences extend laterally for on the order of 10² m and have lobe, wedge, sheet and channel-form geometries: they represent crevasse splays, levees and floodplain channels. Mudstones are relatively bioturbated/disrupted and represent mainly floodbasin and lacustrine deposition. Mudstones and sandstones are extremely disrupted in places, showing evidence of prolonged pedogenesis. These ‘mature’ palaeosols are m thick and extend laterally for km. Lateral and vertical variations in the nature of their horizons apparently depend mainly on deposition rate. The 500 m-thick Nagri Formation has a greater proportion and thicker sandstone bodies than the overlying 700 m-thick Dhok Pathan Formation. The thick sandstone bodies and their large-scale stratasets thicken and coarsen through the Nagri Formation, then thin and fine at the base of the Dhok Pathan Formation. Compacted deposition rates increase with sandstone proportion (0-53 mm/year for Nagri, 0-24 mm/year for Dhok Pathan), and palaeosols are not as well developed where deposition rates are high. Within both formations there are 100 m-scale variations (representing on the order of 10⁵ years) in the proportion and thickness of thick sandstone bodies, and tens-of-m-scale alternations of thick sandstone bodies and mudstone-sandstone strata that represent on the order of 10⁴ years. Formation-scale stratal variations extend across the Potwar Plateau for at least 100 km, although they may be diachronous: however, 100-m and smaller scale variations can only be traced laterally for up to tens of km. Alluvial architecture models indicate that increases in the proportion and thickness of thick sandstone bodies can be explained by increasing channel-belt sizes (mainly), average deposition rate and avulsion frequency on a megafan comparable in size to modern examples. 100-m-scale variations in thick sandstone-body proportion and thickness could result from ‘regional’ shifts in the position of major channels, possibly associated with ‘fan lobes’on a single megafan or with separate megafans. However, such variations could also be related to local changes in subsidence rate or changes in sediment supply to the megafan system. Formation-scale and 100-m-scale stratal variations are probably associated with interelated changes in tectonic uplift, sediment supply and basin subsidence. Increased rates of hinterland uplift, sediment supply and basin subsidence, recorded by the Nagri Formation, may have resulted in diversion of a relatively large river to the area. Alternatively, changing river sizes and sediment supply rates may be related to climate changes affecting the hinterland (possibly linked to tectonic uplift). Climate during deposition of the Siwalik Group was monsoonal. Although the deposits contain no direct evidence for climate change, independent evidence indicates global cooling throughout the Miocene, and the possibility of glacial periods (e.g. around 10-8 Ma, corresponding to base of Nagri Formation). If the higher Himalayas were periodically glaciated, a mechanism would exist for varying sediment supply to megafans on time scales of 10⁴-10⁵ years. Although eustatic sea-level changes are related to global climatic change, they are not directly related to Siwalik stratigraphic changes, because the shoreline was many 100 km away during the Miocene.     

Muddy lateral accretion and low stream power in a sub-recent confined channel belt, Rhine-Meuse delta, central Netherlands

The Hennisdijk fluvial system in the central Rhine-Meuse delta is an abandoned Rhine distributary that was active on a wide floodplain from 3800 to 3000 years BP . Cross-sectional geometry, lithological characteristics and planform patterns of the channel-belt deposits indicate lateral migration of the Hennisdijk palaeochannel. Channel-belt deposits are around 10 m thick and 200–400 m wide. A gravelly facies near the base of the channel-belt deposits represents channel-lag and lower point-bar deposits. The axis of the channel belt is dominated by a sandy facies (medium and coarse sand), showing an overall fining upward trend with multiple cycles. This facies is interpreted as lower and middle point-bar deposits. The sandy facies is capped by a muddy facies, which is 1–2 m thick near the axis of the channel belt and thickens to 5–6 m along the margins. It laterally interfingers with the sandy facies that occurs near the channel-belt axis, but it has sharp, erosive outer contacts marking the edges of the channel belt. The muddy facies comprises inclined heterolithic stratification (IHS) (fine/medium sand–mud couplets) in its upper part. The relatively thin muddy facies with IHS that occurs near the channel-belt axis is interpreted as upper point-bar deposits with lateral accretion surfaces, formed under marine influence. Along the margins of the channel belt the muddy facies consists of thick, fairly homogeneous, successions of mud with variable sand content, and fine sand. Based on facies geometry and position, this part of the muddy facies is interpreted as counterpoint deposits, formed along the upstream limb of the concave bank of a channel bend. Counterpoint accretion seems to have been associated with the confined nature of the channel belt, which was the result of low stream power (4·5–7·8 W m⁻², based on reconstructions of palaeodischarge and channel slope) and cohesive bank material, i.e. clayey floodbasin deposits with intercalated peat beds occurring next to the channel belt. In the literature, counterpoint accretion is mostly reported from alluvial valleys, where meandering is confined by limited floodplain width, whereas muddy lateral accretion surfaces are commonly reported from much wider marine-influenced floodplains. The present study shows juxtaposition of both forms of muddy channel deposits in a low-energy, wide coastal plain setting, where preservation potential is considerable.     

Paleochannel hydraulics,geometries, and associated alluvial architecture of Early Cretaceous rivers,Sevier Foreland Basin,Wyoming, USA

Early Cretaceous, retro-foreland basin fluvial deposits throughout Wyoming record interactions between orogenesis, subsidence, sediment accumulation, basin physiography, and syndepositional structural deformation associated with the early stages of the Sevier Orogeny. Quantitative paleochannel reconstructions presented here are important for understanding these interactions, evaluating controls on alluvial architecture, and can be applied to basin-modeling studies. Most paleochannel sandstones and conglomerates represent point bars associated with meandering rivers, although some rivers may have been braided. Paleoflow of earliest Cretaceous Cloverly A-interval paleochannels (forebulge depozone, central WY) was generally to the north, northeast, and east, which suggests that most are deposits of basin-axial rivers. Discharges of overlying B-interval paleochannels are less than most of those of the A interval, possibly reflecting a temporal decrease in water supply related to the eastward expansion through time of an orographic rain shadow caused by progressive rising of the Sevier Orogen to the west. The Bechler (western WY), Cloverly B (central WY), and Lakota L2 (eastern WY) intervals are correlative and record deposition throughout the basin in the foredeep, forebulge, and backbulge depozones, respectively. Paleocurrents suggest that Bechler paleochannels are deposits of basin-transverse rivers that flowed to the east, whereas B and L2 paleochannels are deposits of basin-axial rivers that flowed dominantly to the north and northeast. The scales and discharges of most L2 paleochannels are much greater than those of the Bechler and B-interval. This eastward increase in discharge may reflect an eastward increase in precipitation related to the spatially decreasing effects of an orographic rain shadow caused by the Sevier Orogen to the west. Additionally, or alternatively, the higher discharges of most L2 rivers may indicate that they represent a more distal part of a tributary fluvial system than B-interval rivers (consistent with some lower slopes of L2 paleochannels).The alluvial architecture of thick foredeep deposits contrasts markedly with that of stratigraphically equivalent, much thinner deposits farther east that were associated with the forebulge and backbulge depozones. Foredeep deposits are dominated by overbank and lacustrine mudstones, and channel deposits tend to be isolated with limited lateral extents typically on the order of 10's of meters. Forebulge and backbulge channel deposits tend to be laterally and vertically connected forming sandstones and conglomerates with lateral extents on the order of 10's of km to >100 km. Long-term compacted sediment accumulation rates for the foredeep (generally 10⁻² mm year⁻¹) are an order of magnitude greater than those for the forebulge and backbulge depozones (10⁻³ mm year⁻¹). Quantitative simulations of channel-deposit proportions indicate that basin-wide differences in alluvial architecture are attributable to differences in sediment accumulation rates, which, in turn, reflect variable subsidence rates of the different depozones. Additionally, in some areas of the fore- and backbulge depozones, alluvial architecture was controlled by local syndepositional structures. However, the alluvial architecture in areas influenced by syndepositional structures is broadly similar to that in areas where such structures were absent, both reflecting the same general tectonic setting that experienced limited regional subsidence. Hence, the two cases are not easily distinguished solely on the basis of alluvial architecture.     

Geothermal energy in sedimentary basins in the UK

Deep onshore Mesozoic basins have favourable geothermal aquifers at depth comprising basal Permo-Triassic sandstones. The principal basins are the Wessex and Worcester (southern England), Cheshire (northwest England), Eastern England, Larne and Lough Neagh (Northern Ireland). Measured temperatures are up to 80 °C and could reach 100 °C in the deepest parts of some of the basins. Porosity and permeability data from depth are limited, but values high enough to allow adequate yields have been measured in many of the basins. Productive sandstones vary from a few tens of metres to hundreds of metres thick resulting in productive transmissivities. The estimated heat in place (Inferred Geothermal Resource) has been calculated as 201?×?10¹⁸ to 328?×?10¹⁸ J. New heat demand maps illustrate that many of the centres of high heat use are coincident with Upper Palaeozoic basins. Within the Carboniferous and Devonian there are thick sequences of deeply buried arenaceous deposits. Some productive local aquifers occur at shallow depth, but most depend on fissure flow that is anticipated to diminish rapidly with depth. The exception may be the Carboniferous Limestone where warm springs and a pronounced thermal anomaly in Eastern England demonstrate groundwater flow at depth, possibly along pathways of many kilometers.     

Preservation of meandering river channels in uniformly aggrading channel belts

Channel belt deposits from meandering river systems commonly display an internal architecture of stacked depositional features with scoured basal contacts due to channel and bedform migration across a range of scales. Recognition and correct interpretation of these bounding surfaces is essential to reconstruction of palaeochannel dimensions and to flow modelling for hydrocarbon exploration. It is therefore crucial to understand the suite of processes that form and transfer these surfaces into the fluvial sedimentary record. Here, the numerical model ‘NAYS2D’ is used to simulate a highly sinuous meandering river with synthetic stratigraphic architectures that can be compared directly to the sedimentary record. Model results highlight the importance of spatial and temporal variations in channel depth and migration rate to the generation of channel and bar deposits. Addition of net uniform bed aggradation (due to excess sediment input) allows quantification of the preservation of meander morphology for a wide range of depositional conditions. The authors find that the effect of vertical variation in scouring due to channel migration is generally orders of magnitude larger than the effect of bed aggradation, which explains the limited impact bed aggradation has on preservation of meander morphology. Moreover, lateral differences in stratigraphy within the meander belt are much larger than the stratigraphic imprint of bed aggradation. Repeatedly produced alternations of point bar growth followed by cut‐off result in a vertical trend in channel and scour feature stacking. Importantly, this vertical stacking trend differs laterally within the meander belt. In the centre of the meander belt, the high reworking intensity results in many bounding surfaces and disturbed deposits. Closer to the margins, reworking is infrequent and thick deposits with a limited number of bounding surfaces are preserved. These marginal areas therefore have the highest preservation potential for complete channel deposits and are thus best suited for palaeochannel reconstruction.     

Aggradational lobe fringes: The influence of subtle intrabasinal seabed topography on sediment gravity flow processes and lobe stacking patterns

Seabed topography is ubiquitous across basin‐floor environments, and influences sediment gravity flows and sediment dispersal patterns. The impact of steep (several degrees) confining slopes on sedimentary facies and depositional architecture has been widely documented. However, the influence of gentle (fraction of a degree) confining slopes is less well‐documented, largely due to outcrop limitations. Here, exceptional outcrop and research borehole data from Unit A of the Permian Laingsburg Formation, South Africa, provide the means to examine the influence of subtle lateral confinement on flow behaviour and lobe stacking patterns. The dataset describes the detailed architecture of subunits A.1 to A.6, a succession of stacked lobe complexes, over a palinspastically restored 22 km across‐strike transect. Facies distributions, stacking patterns, thickness and palaeoflow trends indicate the presence of a south‐east facing low angle (fraction of a degree) lateral intrabasinal slope. Interaction between stratified turbidity currents with a thin basal sand‐prone part and a thick mud‐prone part and the confining slope results in facies transition from thick‐bedded sandstones to thin‐bedded heterolithic lobe fringe‐type deposits. Slope angle dictates the distance over which the facies transition occurs (hundreds of metres to kilometres). These deposits are stacked vertically over tens of metres in successive lobe complexes to form an aggradational succession of lobe fringes. Extensive slides and debrites are present at the base of lobe complexes, and are associated with steeper restored slope gradients. The persistent facies transition across multiple lobe complexes, and the mass flow deposits, suggests that the intrabasinal slope was dynamic and was never healed by deposition during Unit A times. This study demonstrates the significant influence that even subtle basin‐floor topography has on flow behaviour and depositional architecture of submarine lobe complexes. In addition, we present a new aggradational lobe fringe facies associations and recognition criteria for subtle confinement in less well‐exposed and subsurface basin fills.     

Storm‐dominated shelf‐edge delta successions in a high accommodation setting: The palaeo‐Orinoco Delta (Mayaro Formation), Columbus Basin,South‐East Trinidad

Pliocene age deposits of the palaeo‐Orinoco Delta are evaluated in the Mayaro Formation, which crops out along the western margin of the Columbus Basin in south‐east Trinidad. This sandstone‐dominated interval records the diachronous, basinwards migration of the shelf edge of the palaeo‐Orinoco Delta, as it prograded eastwards during the Pliocene–Pleistocene (ca 3·5 Ma). The basin setting was characterized by exceptionally high rates of growth‐fault controlled sediment supply and accommodation space creation resulting in a gross basin‐fill of around 12 km, with some of the highest subsidence rates in the world (ca 5 to 10 m ka^?1). This analysis demonstrates that the Mayaro Formation was deposited within large and mainly wave‐influenced shelf‐edge deltas. These are manifested as multiple stacks of coarsening upward parasequences at scales ranging from tens to hundreds of metres in thickness, which are dominated by storm‐influenced and wave‐influenced proximal delta‐front sandstones with extensive, amalgamated swaley and hummocky cross‐stratification. These proximal delta‐front successions pass gradationally downwards into 10s to 100 m thick distal delta front to mud‐dominated upper slope deposits characterized by a wide variety of sedimentary processes, including distal river flood and storm‐related currents, slumps and other gravity flows. Isolated and subordinate sandstone bodies occur as gully fills, while extensive soft sediment deformation attests to the high sedimentation rates along a slope within a tectonically active basin. The vertical stratigraphic organization of the facies associations, together with the often cryptic nature of parasequence stacking patterns and sequence stratigraphic surfaces, are the combined product of the rapid rates of accommodation space creation, high rates of sediment supply and glacio‐eustasy in the 40 to 100 Ka Milankovitch frequency range. The stratigraphic framework described herein contrasts strikingly with that described from passive continental margins, but compares favourably to other tectonically active, deltaic settings (for example, the Baram Delta Province of north‐west Borneo).     

Palaeochannel reconstructions from point bar deposits: a three-dimensional perspective

Quantitative determination of palaeochannel geometry and hydraulics from point bar deposits requires an understanding of the interaction between channel-bend migration, temporal and spatial variation of point bar geometry and facies, and outcrop orientation. This interaction is modelled with the aid of a computer program which predicts three-dimensional (3-D) geometry and grain size variation of point bars. Synthetic deposits are produced for the cases of down-valley bend migration and/or increase in channel-bend sinuosity. Two-dimensional (2-D) cross-sections in varying orientations across these simulated deposits display lateral-accretion bedset surface geometry, and variation in mean bedset grain size and local palaeocurrent orientation. Most cross-sections show point bar deposits thickening away from the meander-belt axis due to a lateral progression from thinner bend-exit deposits to thicker bend-apex deposits (caused by down-valley channel translation), and/or due to a progression from thinner low sinuosity deposits to thicker high sinuosity deposits caused by channel bend expansion. In association with this lateral thickening, bedset surfaces become steeper and more convex upwards while the variation in mean grain size up bedsets commonly increases. Down-valley point bar translation allows preservation only of deposits formed downstream of the band apex, and produces characteristic fining upwards sequences. Marked lateral and vertical variations in palaeocurrent directions due to varying channel orientation relative to a given cross-section are also predicted. These results indicate a need in palaeochannel reconstructions, for a more detailed examination of 3-D variations in bedset surface geometry, palaeocurrent orientation and grain size distribution within and between bedsets of laterally accreted sediment.     

Tide-dominated offshore sedimentation, Lower Cambrian, north Norway

The Duolbasgaissa Formation, Lower Cambrian, of northern Norway consists of 550 m of mineralogically and texturally mature sandstones with subordinate siltstones, mudstones and conglomerates. Four facies are defined on the basis of grain size, bed thickness and sedimentary structures. Facies 1–3 consist of a variety of erosively-based, cross-stratified and parallel-stratified sandstones interbedded with siltstone and mudstone. Many of these sandstones show evidence of deposition from waning currents. Facies 4 consists of trough cross-bedded sandstones with sets up to 4 m thick. Symmetrical ripples and bioturbation are ubiquitous. Bipolar palaeocurrent distributions are common to all facies and one mode is usually strongly dominant. Lateral facies variations and sedimentary structures suggest that deposition took place in a tide-dominated, offshore, shallow marine environment in which maximum sediment transport probably occurred when storm generated waves enhanced tidal currents. The four facies are thought to represent the deposits of various parts of tidal sediment transport paths such as exist in modern seas around Great Britain. Small scale coarsening upward sequences may represent the superposition of facies independently of changing water depth. Lack of information prevents a detailed palaeogeographic reconstruction. It is suggested that sand body shape is not accurately predictable.     

Mass movement-induced fold-and-thrust belt structures in unconsolidated sediments in Lake Lucerne (Switzerland)

High-resolution seismic imaging and piston coring in Lake Lucerne, Switzerland, have revealed surprising deformation structures in flat-lying, unconsolidated sediment at the foot of subaqueous slopes. These deformation structures appear beneath wedges of massflow deposits and resemble fold-and-thrust belts with basal décollement surfaces. The deformation is interpreted as the result of gravity spreading induced by loading of the slope-adjacent lake floor during massflow deposition. This study investigated four earthquake-triggered lateral mass-movement deposits in Lake Lucerne affecting four sections of the lake floor with areas ranging from 0·25 to 6·5 km² in area. Up to 6 m thick sediment packages draping the subaqueous slopes slid along the acoustic basement. The resulting failure scars typically lie in water depths of >30 m on slopes characterized by downward steepening and inclinations of >10°. From the base-of-slope to several hundred metres out onto the flat plains, the wedges of massflow deposits overlie deeply (10–20 m) deformed basin-plain sediment characterized by soft sediment fold-and-thrust belts with arcuate strikes and pronounced frontal thrusts. The intensity of deformation decreases towards the more external parts of the massflow wedges. Beyond the frontal thrust, the overridden lake floor remains mostly undisturbed. Geometrical relationships between massflow deposits and the deformed basin-plain sediment indicate that deformation occurred mainly during massflow deposition. Gravity spreading induced by the successive collapse of the growing slope-adjacent massflow wedge is proposed as the driving mechanism for the deformation. The geometry of fjord-type lakes with sharp lower slope breaks favours the deposition of thick, basin-marginal massflow wedges, that effectively load and deform the underlying sediment. In the centre of the basins, the two largest massflow deposits described are directly overlain by thick contained (mega-)turbidites, interpreted as combined products of the suspension clouds set up by subaqueous mass movements and related tsunami and seiche waves.     

Middle-fan deposits from the late precambrian kongsfjord formation submarine fan,Northeast Finnmark,Northern Norway

The 3.2 km-thick late Precambrian Kongsfjord Formation Submarine Fan shows well-developed middle-fan facies-associations. Channel deposits are characterised by discrete packets of coarse-grained, medium to thick-bedded, amalgamated sandstone turbidites and other mass-flow deposits, generally 10 to 30 m thick. Individual beds, or packets of beds, wedge out and channel bases cut down by up to 11 m over a lateral distance of 150 m. Channel deposits often comprise a thinning-and-fining-upward sequence although they vary greatly in clarity. Interchannel deposits occur as packets, tens of centimetres to 25 m thick, of thin and very thin bedded Bouma T_cde siltstones and mudstones. Palaeocurrents within interchannel deposits commonly diverge from those of adjacent channel sandstones. Within the interchannel deposits, isolated beds or packets of beds occur that are both thicker bedded and coarser grained than the surrounding beds; these unusual deposits are sheet-like or fill small channels, and are interpreted as crevasse splays, lobes and channels. Packets, up to a few metres thick, of laterally discontinuous siltstone turbidites occur immediately above some of the channel sandstones, rarely below, and in some cases within interchannel deposits. These siltstones are thin to medium-bedded, show Bouma T_cd, with T_c often as climbing-ripple lamination, and commonly show soft-sediment deformation as slides, slumps, liquefaction and fluidisation structures. Palaeoflow within these packets, compared to adjacent channel sandstones, diverges by up to 90°, and in some cases channel sandstones are seen to pass laterally into these deposits with a swing in palaeocurrents from parallel to the inferred channel axis, to perpendicular to it. These deposits are thought to be levees. Channel-margin deposits are most distinctive, and they are recognised by extreme lateral wedging of channel sandstones, with concomitant thinning and fining of individual beds and their amalgamation towards the channel axis. Sliding and slumping of channel margin deposits is common. Throughout the Kongsfjord Formation Submarine Fan, channel sandstone palaeocurrents suggest a sediment-transport direction to the NE quadrant, although some channels funnelled sediment towards the southeast.     

Anatomy of an Upper Triassic continental to marginal‐marine system: the mixed siliciclastic–carbonate Travenanzes Formation (Dolomites,Northern Italy)

The Travenanzes Formation is a terrestrial to shallow‐marine, siliciclastic–carbonate succession (200 m thick) that was deposited in the eastern Southern Alps during the Late Triassic. Sedimentary environments and depositional architecture have been reconstructed in the Dolomites, along a 60 km south–north transect. Facies alternations in the field suggest interfingering between alluvial‐plain, flood‐basin and shallow‐lagoon deposits, with a transition from terrestrial to marine facies belts from south to north. The terrestrial portion of the Travenanzes Formation consists of a dryland river system, characterized by multicoloured floodplain mudstones with scattered conglomeratic fluvial channels, merging downslope into small ephemeral streams and sheet‐flood sandstones, and losing their entire discharge subaerially before the shoreline. Calcic and vertic palaeosols indicate an arid/semi‐arid climate with strong seasonality and intermittent discharge. The terrestrial/marine transition shows a coastal mudflat, the flood basin, which is usually exposed, but at times is inundated by both major river floods and sea‐water storm surges. Locally coastal sabkha deposits occur. The marine portion of the Travenanzes Formation comprises carbonate tidal‐flat and shallow‐lagoon deposits, characterized by metre‐scale shallowing‐upward peritidal cycles and subordinate intercalations of dark clays from the continent. The depositional architecture of the Travenanzes Formation suggests an overall transgressive pattern organized in three carbonate–siliciclastic cycles, corresponding to transgressive–regressive sequences with internal higher‐frequency sedimentary cycles. The metre‐scale sedimentary cyclicity of the Travenanzes Formation continues without a break in sedimentation into the overlying Dolomia Principale. The onset of the Dolomia Principale epicontinental platform is marked by the exhaustion of continental sediment supply.     

古河道解释及在油气勘探中的意义

古河道沉积是一种比较特殊的沉积体，它在地震剖面上的表现形态多种多样，且一般不易识别，必须经过仔细观察和认真分析才能发现。河道有其独特的沉积方式，能形成多种不同类型的沉积砂体，而这些砂体如果接近油源，则有可能成为高产油气藏。我国已在许多油田发现了河道沉积体，其中有些河道砂岩体已打井并获高产油气流。因而如何在地震剖面上识别古河道，一直是地质人员所关注的重要问题。本文通过我国西部某盆地Ｔ凹陷古河道的解释实例，阐明了古河道的沉积特点和在地震剖面上的地震相及反射特征。     

低弯度曲流河露头储层地质模型及应用实例

克拉玛依油田一中区克拉玛依组S_4~1小层组发育的低弯度曲流河储层为该区块的主要油层之一,目前由于缺乏相对应的精细地质模型,已严重影响了该区块的剩余油分布研究工作。为了解决上述问题,通过对山西省柳林地区二叠系石盒子组低弯度曲流河地质露头实地测量,应用层次分析法和构型要素分析法建立低弯度曲流河露头地质模型。使用该模型并充分利用岩心和测录井资料,对S_4~1小层组沉积时期所发育的低弯度曲流河储层内部构型表征进行了预测,取得了较好的效果。研究表明,露头地质模型不仅对低弯度曲流河沉积模式的建立、单河道的划分,以及井间砂体的对比研究具有重要指导意义,而且能够准确的厘定井下区域单河道砂体及增生体规模、隔层密度、倾角和排列方式等,可为剩余油分布富集规律预测提供理论依据。     

The Pleistocene Cape Kidnappers section in New Zealand: orbitally forced controls on active margin sedimentation?

High sedimentation rates in Pleistocene active margin basins can provide a very detailed record of tectonic and climatic controls on sediment preservation. A 500 m thick, Pleistocene rock section exposed in northeastern North Island of New Zealand (Kidnappers Group), provides the opportunity to discuss these controls. The section is composed of conglomerate, sandstones, siltstones and minor shales, interbedded with tephra layers. The sediments were deposited in alluvial to shallow marine environments and preserved in stacks of depositional units decimetres to hundreds of metres thick as a result of base‐level changes through time. The correlation of base‐level changes in the section with the deep sea oxygen isotope stratigraphy shows that the sequences at 10 m and 80 m scales can correlate, respectively, to the 20 and 100 kyr changes in eustatic sea‐level, but that the 80‐m‐thick sequences correlate also to changes in tectonic uplift rates. A major change in the stratigraphical architecture occurs at the Mid‐Pleistocene Transition (MPT) when the 40 kyr ice volume variations shifted to a dominant 100 kyr variation. This change includes an increase in the amplitude of the shifts in depositional environments and an overall simplification of the stacking pattern of the depositional units through the MPT. This study illustrates that active margin basins can record orbitally forced sedimentary cycles and points to a possible leading influence of eustasy on the pattern of sediment preservation in tectonically active areas. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The compressibility of sediments and its importance on Flandrian Fenland deposits

In the Flandrian Fenland sediments of the Nar Valley, Norfolk, an upper clay and thick upper peat overlie lower clay and lower peat units thinning eastwards up the valley. Lithostratigraphic and altitudinal variations in less than thirty metres led to the application of a soil mechanics technique, the oedometer test, to the sediment units in order to estimate amounts of compression and corrections for the altitudinal displacements. The principles and assumptions behind the oedometer test are reviewed and results from compression tests on Flandrian Fenland deposits in the Nar Valley discussed in relation to interpretation of stratigraphic data, especially in terms of reconstruction of former sea levels. Limitations of the technique, particularly with reference to peats, are discussed.     

Transitional submarine fan deposits from the late Precambrian Kongsfjord Formats submarine fan, NE Finnmark, N. Norway

ABSTRACT Three transitional submarine fan environments are recognized in the late Precambrian, 3-2 km thick Kongsfjord Formation in NE Finnmark, North Norway, namely: (1) middle to outer fan; (2) fan lateral margin, and (3) fan to upper basin-slope deposits. Middle to outer fan deposits have a high proportion of sandstones, typically showing Bouma T _bede with T _a in the thicker beds. Deposition was mainly from sheet flows with rare shallow channels. Middle to outer fan deposits are an association of sandstone packets less than 10 m thick but commonly only a few metres thick, interpreted as channels or lobes. Interchannel and fan fringe deposits occur as discrete packets of beds between the thicker bedded and coarser grained channel or lobe deposits. Fan lateral margin deposits are recognized on the basis of their stratigraphic position adjacent to inner/middle fan deposits. They are characterized by: (a) a relatively high proportion of fine-grained sandstone/siltstone turbidites compared to other major fan environments; (b) relatively small channels oriented at various angles to the regional basin slope; (c) lobes associated with channels, and (d) abundant clastic dykes and other soft-sediment deformation. Fan lateral margin deposits are distinguished from the outer fan/basin plain successions on account of the very high proportion of siltstone turbidites comparable with middle fan inter-channel deposits. Fan to upper basin-slope deposits occur at the top of the formation as an alternation of sandstone turbidites, most of which are laterally discontinuous, and very thin-bedded upper basin-slope siltstones with slide deposits.     

Deposition and preservation of fluvio-tidal shallow-marine sandstones: A re-evaluation of the Neoproterozoic Jura Quartzite (western Scotland)

The 2 to 5 km thick, sandstone-dominated (>90%) Jura Quartzite is an extreme example of a mature Neoproterozoic sandstone, previously interpreted as a tide-influenced shelf deposit and herein re-interpreted within a fluvio-tidal deltaic depositional model. Three issues are addressed: (i) evidence for the re-interpretation from tidal shelf to tidal delta; (ii) reasons for vertical facies uniformity; and (iii) sand supply mechanisms to form thick tidal-shelf sandstones. The predominant facies (compound cross-bedded, coarse-grained sandstones) represents the lower parts of metres to tens of metres high, transverse fluvio-tidal bedforms with superimposed smaller bedforms. Ubiquitous erosional surfaces, some with granule–pebble lags, record erosion of the upper parts of those bedforms. There was selective preservation of the higher energy, topographically-lower, parts of channel-bar systems. Strongly asymmetrical, bimodal, palaeocurrents are interpreted as due to associated selective preservation of fluvially-enhanced ebb tidal currents. Finer-grained facies are scarce, due largely to suspended sediment bypass. They record deposition in lower-energy environments, including channel mouth bars, between and down depositional-dip of higher energy fluvio-ebb tidal bars. The lack of wave-formed sedimentary structures and low continuity of mudstone and sandstone interbeds, support deposition in a non-shelf setting. Hence, a sand-rich, fluvial–tidal, current-dominated, largely sub-tidal, delta setting is proposed. This new interpretation avoids the problem of transporting large amounts of coarse sand to a shelf. Facies uniformity and vertical stacking are likely due to sediment oversupply and bypass rather than balanced sediment supply and subsidence rates. However, facies evidence of relative sea level changes is difficult to recognise, which is attributed to: (i) the areally extensive and polygenetic nature of the preserved facies, and (ii) a large stored sediment buffer that dampened response to relative sea-level and/or sediment supply changes. Consideration of preservation bias towards high-energy deposits may be more generally relevant, especially to thick Neoproterozoic and Lower Palaeozoic marine sandstones.