The Rockall Bank Mass Flow: Collapse of a moated contourite drift onlapping the eastern flank of Rockall Bank,west of Ireland

The Rockall Bank Mass Flow (RBMF) is a large, multi-phase submarine slope failure and mass flow complex. It is located in an area where the Feni Drift impinges upon the eastern flank of the Rockall Bank in the NE Atlantic. A 6100 km² region of slope failure scarps, extending over a wide water depth range and with individual scarps reaching up to 22 km long and 150 m high, lies upslope of a series of mass flow lobes that cover at least 18,000 km² of the base of slope and floor of the Rockall Trough. The downslope lobe complex has a negative topographic relief along much of its northern boundary, being inset below the level of the undisplaced contourite drift at the base of slope. The southern margin is topographically more subtle but is marked by the sharp termination of sediment waves outside the lobe. Within the lobe complex the southern margin of the largest lobe shows a positive relief along its southern margin. The initial failure is suggested to have occurred along coherent layer-parallel detachment surfaces at depths of up to 100 m and this promoted initial downslope block sliding which in turn transformed into debris flows which moved out into the basin. The remains of a deep erosional moat linked to the onlapping contourite complex bisects the region of failed slope, and post-failure thermohaline currents have continued to modify the mass flow in this area. Differential sedimentation and erosion associated with the moat may have promoted slope instability. Following the major failure phase, continuous readjustments of the slope occurred and resulted in small-volume turbidites found in shallow gravity cores collected on the lobes. The short term trigger for the failure remains uncertain but earthquake events associated with a deep-seated tectonic lineament to the north of the mass flow may have been important. A Late Pleistocene age for the slope failure is likely. The RBMF is unusual in that it records large-scale collapse of a contourite body that impinged on a sediment-undersupplied slope system. Unlike many other large slope failure complexes along the NE Atlantic margin, the RBMF occurs in a region where there was little overloading by glacial sediment.     

Volcanic rocks from Rosemary Bank (Rockall Trough,NE Atlantic)

A collection of basalts dredged from the southern flank of Rosemary Bank in the Rockall Trough is described. All samples are highly altered, the introduction of large amounts of CaCO₃ into the rocks being particularly notable. Normative calculations suggest that the basalts are transitional or mildly alkaline in character. Several trace elements appear to have been immobile during the process of secondary alteration and are used to infer the tectonic setting of Rosemary Bank at the time of its formation. Employing the discrimination techniques of Pearce and Cann, the basalts are shown to have oceanic affinities. However, caution has to be exercised in interpreting the trace element results in terms of sea-floor spreading in the Rockall Trough since some Scottish basalts extruded on to continental crust have similar compositions. A minimum age of Eocene has been obtained for Rosemary Bank.     

Glacial and post-glacial sedimentary processes in the Irish Rockall Trough from an integrated acoustic analysis of near-seabed sediments

Near-seabed (<50 m) sediments were studied throughout the Irish sector of the Rockall Trough (ca. 123,000 km²) based on a combined analysis of shallow seismic (3.5 kHz) and multibeam swath data acquired by the Irish National Seabed Survey and reprocessed here at higher resolution. The detailed identification of seven acoustic facies served to classify the Rockall Trough into six main sedimentary provinces, incorporating the well-known Feni Drift, Donegal-Barra Fan and Rockall Bank mass flow. In the northern part of the study area, extensive mass transport deposits from both flanks of the trough are the dominant depositional features. Debris flow deposits formed by ice streaming of the British-Irish ice sheet characterise most of the Donegal-Barra Fan, whereas turbidite deposition occurs towards the toe of the fan. On the western margin of the trough, the post-glacial Rockall Bank mass flow deposit displays a rough topography with no acoustic penetration. Several failure scarps are visible on the flank of the bank where the mass flow originated, and pass downslope into large sediment lobes and smaller debris flow deposits. Smaller-scale mass transport deposits were also discovered close to some canyons indenting the eastern slope. High seismic penetration characterises the Feni contourite drift deposit, and precise mapping of its geographical extent shows that it is considerably wider than previously reported. The sediment waves that drape this drift are interpreted as predominantly relict features, and their varied geometry suggests a complex oceanographic regime. In the deeper part of the trough, the data reveal novel evidence of the widespread occurrence (about 12,000 km²) of distinct seismic and backscatter signatures indicating the possible presence of fluid escape structures within fine-grained sediments of mixed contouritic, hemipelagic and turbiditic origin. Sediment overloading and increased pore pressure resulting from extensive mass wasting to the north of the area is a likely cause of dewatering-rooted fluid migration towards the seabed, but further investigations are required to confirm the nature and origin of such fluids in the Rockall Trough.     

A new look at the Rockall region, offshore Ireland

A 700 km wide-angle reflection/refraction profile carried out in the central North Atlantic west of Ireland crossed the Erris Trough, Rockall Trough and Rockall Bank, and terminated in the western Hatton-Rockall Basin. The results reveal the presence of a number of sedimentary basins separated by basement highs. The Rockall Trough, with a sedimentary pile up to 5 km thick, is underlain by thinned continental crust 8–10 km thick. Some major fault block structures are identified, especially on the eastern margin of the Rockall Trough and in the adjacent Erris Trough. The Hatton-Rockall Basin is underlain by westward-thinning continental crust 22–10 km thick. Sedimentary strata are up to 5 km thick. The strata in the Rockall Trough and Hatton-Rockall Basin probably range in age from Late Palaeozoic to Cenozoic. However, the basins have different sedimentation histories and differ in structural style. The geometry of the crust and sediments suggests that the Rockall Trough originated by pure shear crustal stretching, associated with rift deposits and Cenozoic thermal sag strata. In contrast, the development of the Erris Trough, located on unthinned continental crust, was facilitated by shallow, brittle extension with little deep crustal attenuation. A two-layered crust occurs throughout the region. The lower crustal velocity in the Hatton-Rockall Basin is higher than that in the Rockall Trough. The velocity structure shows no indication of crustal underplating by upper mantle material in the region.     

New dredge samples from the continental margin bordering Rockall Trough

Rockall Trough may represent the oldest part of the Atlantic Ocean north of latitude 51°N. Stratigraphical evaluation of this hypothesis has been hindered by the lack of dateable samples of the Trough's sedimentary succession. A recent programme of dredging, aimed at sampling the sediment prism along the Trough's upper continental slope, yielded five hauls of in-situ carbonate rocks. Microfaunal analysis of these rocks suggests that the deposition of the marginal sediment prism spans the Late Cretaceous—Recent interval, tending to confirm that Rockall Trough was already in being in Late Cretaceous times.     

Rockall and the limits of national jurisdiction of the UK: Part 2

Part 1 of this article, published in the July issue of Marine Policy, contained the first in a four-section examination of the Rockall question. Section I presented a survey of the law governing the delimitation of the continental shelf, the EEZ, and exclusive fishing zones, thus providing a background for sections II–IV, which constitute Part 2. In this Part, the author examines the geography and geology of the Rockall sector and the claims made by the UK, Ireland and Denmark, before drawing conclusions from the whole article.     

Eocene post-rift tectonostratigraphy of the Rockall Plateau, Atlantic margin of NW Britain: Linking early spreading tectonics and passive margin response

A regional study of the Eocene succession in the UK sector of the Rockall Plateau has yielded new insights into the early opening history of the NE Atlantic continental margin. Data acquired from British Geological Survey borehole 94/3, on the Rockall High, provides a high-resolution record of post-rift, Early to Mid-Eocene, subaqueous fan-delta development and sporadic volcanic activity, represented by pillow lavas, tuffs and subaerial lavas. This sequence correlates with the East Rockall Wedge, which is one of several prograding sediment wedges identified across the Rockall Plateau whose development was largely terminated in the mid-Lutetian. Linking the biostratigraphical data with the magnetic anomaly pattern in the adjacent ocean basin indicates that this switch-off in fan-delta sedimentation and volcanism was coincident with the change from a segmented/transform margin to a continuously spreading margin during chron C21. However, late-stage easterly prograding sediment wedges developed on the Hatton High during late Mid- to Late Eocene times; these can only have been sourced from the Hatton High, which was developing as an anticline during this interval. This deformation occurred in response to Mid- to Late Eocene compression along the ocean margin, possibly associated with the reorganisation to oblique spreading in the Iceland Basin, which culminated at the end of the Eocene with the formation of the North Hatton Anticline, and the deformation (tilting) of these wedges. A series of intra-Eocene unconformities, of which the mid-Lutetian unconformity is the best example, has been traced from the Rockall Plateau to the Faroe-Shetland region and onto the Greenland conjugate margin bordering the early ocean basin. Whilst there appears to be some correlation with 3rd order changes in eustatic sea level, it is clear from this study that tectonomagmatic processes related to changes in spreading directions between Greenland and Eurasia, and/or mantle thermal perturbations cannot be discounted.     

Water mass interaction at intermediate depths in the southern Rockall Trough,northeastern North Atlantic

Mooring time series, CTD data, and Argo float data were analysed to investigate some aspects of the circulation at the southern entrance to the Rockall Trough during 2003–2004. The in situ data are used to describe the distribution at intermediate levels of Sub-Arctic Intermediate Water (SAIW) and Mediterranean Water (MW), as well as the temporal variability in the presence of these two water masses. Salty, MW-influenced water was found in the southeastern part of the study area, near the continental slope as far north as Porcupine Bank, consistent with earlier reports. Apart from the main tongue, the distribution of MW is patchy, and MW parcels were found not only adjacent to the slope but also offshore. Further north and west, water at intermediate depths was influenced by the fresher SAIW. Unlike in some earlier studies, SAIW did not extend as far east as the continental shelf. The year-long hydrographic and current time series from a mooring on the western slope of the entrance, at the southern end of Feni Ridge, showed pulses of SAIW influenced water throughout winter and spring. In late spring, the fresh pulses almost completely ceased; throughout summer only a few weak and shortlived fresh anomalies appeared. The weakening of the SAIW signal did not seem to be caused by winter convection, which did not extend to sufficient depth that winter. The relatively weak SAIW presence during most of the study period may be linked to the near neutral state of the NAO index. The warm and saline conditions observed at the southern entrance to Rockall Trough were in agreement with the rising temperatures and salinities found over large parts of the subpolar North Atlantic in the late 1990s and early 2000s.     

Deep-water geomorphology of the glaciated Irish margin from high-resolution marine geophysical data

The continental margin offshore of western Ireland offers an opportunity to study the effects of glacial forcing on the morphology and sediment architecture of a mid-latitude margin. High resolution multibeam bathymetry and backscatter data, combined with shallow seismic and TOBI deep-towed side-scan sonar profiles, provide the basis for this study and allow a detailed geomorphological interpretation of the northwest Irish continental margin. Several features, including submarine mass failures, canyon systems and escarpments, are identified in the Rockall Trough for the first time. A new physiographic classification of the Irish margin is proposed and linked to the impact of glaciations along the margin. Correlation of the position and dimensions of moraines on the continental shelf with the level of canyon evolution suggests that the sediment and meltwater delivered by the British–Irish Ice Sheet played a fundamental role in shaping the margin including the upslope development of some of the canyon systems. The glacial influence is also suggested by the variable extent and backscatter signal of sedimentary lobes associated with the canyons. These lobes provide an indirect measurement of the amount of glaciogenic sediment delivered by the ice sheet into the Rockall Trough during the last glacial maximum. None of the sedimentary lobes demonstrates notable relief, indicating that the amount of glaciogenic sediment delivered by the British–Irish Ice Sheet into the Rockall Trough was limited. Their southward disappearance suggests a more restricted BIIS, which did not reach the shelf edge south of 54°23′ N. The various slope styles observed on the Irish margin represent snapshots of the progressive stages of slope development for a glacially-influenced passive margin and may provide a predictive model for the evolution of other such margins.     

The Feni Drift: The importance and meaning of slump deposits on the eastern slope of the Rockall Bank

Sedimentary facies of cores from the eastern side of the Rockall Bank and the Feni Drift (55°–58°N) have been studied. They confirm the existence of slumping which contributes only in small part to drift build-up.

These slumps occurred at different episodes during last Glacial and early Post-Glacial periods. They are sandwiched in between more important turbidites, and are found in places where the drift lies against the slope and so is acted upon by continental-rise sedimentary processes. The sea level rise periods with ice melting seems to favour gravity flow release.     

Lower Eocene red-clay sedimentation on the George Bligh/Rockall Channel

Core 7710, recovered on the George Bligh/Rockall Channel, is composed of fine grained ocher-colored sediments rich in ferriferous smectite (montmorillonite, beidellite). These sediments were deposited during early Eocene in a shallow marine environment. Their mineralogic, chemical and isotopic constituents indicate subaerial weathering of lower Eocene intermediate igneous rocks (ferrodiorite, marscoiite) eroded from the still-emergent George Bligh and Rockall Banks. Lack of any post Eocene Sediments may be due to major morphologic and hydrologic changes forming sedimentation gaps.     

夏季台湾浅滩周边水域悬浮物质浊度和叶绿素a荧光分布特征

2004年7～8月在台湾浅滩周边水域进行了两个断面的水体悬浮物浊度、叶绿素a荧光调查,通过对该区域悬浮物质浊度、叶绿素a荧光的夏季分布变化特征研究,结合水文相关要素分析,初步揭示了区域海洋沉积和再悬浮过程对悬浮体浊度、叶绿素a荧光分布的影响。指出悬浮物质浊度在近岸与陆架外缘主要受再悬浮作用影响,而浅滩区再悬浮作用不明显：在陆架外缘区浮游植物的聚集作用对浊度有一定的贡献作用,而近岸区则不明显。     

Wyville Thomson Ridge Overflow Water: Spatial and temporal distribution in the Rockall Trough

Wyville Thomson Ridge Overflow Water (WTOW), which is the only part of the outflow from the Norwegian Sea not to directly enter the Iceland Basin, is shown to be a significant water mass in the northern Rockall Trough. It is found primarily at intermediate depths (600–1200 m) beneath the northward flowing warm Atlantic waters, and above recirculating Mediterranean influenced waters and Labrador Sea Water (LSW). The bottom of the WTOW layer can be identified by a mid-depth inflexion point in potential temperature–salinity plots. An analysis of historical data reveals that WTOW has been present in all but eight of the last 31 years at 57.5°N in the Rockall Trough. A denser component of WTOW below 1500 m has also been present, although it appears to be less persistent (12 out of the 31 years) and limited to the west of the section. The signature of intermediate WTOW was absent in two periods, the mid-1980s and early 1990s, both of which coincided with a freshening, and probable increase in volume, of LSW in the trough. Potential temperature–salinity diagrams from historical observations indicate that WTOW persists at least as far south as 55°N (and as far west as 20°W in the Iceland Basin) although its signature is quickly lost on leaving the Rockall Trough. We suggest that a transport of WTOW down the western side of the trough exists, with WTOW at intermediate depths entering the eastern trough either via a cyclonic recirculation, or as a result of eddy activity. Further, WTOW is seen on the Rockall–Hatton Plateau and in the deep channels connecting with the Iceland Basin, suggesting additional possible WTOW transport pathways. These suggested transport routes remain to be confirmed by further observational or modelling studies.     

夏季台湾浅滩周边水域悬浮物质浊度和叶绿素a荧光分布特征

2004年7~8月在台湾浅滩周边水域进行了两个断面的水体悬浮物浊度、叶绿素a荧光调查,通过对该区域夏季悬浮物质浊度、叶绿素a荧光的分布变化特征研究,结合水文相关要素分析,初步揭示了该区域海洋沉积和再悬浮过程对悬浮体浊度、叶绿素a荧光分布的影响.悬浮物质浊度在近岸与陆架外缘主要受再悬浮作用影响,而浅滩区再悬浮作用不明显;在陆架外缘区浮游植物的聚集作用对浊度有一定的贡献作用,而近岸区则不明显.     

Helen's Reef: a microgabbroic intrusion in the Rockall intrusive centre,Rockall Bank

Rockall Island is composed of 52 ± 9 Ma (m.y.) aegirine granite and forms part of a nearly planated intrusive complex. The nearby Helen's Reef lies within the complex but is composed of Cretaceous (81 ± 3 Ma) microgabbros. The petrography and chemistry of the microgabbros differ from Mid-Ocean Ridge tholeiites but are similar to the Tertiary gabbroic rocks of northwestern Scotland. The relationship of the Cretaceous igneous activity to the evolution of the North Atlantic Ocean is discussed briefly.     

Cenozoic alongslope processes and sedimentation on the NW European Atlantic margin

Based on studies of sediment accumulations deposited from-and erode by-alongslope flowing ocean currents on the European continental margin from Porcupine (Ireland) to Lofoten (Norway), the evolution of the Cenozoic paleocirculation was reconstructed as part of the STRATAGEM project. There is evidence of ocean current-controlled erosion and deposition in the Rockall Trough, in the Faeroe-Shetland Channel and on the Vøring Plateau since the late Eocene, although the circulation pattern remains ambiguous. The late Palaeogene flow in the Rockall Trough was almost probably driven by southerly-derived Tethyan Outflow Water. The extent and strength of any northerly-derived flow is uncertain. From the early Neogene (early-mid-Miocene), there was a massive regional expansion of contourite drift development both in the North Atlantic and in the Norwegian-Greenland Sea. This was most probably related to the development of the Faroe Conduit, the opening of the Fram Strait and the general subsidence of the Greenland-Scotland Ridge. These may have combined to cause a considerable acceleration in the exchange and overflow of deep waters between the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans. An early late Neogene (late early Pliocene) regional erosional event has been ascribed to a vigorous pulse of bottom-current activity, most probably the result of a global reorganisation of ocean currents associated with the closure of the Central American Seaway. During the late Neogene, contourites and sediment drifts developed in deep-water basins, between units of glacigenic sediments as well as infill of several paleo-slide scars. These sediments were derived from areas of bottom-current erosion as well as from the development of Plio-Pleistocene prograding sediment wedges, incorporating the extensive sediment supply derived from shelf-wide ice sheets. Presently a profound winnowing prevails along the shelf and upper slope due to the inflowing currents of Atlantic water. Depocentres of sediments derived from the winnowing are located (locally) in lower slope embayments and in slide scars.     

Near-bed particle deposition and resuspension in a cold-water coral mound area at the Southwest Rockall Trough margin,NE Atlantic

Cold-water coral reefs and mounds are observed mainly on slopes and topographic highs, in areas with high current speeds. Previous investigations of the near-bed hydrodynamic regime around cold-water coral mounds at the Southwest Rockall Trough margin have revealed the presence of internal waves with a diurnal tidal frequency. Hitherto only short-term measurements existed on the particle supply to the corals and data are lacking on the seasonal variability. Bottom landers equipped with sensors recording near-bottom current dynamics were deployed at two sites in a mound area on the Southwest Rockall Trough margin, one with a dense coral cover and one without coral cover. At both sites a similar seasonal variation in internal-wave activity was recorded with high activity during winter and summer months and less dynamic conditions in spring and autumn. Increased intensity of internal-wave activity, reflected in higher average near-bottom current speed and amplitude of daily temperature fluctuations, results in higher mass fluxes as recorded in the sediment traps. On the site without coral cover, mass fluxes are two times higher, compared to the site with dense coral cover. During periods of high mass fluxes a predominance of resuspended material was observed at both sites, as indicated by reduced ²¹⁰Pb activity and low organic matter concentrations. The flux of resuspended material largely masked the primary pelagic signal. However, low δ¹⁵N values in early spring and summer marked the arrival of fresh particles on both sites. A dense coral framework, baffling a large amount of particles settling between the coral branches, results in differences in particle flux, chemical composition and freshness of the trapped material. On the long term the presence of a coral framework plays a crucial role in the build-up of cold-water coral mounds.     

Meiofauna and macrofauna community structure in relation to sediment composition at the Iberian margin compared to the Goban Spur (NE Atlantic)

Meiofauna and macrofauna communities and several sediment characteristics were compared between a slope situated far from the coast (Goban Spur) and two transects across the Iberian Margin with steep slopes and close to the shore. The northern Galician transect (off La Coruña) was situated in an area subjected to wind-induced upwelling events. The western Galician transect was also subjected to upwelling, was additionally influenced by outflows of water rich in organic matter from the Rías Bajas. This transect also included the Galicia Bank. Macrofauna density decreased exponentially from the shelf edge (154 m) to the abyssal plain (4951 m) and different communities occurred on the shelf, the upper- and lower slope and on the abyssal plain. Apart from two extremely low-density stations on the Iberian Margin, there were no significant differences in the meiofauna between the Goban Spur and the Iberian Margin. Along the La Coruña-transect a station where meiofaunal densities were low occurred at a depth of 1522 m, where the sediment was characterised by having a high median-grain size, ripple structures, a low C_org and total N content. There were relatively high numbers of macrofaunal filter-feeders but low numbers of crustaceans, indicating a high current velocity regime. On top of the Galicia Bank (˜770 m) the sediment consisted mainly of shells of pelagic foraminifers, and had low contents of C_org and N. The macrofauna was dominated by filter-feeding and carnivorous taxa. At both these stations meiofauna densities were low. Meiofauna densities and community structure differed between the Goban Spur and the Iberian Margin. Meiofauna densities on the Galician shelf were more than double those on the Goban Spur shelf. The two deep stations on the La Coruña transect and the deepest station on the Galicia Bank transect all contained meiofaunal densities that were higher than found at similar depths off the Goban Spur. The meiofaunal densities were inversely correlated with %CaCO₃ content and, excluding the shelf stations, were positively correlated with both %C_org and total N at the Iberian Margin. Neither upwelling nor the enriched outflows from the rias affected the macrofauna, but meiofaunal densities were greatly enhanced.     

Sediment accumulation rates along the inner eastern Brazilian continental shelf

Box cores were collected close to river mouths along the eastern Brazilian shelf at water depths of 10–30 m. One core was taken from more than 1000 m depth at the shelf slope. ²¹⁰Pb and ²²⁶Ra activities were measured to establish sediment accumulation rates. Seven of the 10 cores exhibited an exponential decrease with depth of excess ²¹⁰Pb activities. The sediments from the sheltered Sudeste Channel off Caravelas revealed the highest sediment accumulation rate of 0.81 cm yr⁻¹. The sediments at the shelf slope seaward of the Rio Doce revealed the lowest accumulation rate of 0.13 cm yr⁻¹. Sediment accumulation rates increased towards the Caravelas Bank. Current patterns and the morphology of the seabed favor sediment deposition in this area.     

Late Pleistocene to Holocene sedimentation and hydrocarbon seeps on the continental shelf of a steep,tectonically active margin,southern California,USA

Small, steep, uplifting coastal watersheds are prolific sediment producers that contribute significantly to the global marine sediment budget. This study illustrates how sedimentation evolves in one such system where the continental shelf is largely sediment-starved, with most terrestrial sediment bypassing the shelf in favor of deposition in deeper basins. The Santa Barbara–Ventura coast of southern California, USA, is considered a classic area for the study of active tectonics and of Tertiary and Quaternary climatic evolution, interpretations of which depend upon an understanding of sedimentation patterns. High-resolution seismic-reflection data over >570 km² of this shelf show that sediment production is concentrated in a few drainage basins, with the Ventura and Santa Clara River deltas containing most of the upper Pleistocene to Holocene sediment on the shelf. Away from those deltas, the major factor controlling shelf sedimentation is the interaction of wave energy with coastline geometry. Depocenters containing sediment 5–20 m thick exist opposite broad coastal embayments, whereas relict material (bedrock below a regional unconformity) is exposed at the sea floor in areas of the shelf opposite coastal headlands. Locally, natural hydrocarbon seeps interact with sediment deposition either to produce elevated tar-and-sediment mounds or as gas plumes that hinder sediment settling. As much as 80% of fluvial sediment delivered by the Ventura and Santa Clara Rivers is transported off the shelf (some into the Santa Barbara Basin and some into the Santa Monica Basin via Hueneme Canyon), leaving a shelf with relatively little recent sediment accumulation. Understanding factors that control large-scale sediment dispersal along a rapidly uplifting coast that produces substantial quantities of sediment has implications for interpreting the ancient stratigraphic record of active and transform continental margins, and for inferring the distribution of hydrocarbon resources in relict shelf deposits.