Origin of mass flow sedimentary structures in hemipelagic basin deposits: Santa Barbara Basin,California Borderland

Holocene mass flow processes produce distinctive sedimentary structures in this silled, anoxic basin characterized by high sedimentation rates of fine-grained fill. Mud flow deposits possess a 0899 1444 V 3 diagnostic vertical sequence of structures on the lower slope. Basin floor turbidites possess a variety of bed set combinations of: 1) finely laminated layers, 2) graded silt and clay layers, and 3) ungraded, massive silts and clays with floating sand grains. Massive, ungraded flood-derived suspensate deposits can be distinguished from turbidites. Turbidites and suspensate deposits constitute 30% of the sampled sediment column. Varve counting of the remaining 70% provides frequencies of turbidite and flood suspensate layer deposition.     

Navy Fan, California Borderland: Growth pattern and depositional processes

Navy Fan is a Late Pleistocene sand-rich fan prograding into an irregularly shaped basin in the southern California Borderland. The middle fan, characterized by one active and two abandoned “distributary” channels and associated lobe deposits, at present onlaps part of the basin slope directly opposite from the upper-fan valley, thus dividing the lower-fan/basin-plain regions into two separate parts of different depths. Fine-scale mesotopographic relief on the fan surface and correlation of individual turbidite beds through nearly 40 cores on the middle and lower fan provide data for evaluating the Late Pleistocene and Holocene depositional processes. Margin setting represents fan and/or source area     

Navy Fan,California Borderland: Growth pattern and depositional processes

Navy Fan is a Late Pleistocene sand-rich fan prograding into an irregularly shaped basin in the southern California Borderland. The middle fan, characterized by one active and two abandoned “distributary” channels and associated lobe deposits, at present onlaps part of the basin slope directly opposite from the upper-fan valley, thus dividing the lower-fan/basin-plain regions into two separate parts of different depths. Fine-scale mesotopographic relief on the fan surface and correlation of individual turbidite beds through nearly 40 cores on the middle and lower fan provide data for evaluating the Late Pleistocene and Holocene depositional processes.     

Heat flow and mass wasting in the Wilmington Canyon Region: U.S. Continental Margin

The average corrected heat flow in the Wilmington Canyon region, an area of inferred slope instability, is 35 ± 10 mW/m². This average heat flow is marginally consistent with the 46 ± 9 mW/m² measured at other North Atlantic sites over 160 m.y. old. High topographic relief causes most of the variability in surface heat flow and may lower the mean surface heat flow. There is no significant difference between the average corrected heat flow of 35 ± 10 mW/m² in sediment slide areas and the average corrected heat flow of 34 ± 10 mW/m² in undisturbed sediments.     

Deformation and patterns of sedimentation,South San Clemente Basin,California Borderland

Seismic reflection profiling in the South San Clemente Basin and the southern portion of the San Diego Trough has revealed at least six sedimentary units exhibiting varying stages of deformation. Four of the units are interpreted to be marine turbidites supplied by adjacent submarine canyons. Sediments comprising the Descanso Plain and correlative material within the South San Clemente Basin are attributed to a southerly source (Banda Canyon), while the more recent Quaternary turbidites from Coronado Canyon filled the southern San Diego Trough and then spilled over into South San Clemente Basin. The relatively high but intermittent rates of sedimentation, together with shifting sources and areas of deposition, have resulted in sedimentary units that were emplaced in comparatively short episodes but which were subjected to relatively continuous tectonic activity. Consequently, the sedimentary layers of each unit appear uniformly affected by deformation which increases in successively older units.     

High-resolution seismic study of modern fine-grained deposits: Inner shelf off the southeastern coast of Korea

The geometry and internal structures of modern sediments on the inner shelf off the southeastern coast of Korea were investigated by means of analysing high-frequency (3.5 kHz) seismic records. The records reveal a wedge-shaped sediment body, tapering off toward the sea. On the basis of reflection patterns, the sediments can be classified into two units; foreset (prodelta) unit and bottomset unit, consisting of sandy muds and clays, respectively. The lateral transition from foreset to bottomset deposits suggests a prograding delta system of the Nakdong River since the late Holocene.     

Non-equilibrium flocculation characteristics of fine-grained sediments in grid-generated turbulent flow

Results are presented from a series of settling column experiments investigating temporal variations in the flocculation characteristics of purely cohesive (kaolin clay) sediment suspensions and cohesive (kaolin) and non-cohesive (fine sand) sediment fraction mixtures. Experimental runs were conducted under controlled hydrodynamic conditions generated by a rigid array of in-phase oscillating grids. The results indicated that rapid initial floc aggregation occurred under low turbulent shear rates, with peak maximal and root-mean-square (r.m.s.) floc sizes (∼ 400 μm and ∼ 200 μm, respectively) attained after relatively short time periods, before reducing with time. By contrast, lower aggregation rates and smaller floc sizes were observed under higher shear conditions, with flocs retaining suspended in the settling column for longer time scales due to the increased turbulence. The mud input concentration displayed some correlation with maximal and r.m.s. floc sizes at higher shear rates but no correlation was apparent at low shear rates. This observed floc behaviour may be attributed to the differences in concentration gradients at high and low shear rates that affect both floc settling rate and time required for flocs to attain equilibrium size. The addition of the fine sand fraction to the kaolin clay suspension reduced both the initial floc formation (i.e. aggregation) rate and the maximal and r.m.s. floc sizes attained throughout the experiments. The reduction in maximal floc sizes appeared to be enhanced by an increase in the ratio of fine sand to kaolin clay content within the mixture.     

Geotechnical properties of shelf and slope deposits off the Rhône Delta

Some geotechnical parameters, such as water content, bulk density, shear strength, and Atterberg limits, result directly from sedimentation mechanisms. The results of geotechnical tests for each physiographic zone of the Rhône Delta system—continental shelf, continental slope, and upper rise (base of slope)—are presented in this paper. These geotechnical parameters are correlated with the hydrodynamic, morphologic, and structural environmental conditions. They are also used to explain and forecast the instability of superficial deposits.     

Ecophenotypic responses of benthic foraminifera to oxygen availability along an oxygen gradient in the California Borderland

Spatial variation in environmental conditions can elicit predictable size and morphological responses in marine organisms through influences on physiology. Thus, spatial and temporal variation in marine organism size and shape are often used to infer paleoenvironmental conditions, such as dissolved oxygen concentrations. Benthic foraminifera commonly serve as a tool for reconstructing past ocean oxygen levels. For example, benthic foraminiferal species assemblages, within‐ and among‐species patterns of test morphology, and geochemical analyses of carbonate tests are often employed to reconstruct past marine conditions. In this study, we measured the sizes and shapes of modern foraminifera representing four species that inhabit a steep oxygen gradient in the Santa Monica Basin on the Southern California Borderland with the aim of quantifying the influence of oxygen availability on foraminiferal morphology, both within and among species. Most foraminifera rely on aerobic respiration, but the four benthic foraminifera from the Santa Monica Basin do not show the predicted size and morphological responses to variations in dissolved oxygen concentrations based on first principles of cell physiology: Bolivina spissa shows no volume or volume‐to‐surface area response, Uvigerina peregrina increases in both test volume and volume‐to‐surface area ratio with decreasing dissolved oxygen concentrations, and both Bolivina argentea and Loxostomum pseudobeyrichi decrease in test volume, but only L. pseudobeyrichi shows a decrease in test volume‐to‐surface area ratio with decreasing oxygen concentrations as expected from physiological predictions. These findings imply that the morphological responses of individual foraminiferal species are not necessarily representative of the responses of other foraminiferal species within the community. Our findings further suggest that these species use physiological strategies such as depressed metabolic rates and alternative energy metabolisms to persist in low oxygen environments and, therefore, cannot be used in any simple way as paleo‐oxygen indicators. Should Proterozoic (1,000–542 million years ago) protists have possessed metabolic strategies similar to foraminifera, the sizes and shapes of protists in the fossil record may not usefully constrain ambient oxygen conditions during the appearance and initial taxonomic radiation of heterotrophic eukaryotes.     

Acoustic characters and distribution pattern of modern fine-grained deposits in a tide-dominated coastal bay: Jinhae Bay,Southeast Korea

Jinhae Bay, a semi-enclosed, tide-dominated coastal embayment on the southeastern coast of Korea, receives large amounts of sediment derived from the Nakdong River. The irregular surface of the acoustic basement is overlain by a modern sedimentary sequence up to 25 m thick, characterized by an acoustically semitransparent subbottom. Sediments, consisting mainly of terrigenous and bioturbated mud, accumulate at a rate of 2–5 mm/yr. About 21% of the suspended sediments discharged from the Nakdong River, that is approximately 1.0 × 10⁶ tons per year, accumulate in Jinhae Bay. Modern sedimentation began probably at about 5000 yr BP, when sea level approached its present level.     

Abundance versus rates of accumulation in fine-grained strata of the Miocene Santa Barbara Basin,California

Although best known as a deposit rich in silica and organic matter, the Miocene Monterey Formation actually had long-term rates of silica and organic Matter accumulation equal to or lower than values in the underlying and overlying detritus-rich formations in the Santa Barbara coastal area. The factor Mainly influencing the composition of the Monterey Formation in this area was the slow accumulation of terrigenous debris. In contrast, with greater than average silica abundance within the Monterey Formation probably resulted from rapid short-term silica accumulation (of hundreds to tens of thousands years duration) rather than from especially slow accumulation of diluting debris.     

Sedimentologic,mineralogic, and geotechnical descriptions of fine-grained slope and basin deposits,Baffin Island Fiords

Sediments from Baffin Island fiords are graded, massive, laminated, or bioturbated. Plasticity indices vary with sediment type (lowest = laminated or graded; intermediate = massive; and highest = bioturbated). Graded and massive silty/sandy muds are most common on prodelta or proglacial slopes. Bioturbated graded and laminated muds, and rare massive pebbly muds occur more distally down-fiord from the deltas or glaciers. Clays are mostly mica, with only minor to moderate amounts of chlorite, kaolinite, and swelling clays. On the Casagrande plasticity chart, the sediments plot in fields for clay-size material of medium to high plasticity.     

Geotechnical characterization of slump scars,eroded slopes,and correlated deposits on continental margins: Gulf of Lions,Western Mediterranean sea

Abstract

Vertical variations of geotechnical properties in the uppermost sediment layers characterize the main sedimentary processes acting on the construction and destruction of progressive‐type continental slopes. In the Gulf of Lions, the original thicknesses and distribution of the uppermost sedimentary layers of the continental slope and rise, which consist of Holocene muds overlying Pleistocene muds, have been greatly modified by erosion and several kinds of slope failure processes. Each process is typified through sets of geotechnical properties measured in the eroded or slumped sections and in the associated sediment accumulations.

In slump scars, the water‐rich Holocene muds lie on fine, overconsolidated, Pleistocene muds with high plasticity and low shear strength. In bottom current‐eroded slopes, where modern sedimentation is extremely reduced, the Pleistocene muds frequently outcrop and may sometimes be overlain by a very thin layer of Holocene muds. The Pleistocene muds of eroded slopes are overconsolidated and more silty and less plastic than the Pleistocene muds from slopes affected by slope failure, their shear strength being 10 times greater.

Deposits at the toe of slumps are very often formed by several superposed three‐layer units (triplets of interstratified Holocene, transitional, and Pleistocene layers) issued from retrogressive slumping occurring in the slump scars above their head area. The main body of each layer is then relatively undisturbed, showing the usual burial geotechnical gradients due to overburden pressure (i.e., decrease of water content and increase of unit weight and shear strength). At the toe of bottom current‐eroded slopes, a thick and homogeneous layer of Holocene muds overlies the Pleistocene muds; this Holocene layer has unappreciable burial depth gradient of its geotechnical parameters because of a high rate of modem and continuous deposition.     

Physical and Geotechnical Properties and Assessment of Sediment Stability on the Continental Slope and Basin of the Bransfield Basin (Antarctica Peninsula)

Our investigation is centred on the continental slope of the Antarctic Peninsula and adjacent basin. Type of sediments, sedimentary stratigraphy, and physical and geotechnical characterization of the sediments have been integrated. Four different types of sediments have been defined: diamictons, silty and muddy turbidites, muddy, silty and muddy matrix embedded clast contourites. There is a close correspondence between the physical properties (density, magnetic susceptibility and p-wave velocity) and the texture and/or fabric as laminations and stratification. From a quantitative point of view, only a few statistical correlations between textural and physical properties have been found. Within the geotechnical properties, only water content is most influenced by texture. This slope, with a maximum gradient observed (20°), is stable, according to the stability under gravitational loading concepts, and the maximum stable slope that would range from 22° to 29°. Nevertheless, different instability features have been observed. Volcanic activity, bottom currents, glacial loading-unloading or earthquakes can be considered as potential mechanisms to induce instability in this area.     

Physical and Geotechnical Properties and Assessment of Sediment Stability on the Continental Slope and Basin of the Bransfield Basin (Antarctica Peninsula)

Our investigation is centred on the continental slope of the Antarctic Peninsula and adjacent basin. Type of sediments, sedimentary stratigraphy, and physical and geotechnical characterization of the sediments have been integrated. Four different types of sediments have been defined: diamictons, silty and muddy turbidites, muddy, silty and muddy matrix embedded clast contourites. There is a close correspondence between the physical properties (density, magnetic susceptibility and p-wave velocity) and the texture and/or fabric as laminations and stratification. From a quantitative point of view, only a few statistical correlations between textural and physical properties have been found. Within the geotechnical properties, only water content is most influenced by texture. This slope, with a maximum gradient observed (20°), is stable, according to the stability under gravitational loading concepts, and the maximum stable slope that would range from 22° to 29°. Nevertheless, different instability features have been observed. Volcanic activity, bottom currents, glacial loading-unloading or earthquakes can be considered as potential mechanisms to induce instability in this area.     

An ancient linked fluid migration system: cold-seep deposits and sandstone intrusions in the Panoche Hills, California, USA

In central California, Maastrichtian–Danian shales of the Moreno Formation preserve a fluid migration system that developed along the western margin of the former Great Valley forearc basin. The system consists of a network of interconnected sandstone intrusions linked to overlying fossiliferous carbonates whose geochemistry, fauna, and petrology are characteristic of active cold seeps. The system is approximately 800 m thick and represents episodic migration and seafloor expulsion of fluids over at least 0.5×10⁶ years. This locality has the most extensive exposure yet discovered of a complete seep system, from underlying fluid pathways to seep deposits and associated communities.     

Reconstruction of paleo-wave conditions during the Late Pleistocene from marine terrace deposits, Monterey Bay, California

The Santa Cruz coastal terrace fringes much of the northern Monterey Bay region, California. It consists mainly of a regressive sequence of high-energy, barred nearshore marine sediments deposited during the last (Sangamonian) highstand of sea level. This sequence can be sub-divided into several depth-dependent facies on the basis of paleo-current data and vertical sequence of sedimentary structures. These include a lower shoreface facies deposited in 10–16 m water depth, an upper shoreface facies (including both a storm-dominated assemblage and a surf zone assemblage) deposited in 0–10 m water depth, and a foreshore facies deposited in the swash zone, up to 3.5 m above high tide.

The magnitudes of the storm events responsible for depositing these sediments were estimated by calculating paleo-wave heights using a variety of criteria (e.g., critical threshold equations, breaker depths, berm heights). In addition, the climate and paleogeography during the deposition of these sediments were essentially the same as today, allowing the use of present-day wave statistics to estimate the frequency of these storm events. The largest storms formed offshore-flowing currents (e.g., rip, wind-forced, and possibly storm-surge ebb currents) that resulted in the deposition of approximately 30% of the sediments seaward of the surf zone; however, the magnitude and frequency of these events are unknown. The remaining 70% of the sediment beyond the surf zone was deposited in response to smaller storm waves which were, on the average, at least 1.6 m high; such waves presently occur no more than 15% of the time. Sediments deposited during “fairweather” conditions (i.e., the remaining 85% of the time) have a low preservation potential, and are generally not preserved in this facies. In contrast, surf zone sediments were deposited by a variety of processes associated with waves whose maximum offshore heights were probably ≤ 2.2 m; such waves presently occur up to 92% of the time. Sediments within the swash zone were deposited by waves up to 3 m high, the largest of which presently occur approximately 2% of the time.

Most of the sediments were deposited by storms of intermediate magnitude and frequency; different facies, however, appear to preferentially record events of different recurrence intervals. In particular, surf zone sediments were deposited under relatively small storm and post-storm conditions, whereas sediments deposited farther offshore record increasingly larger, less frequent storm events. Relatively rare events (e.g., the 100 or 1000 yr events) do not appear to have significantly affected sedimentation in these nearshore environments.     

Quartz-grain shape: A record of the source of fine-grained sediments

The traditional petrographic means of determining the source of sediments, namely, heavy mineral analysis, is not easily practiced on fine-grained sediments. As a result, we have little information about the sources of muds, the most common sediment in the stratigraphic record.The shapes of quartz grains are also a record of their source. There have been a number of studies that have applied shape analysis to the problem of identifying the sources of sand. In this report, we extend this sourcing approach to fine-grained sediments in a study of the sources of silt on the South Texas Shelf.     

The Continental Shelf of Crete: The Benthic Environment

Abstract. Sediment characteristics determining macrofauna communities were investigated on the continental shelf of Crete. The sedimentary environment of the outer continental shelf of Crete is characterized by a silty substrate with significant decrease in chlorophyll a and organic carbon concentration with depth. Redox potential values indicated an ample supply of oxygen at all depths. Values of most production-related parameters TOC, chlorophyll a , ATP were found at the low end of the range reported from the literature even though the sampling stations were very close to the coastline. Organic carbon to chlorophyll ratios in the sediments indicated that most of the organic material is of phytoplankton origin; the quality of the organic material in the outer shelf, however, seems to be of lower bioavailability.     

Simulation of tides,residual flow and energy budget in the Gulf of California

With the application of a two-dimensional nonlinear hydrodynamical-numerical semi-implicit model, the principal tides M₂, S₂, K₂, N₂, K₁, P₁ and O₁ were studied. Energy budgets of the semi-diurnal M₂ and S₂ were calculated separately. The linear sum of these budgets was compared with the tidal energy budget obtained when these two tidal constituents interact. Since a quadratic form for the bottom friction was used, remarkable differences were found. The results show that in the area of the Colorado River delta, the dissipation of tidal energy is very strong. Intense tidal currents were observed in the same region and over the Salsipuedes Sill. Energy budgets calculated for forcing waves of different periods, but of the same amplitude, were used to estimate the principal periods of resonance. Although the topography of the Gulf is very complex, the model reproduced observed sea-surface elevation and current patterns. To study spring tide conditions, the above seven tidal constituents were simulated. Estimates of residual currents reveal the presence of several intense cyclonic and anticyclonic gyres. Over the Salsipuedes Sill, residual currents of the M₂ tide reach values of more than 15 cm s⁻¹. Horizontal distributions of dissipation rates of tidal energy and of kinetic energy were also obtained.