Age,origin and climatic controls on vegetated linear dunes in the northwestern Negev Desert (Israel)

The stabilized northwestern (NW) Negev vegetated linear dunes (VLD) of Israel extend over 1300 km² and form the eastern end of the Northern Sinai – NW Negev Erg. This study aimed at identifying primary and subsequent dune incursions and episodes of dune elongation by investigating dune geomorphology, stratigraphy and optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating. Thirty-five dune and interdune exposed and drilled section were studied and sampled for sedimentological analyses and OSL dating, enabling spatial and temporal elucidation of the NW Negev dunefield evolution.In a global perspective the NW Negev dunefield is relatively young. Though sporadic sand deposition has occurred during the past 100 ka, dunes began to accumulate over large portions of the dunefield area only at ～23 ka. Three main chronostratigraphic units, corresponding to three (OSL) age clusters, were found throughout most of the dunefield, indicating three main dune mobilizations: late to post last glacial maximum (LGM) at 18–11.5 ka, late Holocene (2–0.8 ka), and modern (150–8 years). The post-LGM phase is the most extensive and it defined the current dunefield boundaries. It involved several episodes of dune incursions and damming of drainage systems. Dune advancement often occurred in rapid pulses and the orientation of VLD long axes indicates similar long-term wind directions. The late Holocene episode included partial incursion of new sand, reworking of Late Pleistocene dunes as well as limited redeposition. The modern sand movement only reactivated older dunes and did not lengthen VLDs.This aeolian record fits well with other regional aeolian sections. We suggest that sand supply and storage in Sinai was initiated by the Late Pleistocene exposure of the Nile Delta sands. Late Pleistocene winds, substantially stronger than those usually prevailing since the onset of the Holocene, are suggested to have transported the dune sands across Sinai and into the northwestern Negev.Our results demonstrate the sensitivity of vegetated linear dunes located along the (northern) fringe of the sub-tropical desert belt to climate change (i.e. wind) and sediment supply.     

A Holocene coastal aeolian system, Vejers, Denmark: landscape evolution and sequence stratigraphy

Stratigraphical studies of Holocene aeolian strata formed at the inner margin of the Vejers dunefield on the west coast of Jutland have contributed to an understanding of aeolian landscape evolution in a storm-influenced temperate climate belt. The aeolian system was characterized by alternating periods of activity and stabilization. Intense inland sand transport occurred just after 4000 BC, 2300 BC, 600 BC and AD 300–500. Periods of sand movement were apparently initiated during climatic shifts towards more stormy conditions, and they may be linked to a millennial-scale cycle in North Atlantic Holocene climate. Preservation of the accumulated aeolian sand records a long-term rise in ground-water level. Water table behaviour was initially controlled by sea level, but after about 2300 BC water table rise was linked to coastal outbuilding and to an overall change towards a more humid climate.     

Middle Pleistocene magnetostratigraphy and susceptibility stratigraphy: data from a carbonate aeolian system,Mallorca, Western Mediterranean

This study shows that successions of Pleistocene carbonate aeolian deposits can be placed successfully in a geochronologic framework using magnetostratigraphic and susceptibility stratigraphic analysis supplemented by luminescence dating, studies of wave-cut platforms, and biostratigraphic evidence. The investigated aeolian system covers a significant part of southernmost Mallorca and is exposed in impressive coastal cliff sections.At the study site at Els Bancals the aeolian system has a maximum thickness of 16 m and is composed of alternating dark red colluvial deposits and greyish red aeolian dune and sand-sheet deposits forming seven cyclostratigraphic units. Each cyclostratigraphic unit represents landscape stabilisation, colluviation, and soil formation followed by dunefield development, when marine carbonate sand was transported far inland by westerly or north-westerly winds. The aeolian system is located on top of a wave-cut marine platform 12–14 m a.s.l. This platform probably formed during a sea-level highstand in Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 11 (427–364 ka), and renewed marine activity probably later in MIS 11 is indicated by the formation of beach deposits.Two sections at Els Bancals were sampled for a paleomagnetic study; additional samples were taken to detect variations in magnetic susceptibility (MS). The characteristic remanent magnetisation has been recovered for the most part of the succession in spite of diagenetic overprinting. There is evidence for two probably three reversal polarity excursions, possible connected to the Levantine, CR1 and CR0/Biwa III episodes. If this correlation is correct, the sampled succession represents a time interval in the Middle Pleistocene between ca 410 and ca 260 ka. This age estimate is supported by the MS study and by luminescence dates of 333±70 ka (aeolianite from lower part of the succession) and 275±23 ka (aeolianite from the top of the succession).The nature of the succession suggests deposition during alternating warm and moist (colluvial deposition; soil formation) and cold, dry and windy conditions (dunefield formation). The susceptibility signal can be correlated with the insolation signal at 65°N suggesting that environmental variation on Mallorca was linked to orbitally forced climate change, and it seems that aeolian activity and dunefield formation were linked to glacial or stadial periods.     

Archean to Recent aeolian sand systems and their sedimentary record: Current understanding and future prospects

The sedimentary record of aeolian sand systems extends from the Archean to the Quaternary, yet current understanding of aeolian sedimentary processes and product remains limited. Most preserved aeolian successions represent inland sand‐sea or dunefield (erg) deposits, whereas coastal systems are primarily known from the Cenozoic. The complexity of aeolian sedimentary processes and facies variability are under‐represented and excessively simplified in current facies models, which are not sufficiently refined to reliably account for the complexity inherent in bedform morphology and migratory behaviour, and therefore cannot be used to consistently account for and predict the nature of the preserved sedimentary record in terms of formative processes. Archean and Neoproterozoic aeolian successions remain poorly constrained. Palaeozoic ergs developed and accumulated in relation to the palaeogeographical location of land masses and desert belts. During the Triassic, widespread desert conditions prevailed across much of Europe. During the Jurassic, extensive ergs developed in North America and gave rise to anomalously thick aeolian successions. Cretaceous aeolian successions are widespread in South America, Africa, Asia, and locally in Europe (Spain) and the USA. Several Eocene to Pliocene successions represent the direct precursors to the present‐day systems. Quaternary systems include major sand seas (ergs) in low‐lattitude and mid‐latitude arid regions, Pleistocene carbonate and Holocene–Modern siliciclastic coastal systems. The sedimentary record of most modern aeolian systems remains largely unknown. The majority of palaeoenvironmental reconstructions of aeolian systems envisage transverse dunes, whereas successions representing linear and star dunes remain under‐recognized. Research questions that remain to be answered include: (i) what factors control the preservation potential of different types of aeolian bedforms and what are the characteristics of the deposits of different bedform types that can be used for effective reconstruction of original bedform morphology; (ii) what specific set of controlling conditions allow for sustained bedform climb versus episodic sequence accumulation and preservation; (iii) can sophisticated four‐dimensional models be developed for complex patterns of spatial and temporal transition between different mechanisms of accumulation and preservation; and (iv) is it reasonable to assume that the deposits of preserved aeolian successions necessarily represent an unbiased record of the conditions that prevailed during episodes of Earth history when large‐scale aeolian systems were active, or has the evidence to support the existence of other major desert basins been lost for many periods throughout Earth history?     

Tidally flooded back-barrier dunefield, Guerrero Negro area, Baja California, Mexico

A 45 km long barrier island exists west of the town of Guerrero Negro, Mexico, along the western coast of the Baja California peninsula, about 720 km south of San Diego, California. This barrier has developed in a mesotidal, arid-climate regime characterized by steady, strong, onshore winds from the NW. The barrier island W of Guerrero Negro has prograded seaward about 1·6 km in the last 1800 years while an aeolian dunefield fed by sand blown from beaches has advanced inland up to 13 km. Landward progradation of the dune system from the barrier has occurred during relative rise in sea-level; thus, aeolian sediments exist at or below the water table over a wide area. The progradation of dunes across marshes, tidal flats, and tidal channels, as well as the repeated submergence of interdune areas by tidal waters, has created a complex suite of mixed aeolian and subaqueous sediments in the back barrier. The complexity of the suites of aeolian sedimentary structures, together with the inclusion of subaqueously formed structures such as current and oscillation ripples, would make recognition of the aeolian origin of much of the sediments difficult in ancient rocks. In addition to the scientific importance of recognizing the aeolian deposits, the sedimentation model represented by the Guerrero Negro barrier has applications in petroleum exploration and development. Currently, most preservational models for barrier islands attach little volumetric importance to aeolian deposits. This modern example suggests that volumetrically significant aeolian deposits can be preserved behind a barrier, particularly in an arid-climate regime. If preserved and charged with oil, the resulting productive sandstone could have an extremely irregular landward edge comprised in part of onshore-prograded aeolian dune sandstone with excellent reservoir characteristics. As with current barrier models, the reservoir would be sealed landward and above by lagoonal mudstone and silt, evaporites, or evaporitic, sandy sabkha deposits. High organic productivity occurs in lagoons immediately adjacent to the dunefields of Guerrero Negro, suggesting that organic-rich source rock may exist near aeolian sandstone in ancient settings similar to Guerrero Negro.     

Late Quaternary history of the coastal Wahiba Sands,Sultanate of Oman

Continental sediments and geomorphological features of the coastal Wahiba Sands, Sultanate of Oman, reflect environmental variability in southeastern Arabia during the late Quaternary. Weakly cemented dune sands, interdune deposits and coastal sediments were dated by luminescence methods to establish an absolute chronology of changes in sedimentary dynamics. The dating results confirm previous assumptions that during times of low global sea level sand was transported by southerly winds from the exposed shelf onto the Arabian Peninsula. Two prominent phases of sand accumulation in the coastal area took place just before and after the last glacial maximum (LGM). A final significant period of dune consolidation is recognised during the early Holocene. However, no major consolidation of dunes appears to have occurred during the LGM and the Younger Dryas. In the northern part of the Wahiba Sands, these two periods are characterised by substantial sand deposition. This discrepancy is explained by the lack of conservation potential for dunes in the coastal area, probably caused by a low groundwater table due to low sea level and decreased precipitation. While the times of aeolian activity reflect arid to hyper‐arid conditions, lacustrine and pedogenically altered interdune deposits indicate wetter conditions than today caused by increased monsoonal circulation during the Holocene climatic optimum. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Aeolian sand sea development along the mid‐Cretaceous western Tethyan margin (Spain): erg sedimentology and palaeoclimate implications

The existence of a mid‐Cretaceous erg system along the western Tethyan margin (Iberian Basin, Spain) was recently demonstrated based on the occurrence of wind‐blown desert sands in coeval shallow marine deposits. Here, the first direct evidence of this mid‐Cretaceous erg in Europe is presented and the palaeoclimate and palaeoceanographic implications are discussed. The aeolian sand sea extended over an area of 4600 km². Compound crescentic dunes, linear draa and complex aeolian dunes, sand sheets, wet, dry and evaporitic interdunes, sabkha deposits and coeval extradune lagoonal deposits form the main architectural elements of this desert system that was located in a sub‐tropical arid belt along the western Tethyan margin. Sub‐critically climbing translatent strata, grain flow and grain fall deposits, pin‐stripe lamination, lee side dune wind ripples, soft‐sediment deformations, vertebrate tracks, biogenic traces, tubes and wood fragments are some of the small‐scale structures and components observed in the aeolian dune sandstones. At the boundary between the aeolian sand sea and the marine realm, intertonguing of aeolian deposits and marine facies occurs. Massive sandstone units were laid down by mass flow events that reworked aeolian dune sands during flooding events. The cyclic occurrence of soft sediment deformation is ascribed to intermittent (marine) flooding of aeolian dunes and associated rise in the water table. The aeolian erg system developed in an active extensional tectonic setting that favoured its preservation. Because of the close proximity of the marine realm, the water table was high and contributed to the preservation of the aeolian facies. A sand‐drift surface marks the onset of aeolian dune construction and accumulation, whereby aeolian deposits cover an earlier succession of coastal coal deposits formed in a more humid period. A prominent aeolian super‐surface forms an angular unconformity that divides the aeolian succession into two erg sequences. This super‐surface formed in response to a major tectonic reactivation in the basin, and also marks the change in style of aeolian sedimentation from compound climbing crescentic dunes to aeolian draas. The location of the mid‐Cretaceous palaeoerg fits well to both the global distribution of other known Cretaceous erg systems and with current palaeoclimate data that suggest a global cooling period and a sea‐level lowstand during early mid‐Cretaceous times. The occurrence of a sub‐tropical coastal erg in the mid‐Cretaceous of Spain correlates with the exposure of carbonate platforms on the Arabian platform during much of the Late Aptian to Middle Albian, and is related to this eustatic sea‐level lowstand.     

The action of wind and water in a mid‐Cretaceous subtropical erg‐margin system close to the Variscan Iberian Massif,Spain

Aeolian processes and ephemeral water influx from the Variscan Iberian Massif to the mid‐Cretaceous outer back‐erg margin system in eastern Iberia led to deposition and erosion of aeolian dunes and the formation of desert pavements. Remains of aeolian dunes encased in ephemeral fluvial deposits (aeolian pods) demonstrate intense erosion of windblown deposits by sudden water fluxes. The alternating activity of wind and water led to a variety of facies associations such as deflation lags, desert pavements, aeolian dunes, pebbles scattered throughout dune strata, aeolian sandsheets, aeolian deposits with bimodal grain‐size distributions, mud playa, ephemeral floodplain, pebble‐sand and cobble‐sand bedload stream, pebble–cobble‐sand sheet flood, sand bedload stream, debris flow and hyperconcentrated flow deposits. Sediment in this desert system underwent transport by wind and water and reworking in a variety of sub‐environments. The nearby Variscan Iberian Massif supplied quartzite pebbles as part of mass flows. Pebbles and cobbles were concentrated in deflation lags, eroded and polished by wind‐driven sands (facets and ventifacts) and incorporated by rolling into the toesets of aeolian dunes. The back‐erg depositional system comprises an outer back‐erg close to the Variscan highlands, and an inner back‐erg close to the central‐erg area. The inner back‐erg developed on a structural high and is characterized by mud playa deposits interbedded with aeolian and ephemeral channel deposits. In the inner back‐erg area ephemeral wadis, desiccated after occasional floods, were mud cracked and overrun episodically by aeolian dunes. Subsequent floods eroded the aeolian dunes and mud‐cracked surfaces, resulting in largely structureless sandstones with boulder‐size mudstone intraclasts. Floods spread over the margins of ephemeral channels and eroded surrounding aeolian dunes. The remaining dunes were colonized occasionally by plants and their roots penetrated into the flooded aeolian sands. Upon desiccation, deflation resulted in lags of coarser‐grained sediments. A renewed windblown supply led to aeolian sandsheet accumulation in topographic wadi depressions. Synsedimentary tectonics caused the outer back‐erg system to experience enhanced generation of accommodation space allowing the accumulation of aeolian dune sands. Ephemeral water flow to the outer back‐erg area supplied pebbles, eroded aeolian dunes, and produced hyperconcentrated flow deposits. Fluidization and liquefaction generated gravel pockets and recumbent folds. Dune damming after sporadic rains (the case of the Namib Desert), monsoonal water discharge (Thar Desert) and meltwater fluxes from glaciated mountains (Taklamakan Desert) are three potential, non‐exclusive analogues for the ephemeral water influx and the generation of hyperconcentrated flows in the Cretaceous desert margin system. An increase in relief driven by the Aptian anti‐clockwise rotation of Iberia, led to an altitude sufficient for the development of orographic rains and snowfall which fed (melt)water fluxes to the desert margin system. Quartzite conglomerates and sands, dominantly consisting of quartz and well‐preserved feldspar grains which are also observed in older Cretaceous strata, indicate an arid climate and the mechanical weathering of Precambrian and Palaeozoic metamorphic sediments and felsic igneous rocks. Unroofing of much of the cover of sedimentary rocks in the Variscan Iberian Massif must therefore have taken place in pre‐Cretaceous times.     

Climate-induced sediment-palaeosol cycles in a Late Cretaceous dry aeolian sand sheet: Marília Formation (North-West Bauru Basin, Brazil)

Aeolian sand sheets, which are characterized by low relief surfaces that lack dunes, are common in arid and semi‐arid climatic settings. The surface of an aeolian sand sheet can either be stable and subject to pedogenetic effects, or unstable such that it is affected by deflation or sedimentation. The Marília Formation (Late Cretaceous) may be interpreted as an ancient aeolian sand sheet area, where alternating phases of stability and instability of the accumulation surface have been recorded. Detailed field studies were carried out in several sections of the Marília Formation, where cyclic alternations of palaeosols and aeolian deposits were evident, using palaeopedological and facies analysis methods, supported in the laboratory by the analysis of rock samples, cut and polished in slabs, thin sections, scanning electron microscope images and X‐ray diffraction data from the clay minerals. The deposits comprise three lithofacies that, in order of abundance, are characterized by: (i) translatent wind‐ripple strata; (ii) flood deposits; and (iii) ephemeral river channel deposits. Palaeosols constitute, on average, 65% of the vertical succession. Three types of palaeosols (pedotypes) are recognized: (i) Aridisols; (ii) Entisols; and (iii) Vertisols. Erosional surfaces due to aeolian deflation divide the top of the palaeosol profiles from the overlying aeolian deposits. The palaeoenvironmental interpretation of the deposits and the palaeosols allows the depositional system of the Marília Formation to be defined as a flat area, dominated by aeolian sedimentation, with subordinate ephemeral river sedimentation, and characterized by a dry climatic setting with occasional rainfall. The climate is the main forcing factor controlling the alternation between episodes of active sedimentation and periods of palaeosol development. A climate‐controlled model is proposed in which: (i) the palaeosols are indicative of a stable surface that is developed during the more humid climatic phases; and (ii) the erosional surfaces and the overlying aeolian sediments attest to periods of deflation and subsequent sedimentation, thereby increasing the availability of sediment during the drier climatic phases. The ephemeral fluvial deposits mark the more humid climatic conditions and contribute to the lagged sediment influx caused during the drier periods by the erosion of previously stored sediment.     

Aeolian stratification and facies association in desert sediments, Arran basin (Permian), Scotland

ABSTRACT Permian aeolian sediments on the island of Arran are divisible into dune (including draa) and interdune deposits. Both types display a distinctive and unusually wide variation in grain size. The dominant features of the dune deposits are grainfall lamination, sandflow lamination, and inverse graded lamination associated with ripple-form lamination and normal graded lamination. The flat-lying aeolian interdune deposits are characterised by granule and sand ripples, horizontal lamination in coarse sand and granules, plane bed lamination and inverse graded lamination. Associated structures include ripple-form lamination and deflation lags. Three types of trace fossil associated with completely bioturbated horizons occur in some low-angle dune and interdune deposits.
The aeolian facies interfinger with alluvial fan deposits giving rise to three recognizable facies belts. Marginal aeolian deposits are associated with fluvial conglomerates and are dominated by interdune deposits and occasionally very thin barchan deposits (set height 3-37 cm). Intermediate aeolian deposits are characterized by interbedded crescentic dune, small draa (dune set height 5 cm-4.5 m) and interdune deposits, and rare fluvial and lake sediments. Basinal aeolian deposits are dominated by draa deposits (dune set height 0.2-28 m) associated with rare interdune sediments. Transverse dunes and draas were moved by north-eastern palaeowinds towards the foot of the alluvial fans. The aeolian sediments were deposited in a fault-bounded desert basin.     

Late Pleistocene aeolian and fluvial interactions in the development of the Nizzana dune field, Negev Desert, Israel

The interdunal areas in the Nizzana linear sand dune field contain both sandy and silty sediments. A series of trenches was excavated across the interdunal corridor exposing stacked sequences of silty and sandy units which are locally restricted to palaeodepressions. The silty units contain fining upward sequences and are interpreted as overbank deposits from the Nahal Nizzana. Thermoluminescence dating and identification of buried palaeosols indicates that the silt and clay layers were deposited over a period of several thousands of years in the late Pleistocene. The sands between the silt layers have been fluvially reworked and are not primary aeolian deposits. The stacked sequences of fluvial deposits indicate that the palaeodepressions persisted in the landscape for a significant time attesting to long-term stability of the interdunal areas. It also suggests that the linear dunes themselves have not moved laterally during this time despite climatic changes and devegetation. Since the end of the late Pleistocene the Nahal Nizzana has downcut and overbank deposition no longer occurs within the interdunal corridors. The playa deposits today are positive relief features indicating that topographic inversion has occurred and that the interdunal areas are geomorphically active.     

Linear dune accumulation chronologies from the southwest Kalahari, Namibia: challenges of reconstructing late Quaternary palaeoenvironments from aeolian landforms

The linear dunes of the southern Kalahari dunefield constitute one of the major palaeoenvironmental proxies in the region. The application of optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating since the1990s and advancements in the depth of sampling using augering equipment over the past few years have permitted the reconstruction of linear dune accumulation chronostratigraphies for entire dune profiles from base to crest. These methods are applied to four dunes in the Mariental–Stampriet region of the southern Kalahari dunefield, sampled at predominantly 0.5 m intervals. Individual dunes record multiple phases of dune construction, but with only a few phases recorded consistently between two or more of the dunes. Results from the 48 OSL ages produced here extend the aeolian accumulation record for the southern Kalahari dunefield through the last three glacial–interglacial cycles with two ages from the early part of MIS6. A synthesis of all existing luminescence ages for the southern Kalahari reveals that the dunefield has been partially active throughout much of the past 120 ka. There are no clear clusters of ages within OSL age errors. This is in contrast to previous syntheses of ages for this region. In addition, these new data from Mariental–Stampriet dunes show that clusters in grouped dune OSL ages can be spuriously produced as a function of reducing the sampling frequency with depth within the dunes, from 0.5 to 1 mintervals. This has significant implications for previous conclusions regarding discrete phases of aeolian accumulation based on sampling at 1 m intervals and less vertically intensive sampling techniques. The total luminescence data set of 136 ages for the southern Kalahari implies that this dunefield has been close to the threshold of reactivation throughout much of the late Quaternary.     

Internal structure of a trough blowout, determined from migrated ground-penetrating radar profiles

Ground‐penetrating radar (GPR) was used to investigate the relationship between the geomorphological development of a large aeolian trough blowout and the stratigraphy and internal sedimentary structure of its associated deposits. Although analogous, many of the data‐processing techniques routinely applied in seismic reflection are very rarely applied in GPR studies. In this study, a simple migration program was used that significantly enhanced the quality of GPR images from a large trough blowout at Raven Meols on the Sefton coast, northwest England. These improvements aided subsequent data interpretation, which was achieved through application of the principles of radar stratigraphy. GPR shows the pre‐blowout dunes to have a complex internal structure that suggests they were formed in the presence of at least a partial vegetation cover. Subsequent to stabilization of these dunes a thin soil developed. This dune soil forms an important radar sequence boundary and delineates a complex topography beneath the depositional lobe of the blowout. The internal structure of the depositional lobe of the blowout does not conform to a model of simple radial foreset deposition, as derived from contemporary process studies reported in the literature. Instead, the pattern of deposition has been extensively modified by the antecedent dune topography and by varying spatial and temporal exposure to important sand‐transporting winds that is partly controlled by interactions between the regional wind pattern and local dune morphology. Trough blowout deposits in coastal aeolian sedimentary sequences are likely to be recognized by the presence of laterally continuous packets of relatively high‐angle cross‐strata, which often display a spatially‐variable radial dip pattern that is only very poorly or partially developed. In addition, a soil, or other surface representing a significant hiatus in dune deposition, is likely to underlie the blowout deposits, the topography of which will show a clear relationship to the dip and orientation of the overlying cross‐strata.     

Transgressive dune formation along a cliffed coast at 75 ka in Sardinia,Western Mediterranean: a record of sea‐level fall and increased windiness

Transgressive dunes develop frequently along strandplain coastlines; however, they may also form along rocky coasts dominated by cliffs and embayments. Two lithified transgressive dune systems developed along the cliffed Alghero coast (NW Sardinia, Italy) have been investigated. One aeolian system forms a cliff‐front anchored aeolian dune accumulation; the other is a valley‐head anchored sand‐ramp system. Optically stimulated luminescence ages indicate that both systems formed around 75 ka. This period, which corresponds to the beginning of MIS 4, was characterized by a relatively low sea‐level stand (15 m below the present sea level) and was preceded by a sea‐level highstand (+1 m asl) around 81 ka (MIS 5a). Our results show that this rapid sea‐level fall exposed an enormous amount of marine sand, which was transported inland by strong northerly winds and deposited in front of cliffs or in valley heads. Therefore, sediment supply and sea‐level fall seem to be critical factors controlling dune formation along rocky coasts, which generate time‐transgressive aeolianites. Terra Nova, 00, 000–000, 2010     

Karst subsidence as a control on the accumulation and preservation of aeolian deposits: A Pleistocene example from a proglacial outwash setting,Ebro Basin,Spain

Meltwater flows emanating from the Pyrenees during the Pleistocene constructed a braided outwash plain in the Ebro Basin and led to the karstification of the Neogene gypsum bedrock. Synsedimentary evaporite dissolution locally increased subsidence rates and generated dolines and collapses that enabled the accumulation and preservation of outwash gravels and associated windblown deposits that were protected from erosion by later meltwater flows. In these localized depocentres, maximum rates of wind deceleration resulted from airflow expansion, enabling the accumulation of cross‐stratified sets of aeolian strata climbing at steep angles and thereby preserving up to 5 m thick sets. The outwash plain was characterized by longitudinal and transverse fluvial gravel bars, channels and windblown facies organized into aeolian sand sheets, transverse and complex aeolian dunes, and loess accumulations. Flat‐lying aeolian deposits merge laterally to partly deformed aeolian deposits encased in dolines and collapses. Synsedimentary evaporite dissolution caused gravels and aeolian sand deposits to subside, such that formerly near‐horizontal strata became inclined and generated multiple internal angular unconformities. During episodes when the wind was undersaturated with respect to its potential sand transporting capacity, deflation occurred over the outwash plain and coarse‐grained lags with ventifacts developed. Subsequent high‐energy flows episodically reached the aeolian dune field, leading to dune destruction and the generation of hyperconcentrated flow deposits composed in part of reworked aeolian sands. Lacustrine deposits in the distal part of the outwash plain preserve rhythmically laminated lutites and associated Gilbert‐type gravel deltas, which developed when fluvial streams reached proglacial lakes. This study documents the first evidence of an extensive Pleistocene proglacial aeolian dune field located in the Ebro Basin (41˙50° N), south of what has hitherto been considered to be the southern boundary of Pleistocene aeolian deposits in Europe. A non‐conventional mechanism (evaporite karst‐related subsidence) for the preservation of aeolian sands in the stratigraphic record is proposed.     

Development of a cliff-top dune indicated by particle size and geochemical characteristics: Rubjerg Knude, Denmark

Particle size and geochemical data have been used to investigate the development of a large cliff-top dune at Rubjerg Knude, located on the western coast of Jutland, Denmark. Textural parameters and geochemical ratios provided useful indicators of the dune sediment provenance and mode of evolution of the dune. The dune sediments themselves showed no significant spatial particle size trends and reflect a number of processes, including grainfall, wind-ripple migration and avalanching (grainflow), which formed a high proportion of the deposits on both the stoss and lee sides of the present dune. Fine grainfall sediments, which have accumulated to form a sandplain in the lee of the dune, show fining and improved sorting with distance, and extend more than 2 km downwind of the dune crest. Comparison of the textural and geochemical data from Rubjerg Knude and other locations on the Jutland coast indicates that, although there is a contribution of sand to the dune from local marine sources, the main source of sand to the cliff-top dune and sand plain sediments has been provided by the wind erosion of the underlying cliffs, which are composed of Weichselian age sandy glaciofluvial and glaciolacustrine deposits. Optically stimulated luminescence dating indicated an apparent age for the sand at the base of 274 ± 14 years. If this date is reliable, it suggests that accumulation of the aeolian sand in this area began within approximately the last 300 years. Map and photographic evidence indicate that the modern high dune only began to form after 1885, apparently associated with an acceleration in the rate of coastal cliff retreat.     

Sedimentology of a Proterozoic erg: the Venkatpur Sandstone, Pranhita-Godavari Valley, south India

Reappraisal of the Late Proterozoic Venkatpur Sandstone indicates that the bulk of the sandstone is aeolian in origin. Aeolian stratification types, namely (i) inverse graded translatent strata, (ii) adhesion laminae, (iii) grainflow strata and (iv) grainfall strata, are present throughout the outcrop belt. Nine facies have been identified that represent both aeolian and related aqueous environments within a well-developed erg. Cosets of large cross-beds at the Bellampalli section in the NW of the study area record dune fields in the interior of the sand sea. To the SE, at the Godavari River and Ramgundam sections, a progressive increase in the relative proportion of the flat-bedded to cross-bedded facies and intercalated non-aeolian facies delineates the transition from the dune-field to sand-sheet environment. An alternating sequence of aeolian and marine sediments at Laknavaram, in the extreme SE, marks the termination of the sand sea. Palaeocurrent data suggest that the NW-SE trend of the sections represents a transect across the sand sea in a direction normal to the resultant primary palaeowind direction. Abundant horizontally stratified units in the Vankatpur Sandstone do not always represent the interdune sediments. On the basis of the thickness and geometry of the units, nature of bounding surfaces and associated facies sequence, the facies is variously interpreted to represent interdune, inland sabkha, sand sheet and coastal sand flat deposits.     

A sand budget for the Alexandria coastal dunefield, South Africa

The sand in the Alexandria coastal dunefield is derived from the sandy beach which forms the seaward boundary of the dunefield. Sand is blown off the beach onto the dunefield by the high-energy onshore-directed dominant wind. The dunefield has been forming over the past 6500 years. Sand transport rates calculated from dune movement rates and wind data range from 15 to 30 m³ m ^-1 yr^-1 in an ENE direction. The sand transport rate decreases with increasing distance from the sea due to a reduction in wind speed resulting from the higher drag imposed upon the wind by the land surface. Aeolian sand movement rates of this order are typical of dunefields around the world. The total volume of sand blown into the dunefield is 375 000 m³ yr^-1. Sand is being lost to the sea by wave erosion along the eastern third of the dunefield at a rate of 45 000 m³ yr ^-1. The dunefield thus gains 330 000 m³ of sand per year. This results in dunefield growth by vertical accretion at about 1.5 mm yr^-1 and landward movement at about 0.25 m yr^-1. The dunefield is a significant sand sink in the coastal sand transport system. The rate of deposition in coastal dunefields can be 10 times as high as rates of deposition in continental sand seas. The higher rate of deposition may result from the abundant sand supply on sandy beaches, and the higher energy of coastal winds. Wind transport is slow and steady compared to fluvial or longshore drift transport of sediment, and catastrophic aeolian events do not seem to be significant in wind-laid deposits.     

Styles of interaction between aeolian,fluvial and shallow marine environments in the Pennsylvanian to Permian lower Cutler beds,south‐east Utah,USA

The Pennsylvanian to Permian lower Cutler beds comprise a 200 m thick mixed continental and shallow marine succession that forms part of the Paradox foreland basin fill exposed in and around the Canyonlands region of south‐east Utah. Aeolian facies comprise: (i) sets and compound cosets of trough cross‐bedded dune sandstone dominated by grain flow and translatent wind‐ripple strata; (ii) interdune strata characterized by sandstone, siltstone and mudstone interbeds with wind‐ripple, wavy and horizontal planar‐laminated strata resulting from accumulation on a range of dry, damp or wet substrate‐types in the flats and hollows between migrating dunes; and (iii) extensive, near‐flat lying wind‐rippled sandsheet strata. Fluvial facies comprise channel‐fill sandstones, lag conglomerates and finer‐grained overbank sheet‐flood deposits. Shallow marine facies comprise carbonate ramp limestones, tidal sand ridges and bioturbated marine mudstones. During episodes of sand sea construction and accumulation, compound transverse dunes migrated primarily to the south and south‐east, whereas south‐westerly flowing fluvial systems periodically punctuated the dune fields from the north‐east. Several vertically stacked aeolian sequences are each truncated at their top by regionally extensive surfaces that are associated with abundant calcified rhizoliths and bleaching of the underlying beds. These surfaces record the periodic shutdown and deflation of the dune fields to the level of the palaeo‐water‐table. During episodes of aeolian quiescence, fluvial systems became more widespread, forming unconfined braid‐plains that fed sediment to a coastline that lay to the south‐west and which ran approximately north‐west to south‐east for at least 200 km. Shallow marine systems repeatedly transgressed across the broad, low‐relief coastal plain on at least 10 separate occasions, resulting in the systematic preservation of units of marine limestone and calcarenite between units of non‐marine aeolian and fluvial strata, to form a series of depositional cycles. The top of the lower Cutler beds is defined by a prominent and laterally extensive marine limestone that represents the last major north‐eastward directed marine transgression into the basin prior to the onset of exclusively non‐marine sedimentation of the overlying Cedar Mesa Sandstone. Styles of interaction between aeolian, fluvial and marine facies associations occur on two distinct scales and represent the preserved expression of both small‐scale autocyclic behaviour of competing, coeval depositional systems and larger‐scale allocyclic changes that record system response to longer‐term interdependent variations in climatic and eustatic controlling mechanisms. The architectural relationships and system interactions observed in the lower Cutler beds demonstrate that the succession was generated by several cyclical changes in both climate and relative sea‐level, and that these two external controls probably underwent cyclical change in harmony with each other in the Paradox Basin during late Pennsylvanian and Permian times. This observation supports the hypothesis that both climate and eustasy were interdependent at this time and were probably responding to a glacio‐eustatic driving mechanism.