Sedimentary and structural patterns on the Iberian continental margin: an alternative view of continental margin sedimentation

A long-range side-scan sonar (GLORIA) survey of the entire West Iberian slope and rise has provided the first overview of the interrelationship between structure and sedimentation patterns on a continental margin. The results emphasize the importance of slope-following contour currents as a depositional mechanism in fashioning this continental rise. Terrigenous sediments transported down-canyon by-pass the rise which does not consist of a series of coalescing fans. The sedimentation patterns identified on the sonographs can be interpreted in terms of facies models and caution must be exercised against over-emphasis of downslope processes in models for the construction of lower slopes and rises.