Preprints
Filtering by Subject: Sedimentology
The Byers Basin: Jurassic-Cretaceous tectonic and depositional evolution of the forearc deposits of the South Shetland Islands and its implications for the northern Antarctic Peninsula
Published: 2019-07-31
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geochemistry, Geology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Sedimentology, Stratigraphy, Tectonics and Structure
This paper addresses the Jurassic–Cretaceous stratigraphic evolution of fore-arc deposits exposed along the west coast of the northern Antarctic Peninsula. In the South Shetland Islands, Upper Jurassic deep-marine sediments are uncomformably overlain by a Lower Cretaceous volcaniclastic sequence that crops out on Livingston, Snow and Low islands. U-Pb zircon ages are presented for the upper [...]
Can barrier islands survive sea-level rise? Quantifying the relative role of tidal deltas and overwash deposition
Published: 2019-07-18
Subjects: Civil and Environmental Engineering, Civil Engineering, Earth Sciences, Engineering, Environmental Engineering, Geology, Geomorphology, Oceanography, Oceanography and Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Sedimentology
Accepted open-access publication available at: https://doi.org/10.1029/2019GL085524 Barrier island response to sea-level rise depends on their ability to transgress and move sediment onto and behind the barrier, either through flood-tidal delta deposition, or via overwash. Our understanding of these processes over decadal or longer timescales, however, is limited. Here we [...]
Fringe or background: Characterizing deep-water mudstones beyond the basin-floor fan sandstone pinchout
Published: 2019-07-09
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Sedimentology
Mud dominates volumetrically the fraction of sediment delivered and deposited in deep-water environments, and mudstone is a major component of basin-floor successions. However, studies of basin-floor deposits have mainly focused on their proximal sandstone-prone part. A consequent bias therefore remains in the understanding of depositional processes and stratigraphic architecture in [...]
Tectonic controls on the Maastrichtian-Danian transgression in the Magallanes-Austral foreland basin (Chile): Implications for the growth of the Southern Patagonian Andes
Published: 2019-07-05
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Sedimentology, Stratigraphy, Tectonics and Structure
The Maastrichtian-Danian transgression was one of the most extensive Atlantic-derived marine incursions in Patagonia. This study examines its stratigraphic record and origin in the Magallanes-Austral Basin, revealing an interplay of sedimentation, tectonism, and base-level changes, which contribute to our understanding of foreland basin dynamics. We present a multidisciplinary approach from a [...]
A bedform phase diagram for dense granular currents
Published: 2019-07-04
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Fluid Dynamics, Geology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Physics, Sedimentology, Volcanology
Pyroclastic density currents are a life-threatening volcanic hazard. Our understanding and hazard assessments of these flows primarily rely on interpretations of their deposits. The occurrence of stratified layers, cross-stratification, and dune bedforms in these deposits has been assumed as indicative of dilute, turbulent, flows causing traction-dominated deposition. Here we show, through [...]
Lateral variability of shelf-edge, slope and basin-floor deposits, Santos Basin, offshore Brazil
Published: 2019-06-28
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Engineering, Geology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Sedimentology
Construction of continental margins is driven by sediment transported across the shelf to the shelf-edge, where it is reworked by wave-, tide- and river-influenced processes within deltas and flanking clastic shorelines. Stalling of continental margin progradation often results in degradation of the outer shelf to upper slope, with re-sedimentation to the lower slope and basin-floor via a range [...]
The influence of a slope break on turbidite deposits: an experimental investigation
Published: 2019-06-24
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Sedimentology
Bypassing turbidity currents can travel downslope without depositing any of their suspended sediment load. Along the way, they may encounter a slope break (i.e. an abrupt decrease in slope angle) that initiates sediment deposition. Depending on the initiation point of deposition (the upslope pinch-out), these turbidite deposits in slope-break systems can form potential reservoirs for [...]
Multiple episodes of sand injection leading to accumulation and leakage of hydrocarbons along the San Andreas/San Gregorio fault system, California.
Published: 2019-06-22
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Sedimentology, Tectonics and Structure
The presence of sand injections has proven to enhance the likelihood of hydrocarbon traps within siliciclastic successions. Through the development of large interconnected networks of sills and dykes, sand injection complexes provide a volume of porous and permeable rocks within the low permeability host units. Overall, the formation of sand injection complexes requires extensive fracturing and [...]
A Stratigraphic Approach to Inferring Depositional Ages From Detrital Geochronology Data
Published: 2019-06-04
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Sedimentology
With the increasing use of detrital geochronology data for provenance analyses, we have also developed new constraints on the age of otherwise undateable sedimentary deposits. Because a deposit can be no older than its youngest mineral constituent, the youngest defensible detrital mineral age defines the maximum depositional age of the sampled bed. Defining the youngest `defensible age in the [...]
How erosive are submarine landslides?
Published: 2019-05-30
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Sedimentology
Submarine landslides (slides) are ubiquitous on continental margins. They can pose a major hazard by triggering tsunami and damaging essential submarine infrastructure. Slide volume, which is a key parameter in hazard assessment, can change after initiation through substrate and/or water entrainment. However, the erosive capacity of slides is uncertain. Here, we quantify slide erosivity by [...]
Lake Level Fluctuations in the Northern Great Basin for the Last 25,000 years
Published: 2019-05-30
Subjects: Climate, Earth Sciences, Environmental Sciences, Geology, Hydrology, Oceanography and Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Sedimentology
During the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM; ~23,000 to 19,000 years ago or ka) and through the last deglaciation, the Great Basin physiographic region in the western United States was marked by multiple extensive lake systems, as recorded by proxy evidence and lake sediments. However, temporal constraints on the growth, desiccation, and timing of lake highstands remain poorly constrained. Studies aimed [...]
The influence of basin settings and flow properties on the dimensions of submarine lobe elements
Published: 2019-05-23
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Sedimentology
Submarine lobes have been identified within various deep-water settings, including the basin-floor, the base of slope and the continental slope. Their dimensions and geometries are postulated to be controlled by the topographical configuration of the seabed, sediment supply system and slope maturity. While confinement has been suggested as a main control factor for lobe dimensions, it does not [...]
Holocene sedimentary record and coastal evolution in the Makran subduction zone (Iran)
Published: 2019-05-15
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geomorphology, Other Earth Sciences, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Sedimentology
The Makran coast displays evidence of surface uplift since at least the Late Pleistocene, but it remains uncertain whether this displacement is accommodated by creep on the subduction interface, or in a series of large earthquakes. Here, we address this problem by looking at the short term (Holocene) history of continental vertical displacements recorded in the geomorphology and sedimentary [...]
The stratigraphic evolution of onlap in siliciclastic deep-water systems: Autogenic modulation of allogenic signals
Published: 2019-04-10
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Sedimentology, Stratigraphy
Seafloor topography affects the sediment gravity flows that interact with it. Understanding this interaction is critical for accurate predictions of sediment distribution, paleogeography, and structural reconstructions of deep-water basins. The effects of seafloor topography can be seen from the bed scale, through facies transitions toward intra-basinal slopes, to the basin scale, where onlap [...]
The Cyclic Preservation of Clastic and Evaporitic Sabkha Sediments: Insights from the Cedar Mesa Sandstone Formation of the Cutler Group, Utah, USA
Published: 2019-04-01
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Sedimentology
The strata of arid continental basins commonly comprise evaporitic sediments deposited in sabkha settings combined with clastic sediments derived from aeolian, fluvial and/or lacustrine settings. The sedimentary character of these mixed successions and the degree to which evaporitic strata influence their composition, both contribute towards the economic potential of the evaporitic and the [...]