Sedimentary Processes and the Creation of the Stratigraphic Record in the Late Quaternary North Atlantic Ocean [and Discussion]

The primary difficulty in the interpretation of the stratigraphic record is that a multiplicity of sedimentary processes, some producing similar effects, are responsible for it. We seek to unravel the effects of the more important processes through analysis of sedimentary properties. The effects to...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Philosophical transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B. Biological sciences 1995-05, Vol.348 (1324), p.229-241
Main Authors: McCave, I. N., Holligan, P.M., Street-Perrot, F.A., Labeyrie, L., Sarnthein, M.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Carbonates
Geological Perspective and Palaeooceanography: How Variable has the System been in the Past and What Role can be Attributed to the Biological Cycles?
Ocean currents
Ocean floor
Oceans
Productivity
Sand
Seas
Sediments
Silts
Turbidity
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Summary:The primary difficulty in the interpretation of the stratigraphic record is that a multiplicity of sedimentary processes, some producing similar effects, are responsible for it. We seek to unravel the effects of the more important processes through analysis of sedimentary properties. The effects to be unravelled are those relating to pelagic input (vertical flux) due to organic productivity, wind-blown dust, ice-rafting and volcanic ash; to horizontal flux in turbidity currents, debris flows, and nepheloid layers caused by the reworking of sea-bed sediments by internal waves and bottom currents; and to degradation of the record by dissolution, oxidation and mixing of components. Contrasting regions of the North Atlantic are used to show the effects of bottom currents, ice-rafting, wind and productivity on sediments. Applications to estimates of changes in bottom currents, productivity and carbon sequestration in the N.E. Atlantic over the past 30 ka are given.
ISSN:0962-8436
1471-2970
DOI:10.1098/rstb.1995.0065