Chemostratigraphy of Neoproterozoic carbonates: implications for 'blind dating'

The delta C-13(carb) and Sr-87/Sr-86 secular variations in Neoproteozoic seawater have been used for the purpose of 'isotope stratigraphy' but there are a number of problems that can preclude its routine use. In particular, it cannot be used with confidence for 'blind dating'. The compilation of isotopic data on carbonate rocks reveals a high level of inconsistency between various carbon isotope age curves constructed for Neoproteozoic seawater, caused by a relatively high frequency of both global and local delta C-13(carb) fluctuations combined with few reliable age determinations. Further complication is caused by the unresolved problem as to whether two or four glaciations, and associated negative delta C-13(carb) excursions, can be reliably documented. Carbon isotope stratigraphy cannot be used alone for geological correlation and 'blind dating'. Strontium isotope stratigraphy is a more reliable and precise tool for stratigraphic correlations and indirect age determinations. Combining strontium and carbon isotope stratigraphy, several discrete ages within the 590-544 Myr interval, and two age-groups at 660-610 and 740-690 Myr can be resolved

Geology of the Northern Llano Uplift, Junction to Llano, Texas

This year\u27s Texas Academy of Science Geology Field Trip will visit nine interesting locations in two different areas in the Texas Hill Country (Figure 1). In the first area we will look at the Cretaceous stratigraphy around Junction, Texas (Figures 1, 2, 3, and 4). The expedition will then travel to the northern part of the Llano uplift and study Cambrian and Precambrian stratigraphy and structure of the northern Llano Uplift (Figures 4 and 5). Stop 9 will be at Cooper’s BBQ for lunch

Where geology meets pedology: Late Quaternary tephras, loess, and paleosols in the Mamaku Plateau and Lake Rerewhakaaitu areas

On this trip we focus on tephrostratigraphy and soil stratigraphy together with aspects of palaeoenvironmental reconstruction over long and short time-spans. We will examine the relationship between the deposition of tephras and tephric loess and the formation of soils in these deposits as they accumulate, either incrementally (millimetre by millimetre) or as thicker layers, in a process known as upbuilding pedogenesis. Development of age models for the eruption of marker tephras, and of the new climate event stratigraphy for New Zealand within the NZ-INTIMATE project (Integration of ice-core, marine, and terrestrial records for New Zealand since 30,000 years ago), will also be touched upon

Eastern Taranaki Basin field guide.

Linking the onshore and offshore parts of Eastern Taranaki Basin: Insights to stratigraphic architecture, sedimentary facies, sequence stratigraphy, paleogeography and hydrocarbon exploration from the on land record

Flow dynamics of an accumulation basin: a case study of upper Kahiltna Glacier, Mount McKinley, Alaska

We interpreted flow dynamics of the Kahiltna Pass Basin accumulation zone on Mount McKinley, Alaska, USA, using 40, 100 and 900 MHz ground-penetrating radar profiles and GPS surface velocity measurements. We found dipping, englacial surface-conformable strata that experienced vertical thickening as the glacier flowed westward from a steep, higher-velocity (60 m a–1) region into flat terrain associated with a 908 bend in the glacier and lower velocities (15 m a–1) to the south. Stratigraphy near the western side of the basin was surface-conformable to 170 m depth and thinned as flow diverged southward, down-glacier. We found complex strata beneath the conformable stratigraphy and interpret these features as buried crevasses, avalanche debris and deformed ice caused by up-glacier events. We also suggest that basin dimensions, bed topography and the sharp bend each cause flow extension and compression, significantly contributing to conformable and complex strata thickness variations. Our findings show that surface-conformable stratigraphy continuous with depth and consistent strata thicknesses cannot be assumed in accumulation basins, because local and upglacier terrain and flow dynamics can cause structural complexities to occur under and within surfaceconformable layers

Lunar stratigraphy as revealed by crater morphology, a critical review

Lunar craters morphology and lunar surface stratigraphy technique

The El Masnou Infralittoral sedimentary environment (Barcelona province, NW Mediterranean Sea): morphology and Holocene seismic stratigraphy

A detailed analysis of the morphology and the Holocene seismic and sequence stratigraphy and architecture of the infralittoral sedimentary environment of the El Masnou coast (Catalonia, NW Mediterranean Sea) was carried out using multibeam bathymetry and GeoPulse seismic data. This environment extends down to 26-30 m water depth, and is defined morphologically by two depositional wedges whose seafloor is affected by erosive furrows, slides, fields of large- and small-scale wavy bedforms, and dredging trenches and pits. Erosive terraces are also identified in the transition domain toward the inner continental shelf. The Holocene stratigraphy of the infralittoral environment is defined by two major seismic sequences (lower and upper), each one formed by internal seismic units. The sequences and units are characterised by downlapping surfaces made up of deposits formed by progradation of coastal lithosomes. The stratigraphy and stratal architecture, displaying a retrogradational arrangement with progradational patterns of minor order, were controlled by different sea-level positions. The stratigraphic division represents the coastal response to the last fourth-order transgressive and highstand conditions, modulated by small-scale sea-level oscillations (≈1-2 m) of fith to sixth order. This study also highlights the advantage of an integrated analysis using acoustic/seismic methods for practical assessment of the anthropogenic effects on infralittoral domains based on the association of marine geological observations

Bio-, Magneto- and event-stratigraphy across the K-T boundary

Determining the time and the time structure of rare events in geology can be accomplished by applying three different and independent stratigraphic methods: Biostratigraphy, magneto-stratigraphy and event-stratigraphy. The optimal time resolution of the two former methods is about 1000 years, while by means of event-stratigraphy a resolution of approximately one year can be achieved. For biostratigraphy across the Cretaceous-Tertiary (K-T) boundary micro- and nannofossils have been found best suited. The qualitative and quantitative analyses of minerals and trace elements across the K-T boundary show anomalies on a millimeter scale and permit conclusions regarding the time structure of the K-T event itself. The results of the analyses find a most consistent explanation by the assumption of an extraterrestrial impact. The main portion of the material rain from the atmosphere evidently was deposited within a short time. The long-time components consist of the finest portion of the material rain from the atmosphere and the transported and redeposited fall-out

Cenozoic evolution of the eastern Black Sea: a test of depth-dependent stretching models

Subsidence analysis of the eastern Black Sea basin suggests that the stratigraphy of this deep, extensional basin can be explained by a predominantly pure-shear stretching history. A strain-rate inversion method that assumes pure-shear extension obtains good fits between observed and predicted stratigraphy. A relatively pure-shear strain distribution is also obtained when a strain-rate inversion algorithm is applied that allows extension to vary with depth without assuming its existence or form. The timing of opening of the eastern Black Sea, which occupied a back-arc position during the closure of the Tethys Ocean, has also been a subject of intense debate; competing theories called for basin opening during the Jurassic, Cretaceous or Paleocene/Eocene. Our work suggests that extension likely continued into the early Cenozoic, in agreement with stratigraphic relationships onshore and with estimates for the timing of arc magmatism. Further basin deepening also appears to have occurred in the last 20 myr. This anomalous subsidence event is focused in the northern part of the basin and reaches its peak at 15–10 Ma. We suggest that this comparatively localized shortening is associated with the northward movement of the Arabian plate. We also explore the effects of paleowater depth and elastic thickness on the results. These parameters are controversial, particularly for deep-water basins and margins, but their estimation is a necessary step in any analysis of the tectonic subsidence record stored in stratigraphy. <br/

Small smooth units (‘young’ lavas?) abutting lobate scarps on Mercury

We have identified small units abutting, and so stratigraphy younger than, lobate scarps. This post dates the end of large scale smooth plains formation at the onset of global contraction. This elaborates the history of volcanism on Mercury