Inestabilidades y deformación en la cubierta sedimentaria de la parte superior del talud del margen continental de Aquitania, norte del cañon del Capbreton (Golfo de Vizcaya)

Acoustic and core data have recently been collected on the shelf break and the upper part of the slope of the south Aquitaine continental margin. They reveal the major role played by mass-flow gravity processes in deposit erosion and redistribution, modelling of the sea-bed, and transfer of sediment toward the deep-sea. The study region is bounded in the south by the Capbreton canyon. The northern area, which shows a smooth morphology, is characterised by small-scale deformations due to sediment creep or low-amplitude slide processes. The deformations are associated with mini listric-like faults that bound packets of sediments in which the deposit geometry is typical of constructional sediment waves. These sediment waves result from the interaction of depositional and gravity deformation processes. In the southern area, closer to the canyon, wave-like structures are still present but mostly of smaller size. They only result from gravity deformation processes without any evidence of constructional processes. In the vicinity of the Capbreton canyon, the shelf break and upper slope have a much more uneven morphology with sedimentary reliefs, escarpments and depressions directed toward the canyon thalweg. The depressions look like slide scars, and could be the result of regressive slides initiated at the top of the canyon flank. The age of the sliding event responsible for the formation of the depression observed today could be middle to upper Quaternary. Since their formation, these depressions act as conduits that channel the transfer of shelf sediment into the canyon, as demonstrated by the occurrence of a meandering channel on the sea-floor of one depression.Se recogieron datos acústicos y de testigos (cores) en el límite de la plataforma y la parte superior del talud en el margen continental del sur de Aquitania. Estos datos revelan el importante papel que juegan los procesos de flujos en masa por gravedad en la erosión y redistribución de los depósitos, el modelado del lecho marino y la transferencia de sedimentos hacia el fondo del océano. La región de estudio está limitada al sur por el cañón de Capbreton. El área norte, que presenta una morfología suave, está caracterizada por deformaciones de pequeña escala debidas al arrastre de sedimentos o procesos de deslizamiento de baja amplitud. Las deformaciones están asociadas a mini fallas de tipo lístrico que delimitan bolsas de sedimentos en las cuales la geometría del depósito es típica de ondas de sedimento constructivas. Estas ondas sedimentarias resultan de la interacción de los procesos de deformación deposicionales y por gravedad. En el área sur, cerca del cañón, están todavía presentes estructuras similares a ondas, pero la mayor parte son de pequeño tamaño. Estas estructuras son el resultado de los procesos de deformación por gravedad sin ninguna evidencia de procesos constructivos. En las proximidades del cañón de Capbreton, el margen continental y el talud superior tienen una morfología mucho más desigual con relieves sedimentarios, escarpaduras y depresiones dirigidas hacia el talweg del cañón. Las depresiones semejan marcas de deslizamientos y pueden ser el resultado de deslizamientos regresivos iniciados en la parte superior de los flancos del cañón. Los eventos de deslizamiento responsables de la formación de las depresiones observadas actualmente podrían datarse en el Cuaternario medio o superior. Desde su formación, estas depresiones funcionan como conductos que canalizan la transferencia de sedimentos de plataforma hacia el cañón, tal y como demuestra la presencia de un canal con meandros en el fondo de una de estas depresiones

Contribution à l'étude sédimentologique de l'étage Albien dans le massif du Vercors

Cette étude participe à la définition des sédiments albiens , leurs conditions de dépot, leurs variations dans l'espace et dans le temps et permet de preciser la paléogéographie du bassin de sédimentation.pas de résum

Sedimentological and geochemical characteristics of upper Cretaceous and lower Tertiary sediments of ODP Hole 108-661A

Based on sedimentological and geochemical data, the Upper Cretaceous and Tertiary sequence at Ocean Drilling Program Site 661 was subdivided into four intervals: Interval I (Campanian age) is characterized by sediments deposited below the calcite compensation depth (CCD) inside a high-productivity area and well-oxygenated bottom waters, indicated by the absence of carbonate, the major occurrence of zeolites and opal-CT, and intense bioturbation. Very fine-grained siliciclastic sediments and the lack of any erosional features suggest a low-energy environment. The terrigenous fraction was probably supplied by winds from the nontropical areas in South Africa. Interval II (Maestrichtian age) is characterized by high-amplitude variations in the carbonate content indicative of a deposition above the CCD, superimposed by (climate-controlled) short-term fluctuations of the CCD. The absence of both zeolites and opal-CT imply a position of Site 661 outside high-productivity areas. The first occurrence of higher amounts of kaolinite (especially during the middle Maestrichtian) suggests the onset of a terrigenous sediment supply from tropical areas. Interval III (between uppermost Cretaceous to early Tertiary) is characterized by the absence of carbonate and zeolites, interpreted as deposition below the CCD and outside an oceanic high-productivity belt. The kaolinite-over-illite dominance suggests a terrigenous sediment supply from tropical areas. Interval IV (between early Tertiary and Miocene age) is characterized by the occurrence of black manganeserich layers, major nodules/pebbles, and erosional surfaces, indicating phases of extremely reduced sediment accumulation and bottom-current activities. In the lower part of this interval (?Eocene age), higher amounts of zeolites occur, which suggest a higher oceanic productivity caused by equatorial upwelling. The source area of the terrigenous sediment fraction at Site 661 was the tropical region of northwest Africa, as suggested by the kaolinite-over-illite dominance

Median grain size and distribution of sand in ODP Hole 108-660A (Fig. 5)

50 m of Middle Eocene pure radiolarian ooze were drilled at ODP Site 660 in the equatorial East Atlantic, 80 km northeast of the Kane Gap. The oozes comprise a 10 m high and 2 km broad mound of seismic reverberations, covered by manganese-rich sediment, and contain trace amounts of sponge spicules and diatoms, negligible organic carbon (0.15%), clay, and variable amounts of pyrite. The yellow to pale brown silty sediments are relatively coarse-grained (30–45% coarser than 6 µm), little bioturbated, and commonly massive or laminated on a cm-scale. The unlithified radiolarian ooze may indicate an interval of high oceanic productivity, probably linked to a palaeoposition of Site 660 close to the equatorial upwelling belt during Middle Eocene time. The absence of organic matter, however, and both the laminated bedding and the mound-like structure of the deposit on the lower slope of a continental rise indicate deposition by relatively intense contour currents of oxygen-rich deep water, which passed through the Kane Gap, winnowed the fine clay fraction, and prevented the preservation of organic carbon. The ooze may be either a contourite-lag deposit, or a contourite accumulation of displaced radiolarians, originating south of the Kane Gap and being deposited in its northern lee, thus documenting the passage of a strong cross-equatorial bottom-water current formed near Antarctica. These Eocene contourites may be an analogue for ancient radiolarites in the Tethyan Ocean

Pelagic, turbiditic, and contouritic sequential deposits on the Cape Verde Plateau

On the Cape Verde Plateau, Neogene deposits are composed of major pelagic and hemipelagic sediments. These sediments show climatic sequences composed of two lithologic terms that differ in their siliciclastic and carbonate contents. Several turbiditic and contouritic sequences are interbedded in these deposits. Turbidite sequences are fine grained and thin bedded with a very low frequency (about 12 sequences during the Neogene). They are composed of quartz-rich siliciclastic or volcaniclastic sediments. Quartz-rich turbidites originated from the Senegalese margin. Their slightly higher frequency during the early Pliocene indicates that the stronger turbidity currents, and probably the most abundant continental inputs, occur at that period. Volcaniclastic turbidites are only present in the early Miocene (about 17 Ma) and the early Pleistocene (1 Ma). They have flown from adjacent Cape Verde Islands and reflect two episodes of high volcanic activity in this area. Contourite sequences, composed of biogenic sandy silts, represent less than 5% of the sediment pile and seem to have been mainly deposited during the late Pleistocene. These different sequences show clay mineral variations throughout Neogene time. Kaolinite is predominant in the Miocene and lower Pliocene deposits; this mineral decreases thereafter, with an increased trend of illite in the uppermost Pliocene and Pleistocene sediments, suggesting a change in sediment sources on the Saharan continent at about 2.6 Ma