Current-controlled sedimentation in the north-western Weddell Sea
https://doi.org/10.30758/0555-2648-2021-67-4-382-393
Abstract
The sedimentary basins of the north-western Weddell Sea are characterized by a variety of contourite drifts. This study is aimed at their identification, spatial mapping and temporal evolution and based on the integration of a large amount of seismic data collected by different countries including the recent data of the Russian Antarctic Expedition. Most of the drifts in the region being studied are classified as separated, confined, plastered or sheeted. The chain of sediment wave fields is mapped in the western and northern Powell Basin. The earliest contourite drifts started to form in the Early Miocene or, possibly, in the Late Oligocene. The changes in the depositional pattern in the Middle Miocene and then in the Late Pliocene are thought to have resulted from successive intensification of the bottom currents.
Keywords
Antarctic,
bottom currents,
contourite drift,
Jane Basin,
Powell Basin,
seismic research,
seismic stratigraphy,
Weddell Sea
Supporting agencies: This work was supported by the Russian Foundation for Basic Research (grant № 19-05-00858).
About the Authors
L. G. Leitchenkov
Research Institute of Geology and Mineral Resources of the World Ocean; Institute of Earth Sciences, St. Petersburg State University
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
St. Petersburg
V. V. Minina
Research Institute of Geology and Mineral Resources of the World Ocean
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
St. Petersburg
Yu. B. Guseva
Polar Marine Geosurvey Expedition
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
St. Petersburg
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Review
For citations:
Leitchenkov L.G., Minina V.V., Guseva Yu.B. Current-controlled sedimentation in the north-western Weddell Sea. Arctic and Antarctic Research. 2021;67(4):382-393. https://doi.org/10.30758/0555-2648-2021-67-4-382-393
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