a terra rossa like paleosol complex from the upper jurassic of portugal the basal upper jurassic unconformity in the lusitanian basin of portugal commonly exhibits an irregular palaeokarstic surface developed in underlying middle jurassic carbonates in the serra da arrabida area south of lisbon wire cut quarry faces expose a thick upper jurassic paleosol complex overlying fissured and brecciated limestone veneered with a calcrete crust and associated with colluvial deposits the paleosol complex is a red mudstone with calcrete stringers which superficially resembles present day red mediterranean terra rossa soils a detailed micromorphological study indicates the absence of any clay illuviation in the paleosol unit which suggests that it is not comparable to the true terra rossa alfisols but more closely resembles present day aridisols this difference from true terra rossa soils probably reflects formation under a drier climate which is confirmed by the occurrence elsewhere in portugal of evaporitic lake deposits of the same age the paper stresses the role of soil petrography micromorphology in interpreting pedogenesis in paleosols

stable isotopic signatures of tertiary lake carbonates eastern ebro basin spain abstract the tertiary ebro basin spain was a region of internal drainage fed by rivers emanating from the fringing pyrenees catalanides and iberian chains the stable isotopic composition of bulk carbonates deposited in diverse late eocene to oligocene lakes within the eastern part of this endorheic region are investigated carbon and oxygen isotopes fall into several distinct hydrographic provinces which are partly palaeogeographical and partly biostratigraphical the isotopic signatures of the lake carbonates primarily reflect the nature of the river input duration seasonality catchment geology and autochthonous processes within the lake biological productivity evaporation but diagenetic changes may further complicate interpretations seasonal changes in precipitation rates are picked out by light dark variations in single lithological cycles

palustrine carbonates and the florida everglades towards an exposure index for the fresh water environment abstract palustrine carbonates are shallow fresh water deposits showing evidence of subaqueous deposition and subaerial exposure these facies are common in the geological record the intensity of modification is highly variable depending on the climate and the length of emergence palustrine limestones have previously been interpreted as marginal lacustrine deposits from fluctuating low salinity carbonate lakes but several problems remain with existing facies models 1 palustrine carbonates possess a lacustrine biota but commonly display fabrics similar to those of calcretes and peritidal carbonates 2 the co occurrence of calcrete horizons and karst like cavities is somewhat unusual and appears to indicate contemporaneous carbonate precipitation and dissolution in the vadose zone 3 the dominance of gray colors indicates water saturation apparently inconsistent with the evidence for strong desiccation overprint 4 profundal lake deposits are generally absent from palustrine sequences and sublittoral facies commonly make up only a small proportion of total thicknesses 5 no good modern analogue has been identified for the palustrine environment analogy with the florida everglades suggests a re interpretation of palustrine limestones not as pedogenically modified lake margin facies but as the deposits of extensive very shallow carbonate marshes the distribution of environments in the everglades is determined by the local hydrology reflecting the control of seasonal water level fluctuations and topography climate and topography were the main controls on deposition of ancient palustrine carbonates as in peritidal sequences aggradational cycles are capped by a range of lithologies evaporites desiccation and microkarst breccias calcretes lignite or coal horizons etc permitting interpretation of the climate careful analysis of lateral facies variations may permit reconstruction of subtle topography consideration of the florida everglades as a modern analogue for the palustrine environment has suggested the development of an exposure index for fresh water carbonates

diagenesis of a mixed siliciclastic evaporitic sequence of the middle muschelkalk middle triassic the catalan coastal range ne spain the middle muschelkalk middle triassic of the catalan coastal range north east spain comprises sandstone mudstone anhydrite and minor carbonate layers interbedded sandstones and mudstones which are dominant in the north eastern parts of the basin are terminal alluvial fan deposits south westward in the basin the rocks become dominated by interbedded evaporites and mudstones deposited in sabkha mudflat environments the diagenetic and pore water evolution patterns of the middle muschelkalk suggest a strong facies control during eodiagenesis formation of microdolomite anhydrite baryte magnesite k feldspar and mixed layer chlorite smectite was favoured within and adjacent to the sabkha mudflat facies whereas calcite haematite mixed layer illite smectite and quartz formed mainly in the alluvial facies low 18osmow values for microdolomite 23 7 to 28 4 and k feldspar overgrowths 17 3 to 17 7 suggest either low temperature isotopic disequilibrium or precipitation from low 18o porewaters low 18o waters might have developed at least in part during low temperature alteration of volcanic rock fragments during mesodiagenesis precipitation of quartz overgrowths and coarse dolomite occurred in the alluvial sandstones whereas recrystallization of microdolomite was dominant in the sabkha mudflat facies the isotopic compositions of these mesogenetic phases reflect increasing temperature during burial upon uplift and erosion telogenetic calcite and trace haematite precipitated in fractures and replaced dolomite the isotopic composition of the calcite 18osmow 21 5 to 25 6 o 13c 7 7 to 5 6 o and presence of haematite indicate infiltration of meteoric waters

the stable isotopic composition of modern soil carbonate and its relationship to climate the oxygen isotopic composition of modern soil carbonate is well correlated with the isotopic composition of local meteoric water the carbon isotopic cycle for co 2 in soils can be described in terms of the proportion of biomass using the c 4 photosynthetic pathway and the co 2 respiration rate of the soil at low soil respiration rates significant atmospheric co 2 mixing can occur in general the carbon isotopic composition of soil carbonate is related to the proportion of c 4 biomass present in soil but soils that freeze to the depth of carbonate formation often have a significant atmospheric component this suggests that freezing of the soil solution should be considered as another important mechanism for soil carbonate formation because of these relationships the isotopic composition of soil carbonate may be a paleoclimatic and paleoecologic indicator in cases in which diagenetic alteration has not occurred

cement stratigraphy of pennsylvanian holder formation sacramento mountains new mexico cyclic strata of the holder formation virgilian new mexico were deposited across a pennsylvanian shelf to basin transition during a time when sea level fluctuated over tens of meters cement stratigraphy studies indicate abundant calcite precipitation from low temperature fresh water within shelf shelf crest and shelf edge marine limestones freshwater cementation occurred during 15 periods of intraformational subaerial exposure these early cements are least abundant in basin and lagoon limestones the distribution of the early cement zones suggests that cementation was controlled by paleotopography stratigraphic position below subaerial exposure surfaces lithology and configuration of the paleoaquifer system distribution of early calcite cements provides new data for interpretation of cycles diagenetic systems and porosity evolution in petroleum reservoirs trace element analyses support a low temperature freshwater origin for the early cements cement stratigraphy studies fluid inclusion analyses and trace element analyses indicate a later cement that occluded remaining limestone porosity precipitated from a sodium and calcium rich brine at a temperature of about 100 c stratigraphic reconstruction dates this cementation as cretaceous or later fluorescent oil filled fluid inclusions were trapped along fractures in the late cement indicating oil migration during or after late stage cementation

palustrine lacustrine and alluvial facies of the norian owl rock formation chinle group four corners region southwestern u s a implications for late triassic paleoclimate abstract the upper triassic norian owl rock formation was deposited in a low gradient floodbasin at a subtropical paleolatitude the lower part of the formation consists predominantly of fine grained siliciclastic lithofacies deposited by sheetflood and sinuous streams on a muddy floodplain during a period of continuous basin aggradation nodular calcretes are increasingly mature higher in the formation suggesting increasingly episodic depositional conditions the upper part of the formation consists mostly of interbedded fine grained siliciclastic facies and laterally continuous ledges of limestone and sandstone the predominant limestone facies has brecciated to peloidal fabrics spar filled circumgranular cracks and root channeling the subordinate limestone facies displays wavy to irregular argillaceous lamination desiccation cracks and oscillation ripples and is vertically and laterally gradational with the brecciated facies the upper owl rock formation records deposition of aggrading sequences of alluvial sediments deposited during base level rise capped by highstand carbonates deposited in small perennial and ephemeral carbonate lakes and ponds base level lowstand in an overall semiarid climate resulted in extensive pedogenesis of the limestone and laterally equivalent alluvial facies basin wide variations in base level are interpreted as resulting from climatic fluctuations this depositional model is consistent with an interpreted trend towards aridification on the colorado plateau during the late triassic as pangea drifted northward from one climate zone to another

nearshore carbonate deposits in lake tanganyika an exceptionally wide variety of carbonate fades dominated by high magnesian calcite occurs along the littoral and shallow sublittoral zones 50 m of lake tanganyika in central africa these facies include exposed and submerged calcite cemented ridges of nearshore terrigenous sand ooid sand shoals and lithified oolite ridges chara meadows of bioturbated calcareous silts gastropod shell blankets and related coquinas and extensive thrombolitic microbial reefs though texturally and compositionally similar to many modern and ancient shallow water marine facies these deposits record carbonate deposition and cementation in a large tropical deep water lake of tectonic origin lithofacies along lake tanganyika represent the broadest spectrum of carbonate deposits yet reported from any modern lake and serve as important analogues for lacustrine carbonate sequences in the stratigraphic record

statistical estimation of source location in presence of geoacoustic inversion uncertainty a statistical estimation of source location incorporating uncertainty in ocean environmental model parameters is derived using a bayesian approach from a previous geoacoustic inversion a posterior probability distribution of the environmental parameters that reflects uncertainty in the ocean environment is obtained this geoacoustic uncertainty then is mapped into uncertainty in the acoustic pressure field and is propagated through the bartlett matched field processor for source localization using data from the asiaex 2001 east china sea experiment the estimated source location and variability over time are compared with the known source positions

soil landscape and climatic relationships in the middle miocene of the madrid basin the miocene alluvial lacustrine sequences of the madrid basin spain formed in highly varied landscapes the presence of various types of palaeosols allows assessment of the effects of local and external factors on sedimentation pedogenesis and geomorphological development in the northern more arid tectonically active area soils were weakly developed in aggrading alluvial fans dominated by mass flows reflecting high sedimentation rates in more distal parts of the fans and in playa lakes calcretes and dolocretes developed the former were associated with mg poor fan sediments while the latter formed on mg rich lake clays exposed during minor lake lowstands the north east part of the basin had a less arid climate alluvial fans in this area were dominated by stream flood deposits sourced by carbonate terrains floodplain and freshwater lake deposits formed in distal areas the high local supply of calcium carbonate may have contributed to the preferential development of calcretes on the fans both the fan and floodplain palaeosols exhibit pedofacies relationships and more mature soils developed in settings more distant from the sediment sources palaeosols also developed on pond and lake margin carbonates and led to the formation of palustrine limestones the spatial distributions and stratigraphies of palaeosols in the madrid basin alluvial fans suggest that soil formation was controlled by local factors these palaeosols differ from those seen in quaternary fans which are characterized by climatically induced periods of stability and instability

distal alluvial deposits in a foreland basin setting the lower freshwater molasse lower miocene switzerland sedimentology architecture and palaeosols the lower freshwater molasse untere susswasser molasse crops out over a wide area of the swiss molasse basin coarse grained alluvial fan conglomerates dominate in proximal basin areas along the alpine front these conglomerates pass northwards into sandstones and mudstones of an extensive northeastward draining meandering river system which ran parallel to the basin axis sedimentological study of outcrops quarry exposures and boreholes in the basal miocene aquitanian has permitted detailed facies analysis of this distal alluvial sequence the distal aquitanian is made up of distinct architectural elements characterized by their geometries and sedimentary structures each may be assigned to a particular depositional setting meander belt levees crevasse channels and splays overbank fines and palaeosols and lacustrine meander belt sandstones were deposited in mixed load channels with a dominant bedload component sandstones commonly comprise amalgamated and locally stacked ribbon bodies 2 15 m thick and 150 1500 m wide interbedded rippled laminated and mottled fine grained levee sandstones and siltstones form lenticular packages up to 3 m thick and 30 100 m across small scale crevasse channel sandstones 2 4 m thick and 5 10 m across pass laterally into metre scale medium to fine grained crevasse sandstone sheets rare laminated lacustrine siltstones occur only in the north east part of the basin floodplain mudstones and marls make up the remainder of the succession these display a variety of pedogenic features recording cyclical palaeosol development palaeosols show strong variations in morphology and maturity both laterally across the floodplain and downstream along the basin axis reflecting local variation in aggradation rate associated with proximity to alluvial channel courses as well as regional variation in subsidence and floodplain drainage analysis of the organization and distribution of the various sediment bodies permits reconstruction of the fluvial system and allows development of a model for the sedimentary architecture of the lower freshwater molasse in the study area integration of palaeosol studies into a well defined architectural framework assists recognition of areal facies belts and may aid location of sand prone sequences in the subsurface

use of charophyte carbonates as proxy indicators of subtle hydrological and chemical changes in marl lakes example from the miocene bicorb basin eastern spain abstract the lower alluvial unit in the miocene bicorb basin contains several metric scale limestone intervals which record episodic shallow lacustrine environments in an alluvial setting developed during the early stage of the basin s evolution five main carbonate facies have been differentiated in the lacustrine limestones although calcite charophyte incrustations predominate and constitute the most striking features of these deposits the thinnest limestone intervals correspond to deposits from charophyte meadows in ponded shallow depressions in floodplains the thickest limestone intervals are mainly formed by banded limestones and usually correspond to diverse types of regressive sequences that have been interpreted as resulting from the infill of shallow lakes the sedimentological features and sequences show noticeable differences in the gradient of the littoral zones and the amount of palustrine deposits with models proposed for marl lakes charophytic carbonates from the best preserved facies show similar microtextures to those from recent charophyte incrustations the variations in stable isotopes 13 c 18 o for these primary carbonates occur in parallel with luminescence variations and correspond to hydrological changes and variations in solute composition and eh ph status in the lake waters the carbonates that display moderate to strong diagenetic modifications show a diverse degree of compaction aggrading neomorphism strong cementation and nodulization the isotopic values for these are arranged in diverse clusters there is a correlation between the degree of luminescence and the 13 c this suggests that hydrological and hydrochemical variations both in the lacustrine and diagenetic environments are being recorded in parallel we emphasize the need for further comparative studies between recent and ancient charophytic carbonates as these carbonates have been used in palaeoenvironmental reconstructions special attention must be paid to the diagenetic changes in ancient charophytic marls

lithofacies associations and stable isotopes of palustrine and calcrete carbonates examples from an indian maastrichtian regolith detailed information on semi arid palustrine carbonate calcrete lithofacies associations in a sheetwash dominated regolith setting is sparse this is addressed by studying the lower limestone of the lameta beds a well exposed maastrichtian regolith in central india the general vertical lithofacies assemblage for this unit comprises a basal calcareous siltstones and marls with charophytes ostracods and gastropods b buff micritic limestones associated in their upper parts with calcretized fissure fill sandstones c sheetwash as fissure fill diamictites and thin pebbly sheets locally developed over a few metres and d sandy nodular brecciated and pisolitic calcretes at the top the sequence is regressive with upsection filling of topographic lows by increased sheetwash lateral lithofacies change is marked but there are no permanent open water lake deposits in topographic lows close to the water table marshy palustrine or groundwater calcretes formed whereas on better drained highs brecciation and calcretization occurred prolonged exposure is implied suggesting that shrinkage was the main cause of brecciation evidence for rhizobrecciation and other biological calcrete fabrics is sparse contrasting with the emphasis on root related brecciation in many studies of palustrine lithofacies stable isotope d18o and d13c values are consistent with the palustrine limestones being fed from meteoric derived groundwater with a strong input of soil zone carbon there is overlap of both d18o and d13c values from the various palustrine and calcrete fabrics co occurring at outcrop this suggests that in groundwater supported wetlands conversion from palustrine carbonate to calcrete need not show isotopic expression as the groundwater source and input of soil zone carbon are essentially unchanged cretaceous tertiary d18o and d13c values from palustrine lithofacies and associated calcretes appear to be strongly influenced by the inherited values from lakes and wetlands hydrologically closed lakes and marine influenced water bodies tend to result in low negative palustrine d18o and d13c values during brecciation and calcretization the degree of isotopic inheritance depends on whether or not alteration occurs in waters that are different from those of the original water body or wetland marked biological activity e g rhizobrecciation or root mat development during calcretization may lower d13c values where c3 plants are abundant but in shrinkage dominated systems d13c values will be largely inherited from the palustrine limestones

microfacies analysis and paleoenvironmental significance of palustrine carbonates in the thakkhola mustang graben nepal himalaya abstract the thakkhola mustang graben represents the extensional tectonic phase of the tibetan plateau uplift and whole himalayan orogeny it is situated at the northern side of the dhaulagiri and annapurna ranges and south of the yarlang tsangpo suture zone stratigraphically the oldest sedimentary units are the tetang and thakkhola formations miocene while the sammargaon marpha and kaligandaki formations lying disconformably above these formations represent plio pleistocene units in this study different lacustrine carbonates and calcretes were investigated within different lithological units and depositional environments to interpret the palaeoenvironmental and palaeoclimatological evolution of the area geological mapping construction of columnar sections and carbonate sampling were carried out in the field and stable oxygen and carbon isotope analyses and thin section analyses were done in the laboratory lacustrine facies contained abundant pelletal charophytic algae oncolitic algal micritic palustrine limestones with ostracods and micritic mudstones with root traces stable carbon and oxygen isotope analysis from the carbonates show a range of 13 c values from 0 6 to 11 1 v pdb and 18 o values from 13 5 to 25 v pdb discontinuous growth of oncolites and spherical pellets 25 40 m in diameter in micritic limestone algal mats and charophyte algae indicate the presence of both shallow and deep water carbonates ostracods in dark micritic carbonates indicate quiet and calm water conditions microfabrics of the carbonates suggest that they were deposited in a flat and shallow lacustrine environment the 18 o values of the investigated limestones of the thakkhola mustang graben suggest that it attained the current elevation level prior to the east west extension of the himalaya

facies relationships and sedimentation in large rift lakes and implications for hydrocarbon exploration examples from lakes turkana and tanganyika abstract two african lakes turkana and tanganyika illustrate a spectrum of sediments and facies architectures which can occur in large rift lacustrine basins they demonstrate contrasts between sediments deposited in a semi arid moderately deep mainly volcanic basin turkana and a semi humid extremely deep basin without significant volcanism tanganyika turkana deposits are dominated by rapidly accumulating organic poor terrigenous muds coarse clastic input is in part limited by ponding in marginal subbasins due to volcanic barriers profundal coarse clastic deposition is rare sediments contain little biogenic components except in the sediment starved south basin sediments are also poor in cartonates tanganyika deposits are dominated by organic rich biogenic muds steep fault escarpments and uniform slopes along shelf platform and rift axis lake margins promote the efficient transport of sands into profundal settings total clastic sediment supply into the basin is severely restricted by basin morphology with steep relief backslopping a limited drainage basin area and presettling in upstream lake kivu sediment ponding along margins is rare littoral carbonates are common a consequence of low net clastic sedimentation rates many of the differences between facies in the two lakes can be explained by contrasts in basin margin slope and relief volcanic activity and climate between the two lakes the results of this study suggest that lake deposits formed in tanganyika type rift basins are more appropriate exploration target for hydrocarbon exploration than those from turkana type basins

lacustrine carbonates and pedogenesis sedimentology and origin of palustrine deposits from the early cretaceous rupelo formation w cameros basin n spain the berriasian rupelo formation of the w cameros basin consists of a 2 200 m thickness of marginal and open lacustrine carbonate and associated deposits open lacustrine facies contain a non marine biota with abundant charophytes both stems and gyrogonites ostracods gastropods and rare vertebrates carbonate production was mainly biogenic the associated marginal lacustrine palustrine facies show strong indications of subaerial exposure and exhibit a wide variety of pedogenic fabrics silicified evaporites found near to the top of the sequence reflect a short hypersaline phase in the lake history the succession was laid down in a low gradient shallow lake complex characterized by wide fluctuations of the shoreline carbon and oxygen stable isotope analyses from the carbonates show non marine values with ranges of 13 from 7 to 11 and 18 from 3 to 7 5 differences in the isotopic composition of open lacustrine carbonates are consistent with sedimentary evidence of variation in organic productivity within the lake analyses from the entire sample suite plot on a linear trend isotopic compositions become lighter with increasing evidence of pedogenic modification this suggests progressive vadose zone diagenesis and influence of meteoric waters rich in soil derived co2 the stable isotope data thus support evidence from petrography and facies relations that palustrine limestones form through pedogenic modification of lake carbonates

eocene pliocene time scale and stratigraphy of the upper rhine graben urg and the swiss molasse basin smb we present a general stratigraphic synthesis for the upper rhine graben urg and the swiss molasse basin smb from eocene to pliocene times the stratigraphic data were compiled both from literature and from research carried out by the authors during the past 6 years an index of the stratigraphically most important localitites is provided we distinguish 14 geographical areas from the helvetic domain in the south to the hanau basin in the north for each geographical area we give a synthesis of the biostratigraphy lithofacies and chronostratigraphic ranges the relationships between this stratigraphic record and the global sea level changes are generally disturbed by the geodynamic e g subsidence evolution of the basins however global sea level changes probably affected the dynamic of transgression regression in the urg e g middle pechelbronn beds and serie grise corresponding with sea level rise between ru1 ru2 and ru2 ru3 sequences respectively as well as in the molasse basin regression of the umm corresponding with the sea level drop at the ch1 sequence the urgent project upper rhine graben evolution and neotectonics provided an unique opportunity to carry out and present this synthesis discussions with scientists addressing sedimentology tectonics geophysics and geochemistry permitted the comparison of the sedimentary history and stratigraphy of the basin with processes controlling its geodynamic evolution data presented here back up the palaeogeographic reconstructions presented in a companion paper by the same authors see berger et al in int j earth sci 2005

reconstruction of ancient sea conditions with an example from the swiss molasse ancient sea conditions can be estimated from the grain size spacing and steepness of preserved ripple marks the element of greatest uncertainty in such reconstructions is the relationship between near bed orbital diameter of water particles and the ripple spacing this relationship is simple for vortex ripples of high steepness but is problematical for the low steepness forms known as post vortex rolling grain or anorbital ripples the existence field for wave ripples is between the threshold velocity for sediment movement and the onset of sheet flow most low steepness forms occurring close to the bed planation threshold a range of maximum period of formative waves can be obtained using combinations of orbital diameter and orbital velocity assuming linear wave theory to be a reasonable approximation probable wave heights wave lengths and water depths can be investigated using the transformation of wave parameters in shallowing waters and the constraints on wave dimensions provided by the wave breaking condition given reasonable estimates of wave height crude estimates of wave power allow a comparison of ancient wave influenced sequences with modern counterparts wave ripple marks preserved in the upper marine molasse of western switzerland have been investigated results which are in agreement with regional geology suggest deposition in a seaway of approximately 100 km width where moderate period waves t 3 6 s were generated the depositional facies belts were adjusted to the prevailing waves tides and fluvial outflows

detection of anomalous seismicity as a stress change sensor 1 anomalous seismicity such as quiescence and activation is defined by a systematic deviation of seismic activity from the predicted rate by the epidemic type aftershock sequence etas model that represents the normal occurrence rate of earthquakes in a region indicating the empirical triggering effect by the previous events the model is fitted to a data set of origin times and magnitudes of earthquakes or aftershocks during may august 2003 in and around northern japan the detected quiescence and activation relative to the predicted seismicity rate are consistent with the coseismic changes of coulomb failure stress cfs in the corresponding regions transferred from certain strong earthquakes few results in this paper agree with the claim that there should be a threshold value of cfs capable of affecting seismic changes thus we expect that significant deviation of actual activity from the predicted rates is sensitive enough to detect a slight stress change furthermore i offer a similar interpretation of the detected seismicity lowering relative to the modeled rates preceding the strong earthquakes assuming some aseismic slips

chemical controls of cathodoluminescence of natural dolomites and calcites new data and review calcites and dolomites from the late precambrian bonahaven formation of scotland exhibit luminescence when mnco3 0 03 wt dolomite or 0 06 wt calcite and feco3 2 2 5 wt dolomite comparison with other published data shows close similarity in the position of fe quenching in dolomite but more variability in the position of mn activation in calcites and dolomites and the onset of fe quenching in calcites these anomalies are thought to relate to chemical controls subsidiary to the dominant factors of fe and mn concentration it is not practical to make a useful comparison between operating conditions of different luminescence instruments because of differences in design and an inability to measure routinely the current actually on the specimen surface

pennsylvanian continental cyclothem development no evidence of direct climatic control in the upper freeport formation allegheny group of pennsylvania northern appalachian basin abstract the occurrence of lacustrine carbonates in the allegheny group upper middle pennsylvanian continental cyclothems of the northern appalachian basin has been attributed to climatic alternation of wet coal deposition and dry carbonate deposition periods however we present evidence from facies associations coal and carbonate petrography and carbonate stable isotope geochemistry for a uniformly wet climate throughout deposition of one of the earliest continental cyclothems the upper freeport formation uff we propose a depositional model comprising a large wetland complex drained by an anastomosed fluvial system containing a mosaic of channels freshwater siliciclastic and carbonate lakes and peat bogs swamps on a siliciclastic floodplain carbonate phases represent bio induced precipitates modified by lake dynamics and not evaporative deposits absence of covariant isotopic trends between 18o and 13c and a relatively small range of 18o values 1 9 to 6 4 pdb that are close to or lighter than predicted paleoprecipitation for the pennsylvanian equatorial regions indicate hydrologically open short residence time lake systems in support of our sedimentary model combined sedimentologic and isotopic data do not indicate reduced effective moisture precipitation evaporation during intervals of limestone deposition the uff lakes developed in a relatively wet climate zone without significant episodic closure due to climatically induced water deficit lithologic patterns within the uff cyclothem are primarily attributed to the evolution of anastomosed fluvial systems controlled by subsidence in an active foreland basin rather than to short term climatic change or eustacy

the control of cathodoluminescence in dolomite by iron and manganese variations in the cathodoluminescent properties of carbonates are usually attributed to differing proportions of manganese mn2 as the most important activator and iron fe2 as the main inhibitor of luminescence interactions between manganese and iron concentrations and the luminescent properties of dolomite are demonstrated by petrographic and chemical analyses of 86 samples of dolomite representing a range of depositional environments and ages cambrian to cretaceous and a wide geographical distribution north america and europe iron and manganese are positively correlated in the dolomites with the former showing a greater range of variation very small amounts of manganese are sufficient to activate the luminescence and as little as 100 ppm mn2 is present in highly luminescing samples the intensity of luminescence is not proportional to the manganese concentration iron begins to quench luminescence as its concentration reaches 10 000 ppm above that level luminescence is rapidly lost and total extinction occurs among samples containing more than 15 000 ppm fe2 regardless of the manganese concentration

the role of detrital composition and climate on the diagenetic evolution of continental molasses evidence from the cambro ordovician guaritas sequence southern brazil abstract the cambro ordovician molassic guaritas sequence camaqua basin southern brazil comprises alluvial fan and braided fluvial sandstones and conglomerates with intercalated aeolian and lacustrine deltaic deposits and andesitic lava flows the sediments display a complex detrital composition derived from plutonic gneissic acidic volcanic and low grade metamorphic source rocks this detrital assemblage was strongly modified by semi arid continental near surface diagenesis early cementation by hematite smectite quartz and calcite and the relatively limited burial prevented strong compaction and preserved some primary macroporosity in most of the sandstones whereas the absence of early cements and or abundance of ductile grains promoted substantial porosity destruction by compaction and the inhibition of further diagenetic modifications the diagenetic dissolution and replacement of volcanic rock fragments and detrital feldspars by clays and albite changed the original framework composition as well as the tectonic provenance classification of the sandstones detailed quantitative petrographic study allowed the reconstruction of the original detrital compositions and the distinction of six different pathways of diagenetic evolution of the sandstones attesting to the efficiency of this method for diagenetic modelling and provenance analyses of ancient sandstones

palaeogeographic palaeoclimatic palaeohydrological and chemical biochemical controls on accumulation of late eocene coastal lacustrine palustrine limestones southern england abstract the shallow lacustrine to palustrine hatherwood limestone member of the late eocene headon hill formation southern england is in a succession of fluvio estuarine and laguno lacustrine siliciclastic sediments it is up to 8 0 m thick and is subdivided by metric scale palaeotopographic erosion surfaces one of which underlies lenticular humic siliciclastic mudstones the limestone lithologies are 1 biocalcilutites biocalcisiltites 2 biocalcarenites 3 calcirudites and 4 laterally discontinuous laminar and fenestral crusts lithology 1 accumulated in a low energy shallow lacustrine depositional environment indicated by the predominance of pulmonate pond snails in the mollusc assemblage in contrast lithologies 2 and 3 are the coarse grained fills of shallow palaeotopographic lows and also form basal lags and palaeokarst fills lithology 3 comprises remnant autochthonous lags that resulted from selective erosion during lacustrine transgressions brecciation and proto intraclast to nodular differentiation in lithology 2 suggests derivation of the intraclasts from subaerially and pedogenically modified shallow lacustrine muds laminar crusts 4 0 5 6 0 cm in thickness display irregularly undulose and anastamosing laminations 150 400 m thick that display differential staining by iron oxide the abundance of rootlet traces and calcitised parenchymatic root tissues in the fenestral crusts suggests a palustrine depositional environment for these lithologies the siliciclastic mudstone lithologies are 1 black humic muds and 2 blue green silty muds and marls the high c n molar ratio of the black muds suggests derivation of the humic content mainly from vascular plants in local wetlands the mollusc assemblage of the blue green siliciclastic muds resembles floodplain lake assemblages from the regional palaeogene succession mean stable isotopic values for limestone samples of 4 75 1 53 for 13 c and 2 77 1 47 for 18 o indicate a relatively heavy tendency within published spectra for tertiary lacustrine carbonates the 18 o isotope results agree with published subtropical surface water palaeotemperatures for this succession the total characteristics of the member therefore suggest a shallow lacustrine to palustrine depositional environment pedogenic overprinting and mechanical reworking displayed by the limestones are attributable to seasonal fluctuations of water level during lake highstands but in this marine influenced setting major long term lake lowstands resulting in deep erosion and palaeokarsting of the limestones may be attributable to falls in relative sea level the biocalcilutites and humic muds accumulated during the ensuing lake transgressions

determination of controls on holocene barrier progradation through application of osl dating the ilha comprida barrier example southeastern brazil abstract barrier development during the holocene is studied using the example of the ilha comprida southeastern brazil aerial photos facies analysis and optically stimulated luminescence dating are used to define the barrier emergence and evolution optically stimulated luminescence ages and facies successions indicate that the ilha comprida probably began as a holocene transgressive barrier island 6000 years ago just before the last relative sea level maximum since then the barrier has progradated through the addition of curved beach ridges based on beach ridge alignments six units of growth are identified with two growth directions transverse and longitudinal rates of progradation with transverse growth vary from 0 13 to 4 6 m year rates of longitudinal growth to ne range from 5 2 to 30 m year variation in coastal progradation rates and sediment retention during the last 6000 years is compared with climate physiography and relative sea level changes the physiography represented by pre cenozoic hills is the major control on sediment retention and alternation between longitudinal and transverse growth climate variations such as the little ice age event apparently control the formation of ridges types beach ridges foredunes and blowouts these results allow the use of the ilha comprida barrier as an example to analyze the major controls on barriers progradation

inversion for geometric and geoacoustic parameters in shallow water experimental results experimental results on the estimation of both geometric and geoacoustic parameters in shallow water are presented genetic algorithms are used for estimation of the forward model parameters the estimated parameters are then used by a standard bartlett processor for source localization a stationary source at a range of 5 6 km and a moving source at ranges from 5 8 7 7 km were successfully localized in range and depth using a single frequency bartlett processor the results indicate that global estimation of the forward model parameters significantly improves source localization performance

lacustrine and palustrine facies in the bembridge limestone late eocene hampshire basin of the isle of wight southern england abstract the carbonate lake system represented by the late eocene bembridge limestone formation isle of wight southern england comprises two main facies lacustrine and palustrine these facies are arranged vertically in transgressive regressive cycles corresponding to a model of carbonate lakes of low gradient and fluctuating margins with extensive palustrine fringes these lakes developed in a coastal plain of limited relief where two paleogeographical domains predominate a lacustrine domain is represented in northern and eastern sections in the isle of wight by cycles representing upward passage from central lacustrine sub facies marl marly limestone through marginal lacustrine sub facies biomicrite to sub facies indicative of exposure brecciated nodular limestone a palustrine domain predominant in west wight is represented by a predominantly pedogenic palustrine facies with clotted peloidal to ooidal textures and some intercalated laminated laminar calcrete horizons within the pedogenic facies textures have evolved from those of unaltered biomicrites through clotted peloidal to dense ooidal to open ooidal textures a third domain developed in close geographical proximity to more saline waters is represented by gypsiferous lake margin facies found in north wight in which microlenticular gypsum developed post depositionally as a result of evaporation following subaerial sediment exposure in the lacustrine domain there appears to be an association between cyclicity and changes in base sea level reflecting a likelihood that the lakes were part of a paralic coastal plain complex with distal marine connections alternatively the cyclicity might have developed as a result of the alternation of wetter and drier climatic periods

fresh water carbonates from the lower freshwater molasse oligocene western switzerland sedimentology and stable isotopes abstract the lower freshwater molasse of western switzerland comprises a thick series of continental deposits of late oligocene early miocene age fresh water carbonates occur at two main horizons within this succession lower chattian palustrine carbonates calcaires inferieurs show a shallow fresh water fauna flora of ostracods and charophytes but display clear evidence of subaerial exposure in the form of glaebule pisoid formation circumgranular cracking rhizoliths and microkarstic cavities repeated desiccation led to locally intense modification by pedogenesis these horizons record the development of shallow ephemeral lakes at the northern margin of the swiss molasse basin stable isotope analyses were carried out on 46 calcite samples data from matrix and intraclasts reveal typical fresh water compositions 13c 5 to 7 5 18o 5 5 to 9 a weak co variant trend suggests deposition in hydrologically closed lakes although the range of 13c values recorded is also consistent with pedogenetic overprinting associated with subaerial exposure spar cements and vadose crystal silts display 13c compositions from 6 to 7 but show light 18o values from 10 to 11 recording formation from meteoric waters upper chattian carbonates calcaires d eau douce et dolomie include algal ostracodal laminites interpreted as profundal lake deposits as well as bioturbated shallow lake charophyte ostracod mudstones and wackestones sandy wackestones and white dolomite stable isotope analyses 20 calcites 2 dolomites show 13c values from 2 to 6 and 18o from 6 to 11 data for laminites and biomicrites plot in different fields variations in carbon isotopic composition may be attributable to higher organic productivity during high lake stands the laminites show heavier 13c values or to areal differences in the proportions of biogenic authigenic and detrital carbonate 13c values are generally higher in areas of greater detrital carbonate supply the heavier 18o values shown by the dolomites 13 c 3 18 o 0 to 1 suggest formation from evolved evaporitic lake waters these carbonates record deposition in an extensive possibly deeper lake complex subject to clastic input from the alps in the south

carbonate deposition in an ephemeral siliciclastic alluvial system jurassic shuttle meadow formation newark supergroup hartford basin usa abstract nonmarine carbonate accumulation from a sedimentologic perspective has multiple possible origins clastic load springs groundwater discharge soil development biochemical seasonal changes cave speleothems and eolian influx many of these carbonates contain diagnostic textures from which origin is easy to ascertain however differentiating between clastic and spring groundwater carbonates especially in depositional systems dominated by siliciclastics is not always simple here criteria for recognition are developed subsurface hydrology and tectonic origin of the depositional basin source rocks surrounding the basin sedimentologic packaging and extent of the carbonates in question as well as their sedimentary structures and fossil content and stable isotopic analyses of the carbonates can all aid in determining carbonate origin and correctly assessing sedimentary and basin evolution the present study focuses on a nonmarine carbonate deposit found within the jurassic shuttle meadow formation of the hartford basin one of many rift basins which formed as a result of the opening of the north atlantic ocean during the late triassic to early jurassic the upper 50 m of the formation at plainville connecticut is interpreted as continental in origin and is composed of five facies red ripple cross laminated muddy siltstones to sandstones fr sr massive red siliciclastic mudstones fm buff fine to medium grained horizontally laminated sandstones sh red to white disrupted calcareous shales fl3 and rare micritic carbonates pm facies fr sr sh and fm are interpreted as an alluvial plain system in an ephemeral setting with bedload sheetflooding as the dominant depositional mechanism similar to the channel country drainage system of central australia in addition preservation of lateral accretion sandstone sheets accretionary benches indicate that the shuttle meadow alluvial system was rapidly accreting the anomalous existence of carbonate beds in facies fl3 and pm in the smf bedload dominated siliciclastic sequence is attributed mainly to the unique nature of the clastic sediment load in the basin no direct evidence for a spring groundwater input is apparent the shallow carbonate lake margin or a pond with vegetation and periodic exposure is envisioned as the depositional environment the intraclastic texture of the micrites with rare primary relict lamination indicates early diagenetic alteration from root penetration desiccation cracks and burrowing

stable isotope signatures associated with palaeosols pennsylvanian holder formation new mexico the holder formation pennsylvanian virgilian of southern new mexico usa consists of limestones interbedded with siliciclastics it was deposited during times of glacio eustatic sea level change and was exposed subaerially during multiple sea level lowstands microcomponents and whole rock samples of limestones were analysed for 13c and 18o values to examine the method of whole rock isotopic analysis for detecting subaerial exposure events and to determine the diagenetic processes acting during subaerial exposure whole rock isotopic shifts are not consistently present across petrographically identified subaerial exposure surfaces apparently whole rock isotopic shifts do not result from wholesale replacement of the host sediment during soil formation however the isotopic shifts are present in calcareous soil precipitated microcomponents such as rhizoliths laminated crusts and soil precipitated cements the components are heterogeneous in isotopic composition but converge on a meteoric calcite line at about 18o 5 5 these microcomponents are heterogeneous in distribution and may either dominate or be a minor constituent of the whole rock at a single stratigraphic horizon without petrographic selection of palaeosol components the detection of whole rock isotopic shifts may depend on the selection or chance sampling of a rock containing abundant microcomponents precipitated in a soil environment only minor whole rock isotopic shifts come from those rocks bearing no evidence of exposure and bearing lithological characteristics suggesting subaerial exposure was unlikely

the recognition and interpretation of paleokarsts two examples from the lower carboniferous of south wales abstract criteria for the identification and interpretation of paleokarstic surfaces in ancient carbonate sequences are discussed and two examples of such surfaces are described from the lower carboniferous of south wales one type is compared to kavornossen karren a type of tropical karst well developed today on puerto rico the second example a mammillated paleokarstic surface of a type common in the lower carboniferous is interpreted as a deckenkarren formed beneath a vegetation cover and similar to the makondo karsts of south africa paleokarsts can provide information on the paleoclimates paleohydrology and vegetation cover existing at the time of their formation

environmental controls on perennial and ephemeral carbonate lakes the central palaeo andean basin of bolivia during late cretaceous to early tertiary times abstract in the central palaeo andean basin potosi basin of bolivia the up to 450 m thick el molino formation campanian maastrichtian to early tertiary includes two main carbonate lacustrine episodes each of different extent and duration these episodes are separated by an extensive development of alluvial facies floodplain deposits and limestones deposited in playa lakes or isolated ponds the el molino formation has been investigated in six different areas of the potosi basin and affords the opportunity to document climatic and tectonic controls on the development of perennial and ephemeral carbonate lacustrine systems the first lacustrine episode originated predominantly in perennial lakes with wave dominated low gradient ramp type margins outer marginal lacustrine facies include winnowed oolitic grainstones ostracod packstones and microbialite bioherms more agitated areas were characterized by nearshore oolitic bars with associated thrombolite mounds the fossil content and the lack of significant precipitation of evaporites indicate that the lake waters were of low salinity probably oligohaline during most of this period after the first lacustrine episode the widespread development of terrigenous alluvial facies floodplain deposits with interspersed playa lakes or isolated ponds in depressions on the floodplain may indicate a change in the net water budget the second lacustrine episode is dominated by dark micritic limestones and to a lesser extent microbialite bioherms which developed under semiarid climatic conditions this episode includes the deposits of ephemeral saline locally alkaline shallow lakes which were characterized by low energy low gradient ramp type margins the stable isotopic analysis of 163 carbonate samples covering the different facies and depositional settings displays a wide range of values 14 2 18 o and 12 9 13 c that is typical of nonmarine environments the distribution of the values indicates that during the deposition of the el molino formation the basin was hydrologically closed and experienced no strong hydrogeographical changes except for variations in the palaeolake level related to fluctuations in the regional p e ratio these are recorded by two main isotopic trends related to changes between perennial and ephemeral lacustrine conditions lacustrine sedimentation was controlled predominantly by climatically driven hydrological changes with repeated oscillations of the water level expansion and contraction and subsequent fluctuations in the width of lacustrine facies belts

paleosols of late pennsylvanian cyclic strata new mexico cyclically deposited siliciclastic and carbonate rocks of the late pennsylvanian virgilian holder formation of south central new mexico were deposited on a narrow shelf between the pedernal uplift and the orogrande basin in the dry canyon area sacramento mountains shelf to basin palaeotopography is indicated by onlapping beds and primary dips calcareous alteration zones are developed on the tops of major carbonate units these detailed studies confirm earlier interpretations that alteration zones represent subaerial exposure events and provide new evidence for and further documentation of a paleosol environment the paleosols contain 1 rhizoliths 2 tangential needle fibres of calcite 3 five types of alveolar texture 4 upward oriented ribbon spar 5 brownish and clear isopachous spar 6 blackened grains 7 random needle fibres of calcite 8 coated grains 9 micritized grains 10 glaebules 11 desiccation cracks 12 possible microcodium and 13 well developed laminated crusts isopachous cements upward oriented cements which mark the former tops of capillary fringes dark colour and shallow depth of penetration of rhizoliths less than 1 m indicate significant paleosol formation in waterlogged hydromorphic and drier conditions pennsylvanian palaeohydrogeology of the system is reflected in the type of paleosol alteration paleosols developed on subtidal strata and paleosols which drape tens of metres of palaeotopography indicate cyclic sedimentation was not controlled by delta lobe switching local tectonic up and down movement would be an unlikely mechanism to explain the repeated tens of metres of relative sea level fluctuation eustatic sea level fluctuations induced by late pennsylvanian gondwana glaciation probably were of the correct magnitude and frequency to have caused the holder cycles

hydrodynamics and sedimentation in wave dominated coastal environmentsreconstruction of ancient sea conditions with an example from the swiss molasse ancient sea conditions can be estimated from the grain size spacing and steepness of preserved ripple marks the element of greatest uncertainty in such reconstructions is the relationship between near bed orbital diameter of water particles and the ripple spacing this relationship is simple for vortex ripples of high steepness but is problematical for the low steepness forms known as post vortex rolling grain or anorbital ripples the existence field for wave ripples is between the threshold velocity for sediment movement and the onset of sheet flow most low steepness forms occurring close to the bed planation threshold a range of maximum period of formative waves can be obtained using combinations of orbital diameter and orbital velocity assuming linear wave theory to be a reasonable approximation probable wave heights wave lengths and water depths can be investigated using the transformation of wave parameters in shallowing waters and the constraints on wave dimensions provided by the wave breaking condition given reasonable estimates of wave height crude estimates of wave power allow a comparison of ancient wave influenced sequences with modern counterparts wave ripple marks preserved in the upper marine molasse of western switzerland have been investigated results which are in agreement with regional geology suggest deposition in a seaway of approximately 100 km width where moderate period waves t 3 6 s were generated the depositional facies belts were adjusted to the prevailing waves tides and fluvial outflows

carbonate facies of the upper triassic ojo huelos member san pedro arroyo formation chinle group southern new mexico paleoclimatic implications abstract the upper triassic adamanian lvf ojo huelos member of the san pedro arroyo formation chinle group is a distinctive carbonate rich unit that occurs in the lower chinle section of central new mexico the member consists mainly of micritic lime mudstones ostracodal wackestones to grainstones peloidal grainstones and distinctive pisolitic rudstones interbedded with fine grained siliciclastic mudstones most limestones exhibit some evidence of pedogenic brecciation and root penetration and porous fabrics similar to those of modern limestone tufas occur locally the interbedded mudstones are typically lenticular and commonly display a blocky ped fabric in which subequant peds are separated by sparry calcite veins fossils from the ojo huelos member are freshwater darwinulid ostracodes various freshwater fishes and aquatic amphibious tetrapods metoposaurs and phytosaurs we interpret the carbonate facies as the deposits of carbonate lakes ponds and wetlands that were partly spring fed whereas the interbedded and surrounding mudstones were alluvial in origin the groundwater and overland hydrology of the region was likely controlled by the relative proximity to an upland recharge area in the mogollon highlands to the south but sedimentary fabrics record strong overprinting by desiccation and pedogenic reworking consequently we interpret the ojo huelos member as recording a climate that varied from subhumid to semi arid which caused episodic falls in the hydrologic base level this resulted in landscape degradation exemplified by significant pedogenic and erosional reworking of the carbonate sediments and fluvial incision

quantifying the uncertainty of geoacoustic parameter estimates for the new jersey shelf by inverting air gun data this paper describes geoacoustic inversion of low frequency air gun data acquired during an experiment on the new jersey shelf hybrid optimization and bayesian inversion techniques based on matched field processing were applied to multiple shots from three air gun data sets recorded by a vertical line array in a long range shallow water geometry for the bayesian inversions full data error covariance matrix was estimated from a set of consecutive shots that had high temporal coherence and small spatial variation in source position the effect of different data error information on the geoacoustic parameter uncertainty estimates was investigated by using the full data error covariance matrix a diagonalized version of the full error covariance and a diagonal matrix with identical variances the comparison demonstrated that inversion using the full data error information provided the most reliable parameter uncertainty estimates the inversions were highly sensitive to the near sea floor geoacoustic parameters including sediment attenuation of a simple single layer geoacoustic model the estimated parameter values of the model were consistent with depth averaged values over wavelength scales of a high resolution geoacoustic model developed from extensive ground truth information the interpretation of the frequency dependence of the estimated attenuation is also discussed

biogenic laminar calcretes evidence of calcified root mat horizons in paleosols laminar calcretes are described from the lower carboniferous of south wales the upper jurassic of southern england and the upper jurassic lower cretaceous of northern spain they are interpreted as calcified root mats horizontal root systems and are compared with other examples in the geological record and with possible modern analogues all three occurrences consist of virtually identical centimetre to decimetre thick locally organic carbon rich laminar micrites containing up to 50 by volume of millimetre sized typically calcite filled tubular fenestrae set in an irregular but very finely laminated matrix it is suggested that root mat calcretes are probably very common in the geological record in peritidal lacustrine margin and floodplain deposits but owing to their crudely biogenic microstructure they more closely resemble cryptalgal laminites than do other laminar calcretes the recognition of such root mat calcretes in sedimentary sequences not only provides evidence of subaerial exposure and vegetation cover but can also indicate positions of palaeo water tables in certain circumstances

black pebble occurrence and genesis in holocene carbonate sediments florida keys bahamas and tunisia abstract black carbonate lithoclasts along with blackened peloids ooids skeletal fragments and entire limestone beds are found in the shallow subtidal intertidal and supratidal zones of modern and ancient carbonate environments they are often associated with pedogenic features such as root traces or caliche the blackening is due to impregnation of the sediment by dissolved colloidal or finely particulate organic substances in an anoxic and alkaline environment or microenvironment the organic matter is derived from decayed algae and or decayed or burnt higher terrestrial plants iron sulfides contribute to the blackening especially in samples containing algal matter a complex interplay of adsorption of organic matter on carbonate crystal surfaces neomorphism and microcrystalline cementation in the vadose or freshwater phreatic zones is thought to fix the organic matter and make the black coloration relatively resistant to oxidation black pebbles form through reworking of the preferentially cemented and blackened sediment by coastal erosion they are mostly relics because the less consolidated host sediment is washed away black pebbles may thus be valuable indicators of ancient coastal and terrestrial environments

pedogenic record of climate change across the pennsylvanian permian boundary in red bed strata of the cutler group northern new mexico usa abstract the upper pennsylvanian to lowermost permian el cobre canyon and arroyo del agua formations are well exposed in a 250 m section in the chama basin in northern new mexico this is one of the few known successions of fossiliferous red bed siliciclastic sediments encompassing the pennsylvanian permian boundary in the american southwest and thus may inform questions regarding changing paleoclimate in tropical pangea across the pennsylvanian permian boundary the section consists mainly of silty mudstones and sandstones with sheet like to ribbon geometry and very minor limestones and records an upward transition from mainly braided stream deposition in the el cobre canyon formation to anastomosing stream deposition in the arroyo del agua formation we recognized multiple paleosol types within these strata including calcic protosols calcic argillisols argillic calcisols and calcisols all generally consistent with the interpretation of a seasonal sub humid to semi arid climate the calcretes in these paleosols occur primarily as truncated profiles although calcisols occur in both formations we note that protosols are more common in the el cobre canyon formation and argillisols dominate in the arroyo del agua formation also we find that the calcretes in the arroyo del agua formation are generally thicker than those in the underlying el cobre canyon formation the difference in calcrete maturity could be explained by changes in source area relief and sedimentation rate however stable isotope analyses of pedogenic carbonate indicate that a significant enrichment of 18o occurs near the transition between the two formations which approximates the virgilian wolfcampian equals gzhelian asselian boundary although the 13c data suggest that pco2 remained stable during the interval of deposition the 18o data are consistent with the interpretation of climate aridification across the pennsylvanian permian transition potentially related to the onset of gondwanan glaciation in the earliest permian

sedimentology based reconstructions of paleoclimate changes in the central andes in response to the uplift of the andes arica region between 19 and 21 s latitude northern chile we focus on the sedimentological record of the middle miocene to modern deposits in the andes of northern chile between 19 and 21 s these sediments deposited at the western escarpment of the central depression indicate successively more moisture on the western margin of the altiplano and the western cordillera where the sources are at the pacific coast 20 ma old exposure ages and salic gypsisols reflect an existing and ongoing hyperarid climate we interpret the increased divergence of climates between the coast and the altiplano as consequence of the andean rise to elevations higher than approximately 2 500 m a s l when the topography of the altiplano was sufficiently high and areally extensive to attract atlantic moisture accordingly the inferred general increase in run off was closely coupled with the uplift of the andes if the steady rise model applies in case that the rapid rise model for andean uplift is correct the inferred changes in sediment transport would have occurred independently of uplift requiring an alternative yet unknown driver

subaerial exposure and deposition of shallowing upward sequences evidence from stable isotopes of purbeckian peritidal carbonates basal cretaceous swiss and french jura mountains purbeckian lowermost cretaceous peritidal carbonates are characterized by open marine lagoonal intertidal and lacustrine facies arranged in milankovitch type shallowing upward sequences shallowing upward sequences typically consist of 2 6 individual beds the sequences may be i complete ii incomplete or ii pedogenetically overprinted reflecting the duration of subaerial exposure and or the extent of erosion and pedogenetic modification at the cycle tops the stable isotopic composition of the peritidal micrites reveals homogenous 6 o values attributed to diagenetic stabilization in a meteoric water buffered system carbon isotopes show three distinctly different carbon isotope patterns dependent on the completeness of the shallowing upward sequences complete shallowing upward sequences consist of l6 individual carbonate beds the carbon isotope values show a facies dependent pattern open marine carbonate muds record enriched 6i3c values of 0 28 while lagoonal 0 82 intertidal 2 46 10 and lacustrine micrites 2 96 are increasingly depleted this distinct pattern is explained by carbonate mud deposition in environments of differing salinity and marine influence incomplete sequences 2 5 carbonate beds are characterized by depleted 6 c values below subaerial exposure surfaces that become progressively enriched in c with increasing depth pedogenetically overprinted sequences 1 3 carbonate beds show strong i3c depletion throughout the sequence with little variation in the carbon isotopic composition the depleted values 4 51 10 of the pedogenetically altered micrites suggest that modification during subaerial exposure was associated with equilibration with meteoric solutions enriched in isotopically light soil gas coz the duration of subaerial exposure is the most crucial factor determining the extent of pedogenetic alterations the completeness of the shallowing upward sequences and the carbon isotope pattern the recorded patterns clearly illustrate that micrites have a good potential for the preservation of their primary carbon isotopic composition if the duration of subaerial exposure is rather brief otherwise the recorded carbon isotope patterns may support sequence stratigraphic analysis by providing a refinement of the time stratigraphic interpretation

regional paleohydrologic and paleoclimatic settings of wetland lacustrine depositional systems in the morrison formation upper jurassic western interior usa abstract during deposition of the upper jurassic morrison formation water that originated as precipitation in uplands to the west of the western interior depositional basin infiltrated regional aquifers that underlay the basin this regional groundwater system delivered water into the otherwise dry continental interior basin where it discharged to form two major wetland lacustrine successions a freshwater carbonate wetland lacustrine succession formed in the distal reaches of the basin where regional groundwater discharged into the denver julesburg basin which was a smaller structural basin within the more extensive western interior depositional basin an alkaline saline wetland lacustrine complex lake t oo dichi formed farther upstream where shallower aquifers discharged into the san juan paradox basin which was another small structural basin in the western interior depositional basin these were both wetlands in the sense that groundwater was the major source of water input from surface and meteoric water was limited in both basins lacustrine conditions developed during episodes of increased input of surface water inclusion of wetlands in our interpretation of what had previously been considered largely lacustrine systems has important implications for paleohydrology and paleoclimatology the distal carbonate wetland lacustrine deposits are well developed in the morrison formation of east central colorado occupying a stratigraphic interval that is equivalent to the lower morrison but extends into the upper morrison formation sedimentologic paleontologic and isotopic evidence indicate that regional groundwater discharge maintained shallow hydrologically open well oxygenated perennial carbonate wetlands and lakes despite the semi arid climate wetland deposits include charophyte rich wackestone and green mudstone lacustrine episodes in which surface water input was significant were times of carbonate and siliciclastic deposition in scarce deltaic and shoreline deposits marginal lacustrine deposits include ooid and skeletal packstone grainstone siltstone and sandstone distal lacustrine units are skeletal mudstone wackestone microbialites and laminated siliciclastic mudstone differentiation between wetlands and distal lacustrine units is not always possible palustrine features magadi type chert mtc and evaporites record episodes of increased aridity and exposure farther upstream during deposition of the upper part of the brushy basin member the ancestral uncompahgre uplift imposed a barrier to shallow eastward flowing groundwater that discharged into the san juan paradox basin on the upstream side of the uplift this created the closed hydrologic setting necessary for development of an alkaline saline wetland lacustrine complex lake t oo dichi silicic volcanic ash delivered by prevailing winds from calderas west and southwest of the basin contributed to the pore water evolution in the sediments a distinctive lateral hydrogeochemical gradient reflecting increasing salinity and alkalinity in the pore waters altered the ash to a variety of authigenic minerals that define concentric zones within the basin the basinward progression of diagenetic mineral zones is smectite clinoptilolite analcime potassium feldspar albite the groundwater fed wetlands were shallow and frequently evaporated to dryness scarce laminated gray mudstone beds record distinct episodes of freshwater lacustrine deposition that resulted from intermittent streams that carried detritus well out into the basin

isotope signatures associated with early meteoric diagenesis the environments in which carbonate diagenesis proceeds have been documented in previous studies of holocene and late pleistocene sediments and limestones on barbados west indies variations in the carbon and oxygen isotopic composition of limestones produced during early freshwater diagenesis have been observed in this study to occur in specific patterns six potentially useful patterns emerge when one views stable isotope data within a stratigraphic framework 1 the subaerial exposure surface is characterized by strongly 12c enriched limestones 13c compositions of underlying limestones grow progressively heavier with increasing depth 2 the subaerial exposure surface may also be marked by slight 18o enrichment 3 an abrupt shift in 18o values may differentiate sediments above the exposure surface from those below 4 sediments altered in the marine meteoric mixing zone may be characterized by positive covariance between their 18o and 13c compositions 5 the vadose phreatic boundary may be marked by a sharp increase in 13c values in the seaward portions of a fresh groundwater system and 6 samples contemporaneously altered in a single fresh groundwater system within an areally restricted region should display a narrow range of 18o and a wide range of 13c compositions analysis of samples from five palaeozoic and mesozoic formations which contained petrographic evidence of early freshwater diagenesis showed that isotope patterns similar to those observed in barbados limestones have been preserved in rocks as old as mississippian these isotope patterns could prove to be useful for identifying diagenetically induced porosity trends in carbonate rocks they might be used to identify limestones diagenetically altered in meteoric environments to identify mixing zone cements and dolomites and to trace the regional and vertical distributions of early meteoric groundwater systems in ancient carbonate formations

development and lithogenesis of the palustrine and calcrete deposits of the dibdibba alluvial fan kuwait abstract a model is proposed for the development of the quaternary palustrine carbonate calcrete association which occurs as hard crust capping low hills at a distal flood plain of al dibdibba alluvial fan located at southwestern kuwait field occurrence detailed petrographic investigation and geochemical analysis revealed that a single cycle of groundwater calcrete with vertical gradational maturity pattern was developed this represents a continuous sedimentological cycle during which flood sheet conditions prevailed with intermittent periods of humid and arid conditions subsequently calcitic micrite was continuously precipitated from small shallow local isolated and short lived ponds fringed by freshwater marshes with abundant charophyte meadows the latter were developed as a result of flooding scattered depressions by groundwater supersaturated with respect to calcite due to rise of groundwater table the deposition of two facies of carbonate muds namely biomicrite and pelintraclasts skeletal micrites was followed by a drought phase which witnessed desiccation of the fresh water ponds and significant drop in groundwater level a sequence of pedogenic and diagenetic processes acted on the deposited carbonate muds are manifested by a desiccation cracks b micrite neomorphism c infilling of root burrows and some cracks by aeolian siliciclastics d karstification e marmorization f calcretization of root burrow infill and development of pseudo rhizocrete g calcite cementation and mineral authigenesis and h silcretization these processes are responsible for the development of hard palustrine carbonate crust at the advent of aridity the whole system of al dibdibba alluvial fan was subjected to deflation this resulted in reversing the paleotopography of the hard crusted palustrine depressions into carbonate capped domal hills

assessing the carbon dioxide content of ancient atmospheres using palaeocalcretes theoretical and empirical contraints recent suggestions that the 13 c composition of calcretes can be used to determine the p co 2 of ancient atmospheres is critically evaluated the problem of differentiating pedogenic calcretes from groundwater ones which could not be used for p co 2 determinations is considered a critical problem a basic tenet of the use of calcretes for assessing p co 2 is that plants using c 4 or cras sulacean acid metabolism photosynthetic pathways were unimportant until the miocene this view is questioned and evidence is presented from carboniferous calcified root mats that non c 3 plants were probably present at this time confirming speculations by palaeobotanists that crassulacean acid metabolism or c 4 photosynthesis may have arisen numerous times during the evolution of higher plants

impact of long term climate change and sea level fluctuation on mississippian to permian mid oceanic atoll sedimentation akiyoshi limestone group japan abstract to understand the impacts of long term climatic episodes and sea level changes on mid oceanic atoll sedimentation the stratigraphic changes of litho and bio facies and stratigraphic levels of freshwater diagenetic alteration and biostratigraphic discontinuity of the akiyoshi limestone group upper visean to upper capitanian were reviewed this group records approximately 70 million years of atoll sedimentation in a mid oceanic realm of the panthalassa ocean which developed nearly synchronously with the late paleozoic gondwana glaciation the entire succession of the akiyoshi limestone group was divided into four facies associations skeletal oolitic grainstone muddy limestone muddy limestone skeletal grainstone and reefal limestone associations skeletal oolitic grainstone and reefal limestone associations upper visean to bashkirian are characterized by an abundance of oolite and crinoidal grainstone and reef facies of warm adapted metazoan reef builders corals chaetetes and bryozoans respectively characteristics of skeletal oolitic grainstone and reefal limestone associations indicate their deposition in a warm climate with elevated sea level muddy limestone association moscovian to kasimovian records the demise of the warm adapted metazoan reef builders and frequent emergence events of the buildup many geochemical data support the significant drop in temperature during moscovian through kasimovian time these depositional and biotic events of muddy limestone association indicate that its sedimentation was strongly affected by cool climate and generally low sea level muddy limestone skeletal grainstone association is characterized by an upward increasing significance of calcimicrobes calcareous algae and calcisponges the succession records less frequent emergence events than that of muddy limestone association ii these characters reflect a warming climate and sea level rise in gzhelian to capitanian time the climate episodes and sea level changes interpreted from the akiyoshi limestone group generally correspond to the global trend of mississippian to permian long term climatic change and sea level fluctuation related to the major glacial events of gondwana glaciation the late visean to bashkirian warm climate and elevated sea levels moscovian to kasimovian cooling and sea level lowering and gzhelian to capitanian warming and sea level rise recorded in the akiyoshi buildup are comparable to the global climate model and sea level fluctuation which contain early to middle mississippian pre glacial warm climate and highstands middle to late pennsylvanian cooling and related glacio eustatic sea level fluctuation at the culmination of gondwana glaciation and early to middle permian global warming and sea level rise due to the retreat of gondwana ice sheets akiyoshi atoll sedimentation was most significantly affected pennsylvanian global cooling and related sea level lowering but their impact was short lived the onset of the cooling and frequent emergence events in the akiyoshi buildup occurred delayed approximately 10 millions years later than that of comparable episodes on the pangean shelves the post glacial warming in the akiyoshi buildup started at least several millions of years earlier than in epicontinental seas of the pangea this phenomenon may be due to the palaeoposition of the akiyoshi buildup in a mid oceanic realm of the panthalassa ocean

palustrine sedimentation in an episodically subsiding basin the miocene of the northern teruel graben spain lacustrine deposits form most of the sedimentary record accumulated throughout the miocene in the northern part of the teruel graben a landlocked basin situated in ne spain three main stratigraphic units units i iii spanning late vallesian to late turolian in age are distinguished in the area the two former units comprise mainly carbonate lacustrine deposits that were deposited in a palustrine or a more permanent but shallow lacustrine setting the latter being related mainly to periods of lake expansion under more humid and cooler climatic conditions in contrast deposition of unit iii characterised by gypsiferous lacustrine sediments in central parts of the basin reflects the influence of source rocks of evaporitic nature upper triassic formations that were emplaced by diapiric uplift in the eastern margin during the middle turolian carbonate lake sediments belonging to units i and ii consist of four main lithofacies associations a distal alluvial lake margin deposits b lacustrine carbonates and pedogenically modified lacustrine carbonates c carbonate fill channels and d organic rich marlstone and carbonate marshes lithofacies association a shows typically a sequential arrangement formed from bottom to top of red mudstone carbonate palaeosols and biomicrite beds sequence type 1a these sequences are interpreted as a result of slow but continuous aggradation of the floodplain areas and subsequent rise of the water table probably reflecting equilibrium between subsidence and sedimentation lithofacies association b consisting of biomicrite beds passing upward into palaeosols sequence type 1b is thought to be caused by marked pulses of tectonic subsidence that created the accommodation space required for fast development of a carbonate lake carbonate fill channels showing erosive lower surfaces dig out on previous channels marsh deposits and or lacustrine carbonates exhibit well developed prismatic structure at their bed tops the sequential arrangement suggests similar tectonic constrains than the envisaged for lithofacies 1b the comparison of depositional styles of the lake systems with the palaeoclimatic evolutionary pattern of the basin throughout the miocene indicates that the combined effect of tectonism climate and source rock played a major role in the stratigraphic framework of the basin during this period

palustrine sedimentation and associated features grainification and pseudo microkarst in the middle miocene intermediate unit of the madrid basin spain abstract a rather thick sequence 50 75 m of lacustrine limestones forms the uppermost part of the intermediate unit middle miocene in the ne part of the madrid basin central spain a gradual change from distal alluvial to open lake facies is recorded in this area red mudstones passing vertically to strongly mottled limestones are typical of the transition from distal alluvial to marginal lake deposits a wide variety of facies occur in the marginal lacustrine facies association all of them showing pedogenic features e g root traces alveolar septal structures pseudo microkarst micrites and biomicrites are interpreted as open lacustrine deposits although not as strongly pedogenically modified as the marginal lacustrine facies they still show evidence of subaerial exposure the carbonate sequence was deposited in a low gradient shallow lake system in which slight fluctuations in the water level caused extensive emergence pedogenic processes affected most of the lake deposits but modification was more intense in the marginal facies biogenic activity and mechanical reworking at lake margins led to the formation of pedogenic diagenetic pseudo microkarst and peloidal and or intraclastic limestones