cretaceous tertiary and permian triassic boundary events compared abstract the cretaceous tertiary k t and permian triassic p tr events differ in many more aspects than they are similar this alone makes it unlikely that they are parts of a common web of periodic mass extinction events mee unlike the k t most mee have no ir anomalies and where in the comparatively complete section of the p tr at gartnerkofel austria weak ir concentrations are found their ratios to siderophile elements co ni cr are far less than chondritic in contrast ratios to chalcophile elements as sb zn never approach chondritic even in k t peaks and locality differences suggest local depositional processes that may also affect the siderophiles profiles of isotopes 13ccarb 87 sr 86 sr and possibly 18ocarb across these boundaries also differ radically whereas the k t profile of surface ocean 18ocarb has been shown to be mainly a drop in primary productivity the p tr profile is interpreted at least in part to be a consequence of a large and accelerating oxidation of previously stored corg with greatly differing consequences for climate these and other differences of proximate forcings for these two mee lead us to a hypothesis that such external exigencies were ever intermittently and severally with us but were effective only when the biotic web had already internally unravelled in some crucially strained patch gaia became antigaia

testing 87sr 86sr as a paleosalinity indicator on mixed marine brackish water and terrestrial vertebrate skeletal apatite in late paleocene early eocene near coastal sediments mississippi abstract mixed marine brackish water and terrestrial vertebrate skeletal apatite is found in the late paleocene early eocene tuscahoma and bashi formations of mississippi the co occurrence in these near coastal marine deposits of skeletal apatite with different provenances offers a unique opportunity for unraveling the effects of diagenesis on apatite 87sr 86sr composition with bearings on the use of this isotope pair as paleosalinity indicator the results show that the sr isotopes of all originally poorly ordered phases of skeletal apatite have extensively re equilibrated with pore water with significantly lower 87sr 86sr ratios than late paleocene early eocene seawater for example marine shark and ray teeth from the bashi formation all have clearly nonmarine 87sr 86sr ratios 0 7073 0 7075 compared with a coeval seawater ratio in the range 0 7077 0 7078 however separated shark tooth enamel with a high original crystallinity appears to have retained all or most of its in vivo sr isotopic signature until the present here we also show that 87sr 86sr results on recent vertebrate skeletal material from different environments are in good agreement with expected values for respective habitat earlier analyses of calcite material from the bashi formation indicated the existence of a shift in seawater 87sr 86sr to a lower value at the paleocene eocene boundary the strong influence of pore water with low nonmarine 87sr 86sr on the apatite in the bashi formation suggests that the proposed isotopic shift may be an artifact related to diagenetic processes

reorganization of deep ocean circulation accompanying a late cretaceous extinction event deep ocean circulation may be a significant factor in determining global climate1 5 increases in the flux of warm saline waters from low to high latitudes would enhance the poleward transport of heat and thus help maintain the warm conditions at high latitudes typical of globally warm greenhouse periods but controversy exists1 2 as to whether the ocean s thermohaline circulation can transport enough heat to bring about the temperature distributions of these times such as the mid cretaceous and early eocene here we present stable isotope records of ocean temperature and salinity that indicate that bottom waters in late cretaceous oceans of the southern hemisphere became cooler and less saline at the same time about 70 myr ago as widespread biotic changes3 6 8 these findings support the idea that changes in deep ocean circulation can act as a climate switch

rapid change in strontium isotopic composition of sea water before the cretaceous tertiary boundary a critical aspect of the debate over the origin of the chemical biological and climatological perturbations that characterize the cretaceous tertiary boundary k t boundary is the timescale and detailed pattern of the extinctions and geochemical changes whether the development of the anomalies was catastrophic over tens to hundreds of years or more gradual 103 to 106 years whether the anomalies occur exactly at the boundary or precede it and whether the chemical and biological signatures represent one event or can be resolved into several discrete events are issues fundamental to identifying the cause of the marked changes to determine the timing and rate of change of strontium isotope evolution of sea water during the five million years preceding the k t boundary we analysed foraminifera from an exceptionally thick palaeontologically well characterized marine k t section exposed at bidart southwest france we found a rapid increase in 87sr 86sr of ocean water 1 5 to 2 3 myr before the boundary the increase may be explained by a 10 increase in continental strontium flux to the oceans over a period of about 1 myr

ichnological analysis of the bidart and sopelana cretaceous paleogene k pg boundary sections basque basin w pyrenees refining eco sedimentary environment abstract ichnological analysis of two cretaceous paleogene boundary sections at bidart se france and sopelana n spain has been conducted in order to refining eco sedimentary environment and to a make comparison with previous interpretations based on microfossils in both sections trace fossil assemblage is low diverse consisting of chondrites planolites thalassinoides trichichnus zoophycos and phycosiphon ascribed to the zoophycos ichnofacies however with distinct differences in the bidart section early danian dark filled trace fossil assemblage is more abundant in large thalassinoides zoophycos and larger chondrites and less abundant in trichichnus and small chondrites in comparison to the sopelana section sopelana is thus interpreted as a more offshore deeper section than bidart although both were located in the upper bathyal zone of the basin oxygenation below the sediment water interface was enough to favour a generalized total bioturbation of sediments the presence of chemichnia and trace fossils which tracemakers sequestered sediments from the sea floor in deep burrows zoophycos suggests at least periodical food deficiency the distribution and content of trace fossils across the k pg boundary do not change significantly revealing minor incidence of the k pg boundary event on the macrobenthic environment the k pg boundary transition including the boundary layer is nearly totally bioturbated hence a redistribution of microbiotic and abiotic components by tracemakers is possible

strontium isotope profiles across k t boundary sequences in denmark and antarctica strontium isotope profiles derived from minimally altered samples across marine k t boundary sequences exposed at kjolby gaard and nye klov denmark and on seymour island antarctica show neither the boundary excursions nor the boundary spikes in 87sr 86sr that have been reported for k t boundary sequences from elsewhere nor do our data conform to modelled predictions of the sr isotopic response of the oceans to a positive spike in 87sr 86sr at the terminal cretaceous boundary values for 87sr 86sr with 95 confidence intervals are 0 707828 3 in denmark and 0 707832 7 in antarctica our data suggest that 87sr 86sr stopped increasing and started decreasing at least 90 ka before the k t boundary

strontium isotopic variations in jurassic and cretaceous seawater a high resolution seawater strontium isotope curve has been generated through the analysis of well dated and well preserved belemnites and oysters from the middle and upper jurassic and the lower cretaceous of great britain analysis of fe and mn concentrations in these fossils has yielded criteria for eliminating samples that are diagenetically altered the strontium isotope curve remains relatively flat through the aalenian and early bajocian rapidly descends through the late bajocian and bathonian and reaches a minimum in the callovian and oxfordian it then begins a rapid increase in the kimmeridgian and portlandian that continues through much of the early cretaceous the curve levels off in the barremian suddenly dips downwards in the aptian and recovers gradually through the albian the strontium isotopic variations are sufficiently large and the data are presented with sufficient stratigraphic detail to allow precise correlation to the classic ammonite zones and lithologic sections of great britain using the techniques of strontium isotope stratigraphy model results indicate that much of the variation in seawater 87sr86sr between 120 and 40 ma can be explained by changing the intensity of mid ocean ridge hydrothermal fluxes proportionally to estimated mid ocean ridge crustal generation rates it is also possible that the variations during the rest of the mesozoic and the permian are primarily reflections of changing hydrothermal inputs the model results have several important implications first they provide an example in which the variations in the strontium isotope curve are not necessarily driven by changes in fluvial inputs second they suggest that from at least the aptian through the eocene variations in continental weathering were minimal this heightens the importance of the rapid rise in seawater 87sr86sr beginning 40 ma as a significant transition to an extended period of increasing fluvial 87sr fluxes continuing to the present finally the results suggest that several documented short term excursions towards lower 87sr86sr in the latest triassic pliensbachian toarcian callovian oxfordian aptian albian and cenomanian turonian are interpretable as pulses of seafloor hydrothermal activity if so the strontium isotope record offers a means of constraining the timing duration and magnitude of known or proposed hydrothermal events in the geological record

numerical models for diagenesis and the neogene sr isotopic evolution of seawater from dsdp site 590b abstract a numerical model for the diagenetic exchange of sr between carbonates and their pore fluids during sedimentation and compaction has been developed the model has been applied to data from dsdp site 590b in order to assess the accuracy with which the sr isotope record in the carbonate sediment reflects that of seawater the most important process affecting the sr in the solid carbonate is exchange with the pore fluid due to solution reprecipitation but the concentration or isotopic composition of sr in the solid itself gives little or no information as to the magnitude of this exchange the key to determining the rate of exchange is the pore fluid where the variations of sr2 and87sr 86sr with depth are very sensitive indicators the logical structure of applying the model to data from dsdp 590b is to find by successive iteration an ocean history i e the initial87sr 86sr and sr concentration of each increment of carbonate deposited and a rate of sr exchange between pore water and solid carbonate such that the model matches the present sr concentration and87sr 86sr of both pore water and solid carbonate once all the data are matched the model provides an estimate of the rate of sr exchange due to solution reprecipitation and the evolution of87sr 86sr in seawater over the past 20 million years for dsdp 590b we find that solution reprecipitation decreases rapidly with depth from a near surface value of about 10 per million years to about 1 per million years below 200 m this rate of exchange of sr results in the carbonates of dsdp 590b preserving an accurate record of the sr isotopic evolution of the ocean over the past 5 million years but for ages greater than 5 million years the87sr 86sr ratio of the carbonate is systematically displaced from that of the seawater in which it was deposited the maximum difference is of order 5 10 5

high resolution stratigraphy with strontium isotopes the isotopic ratio of strontium 87 to strontium 86 shows no detectable variation in present day ocean water but changes slowly over millions of years the strontium contained in carbonate shells of marine organisms records the ratio of strontium 87 to strontium 86 of the oceans at the time that the shells form sedimentary rocks composed of accumulated fossil carbonate shells can be dated and correlated with the use of high precision measurements of the ratio of strontium 87 to strontium 86 with a resolution that is similar to that of other techniques used in age correlation this method may prove valuable for many geological paleontological paleooceanographic and geochemical problems

new chronostratigraphy of the cretaceous paleogene boundary interval at bidart france abstract the cretaceous paleogene boundary section at bidart french basque coast was prevented for a long time to be considered as a reference section for the k t boundary due to a suspected hiatus comprising most of chron c29r in our new magneto and biostratigraphic study of this section we discovered that the underlying primary magnetic polarity is not revealed in the vector directions but in a small but consistent intensity excursion during laboratory demagnetization trends magnetite and maghemite are the main carriers of remanence with contribution of hematite to the magnetic mineralogy of the red brown lowermost danian and maastrichtian marly limestones magnetite is the main magnetic mineral in the white to pink danian limestones the nrm of marls and marly limestones is characterized by 1 a present day field overprint 2 a medium temperature 300 400 c reversed component interpreted as a relic of the characteristic remanent magnetization chrm carried by magnetite grains which are not completely oxidized into maghemite and 3 a high temperature up to 590 c normal component due to late diagenesis hematite growth the nrm of danian limestones is characterized by 1 a present day field overprint and 2 a chrm component of normal or reversed polarity the chrm directions allow a new correlation of the magnetic polarity sequence with the geomagnetic polarity time scale gpts chron c29r corresponds to the maastrichtian unit and extends up to 3 5 m above the k t boundary and chron c29n occurs at the top of the section there is no evidence for a hiatus at or below the k t boundary and the section does not extend up to chron c28r as previously suggested these new chronostratigraphic assignments are in good agreement with the previous biostratigraphic data and from the new biostratigraphic analyses based on calcareous nannofossils presented in this paper our study demonstrates that the section of bidart can be considered as a key section to study the k t boundary event s

terminal cretaceous environmental events the geologic record of terminal cretaceous environmental events indicates that iridium and other associated elements were not deposited instantaneously but during a time interval spanning some 10 000 to 100 000 years the available geologic evidence favors a mantle rather than meteoritic origin for these elements these results are in accord with the scenario of a series of intense eruptive volcanic events occurring during a relatively short geologic time interval and not with the scenario of a single large asteroid impact event

high resolution strontium isotope stratigraphy and biostratigraphy of the miocene monterey formation central california detailed biostratigraphic and sr isotope studies on two outcrop sections of the miocene monterey formation of california demonstrate the applicability of the sr isotope method for detailed chronostratigraphic correlation multidisciplinary biostratigraphic ages generally agree with sr isotopic ages determined by correlating 87sr 86sr ratios with a standard 87sr 86sr versus age curve constructed of data from deep sea drilling project sites 575 and 590 diagenetic modification of sr isotopic ratios of the monterey formation was negligible strontium isotopes provide age resolutions of 0 1 to 0 2 ma in the lower miocene small faults and slump structures are identified as reversals within a general trend of increasing 87sr 86sr biostratigraphy yields the more definitive age assignments in the younger siliceous rocks where diatoms in particular have more utility than the corresponding flat and polytonal portion of the isotopic curve strontium isotopic correlation of the basal monterey formation with deep sea drilling project site 575 indicates that monterey deposition commenced at 17 85 0 10 ma within planktic foraminiferal zone n6 and calcareous nannofossil zone cn2 concomitant with an increase in slope of the sea water 87sr 86sr versus age curve this event dates 0 35 0 10 m y before the beginning of the pronounced shift of 13c and 1 4 m y before the shift of 18o observed at site 575 it is evident that sr isotope stratigraphy is a valuable supplement to biostratigraphy the techniques are complementary in refining chronostratigraphic interpretations

catastrophic mass extinction and assemblage evolution in planktic foraminifera across the cretaceous paleogene k pg boundary at bidart sw france abstract a high resolution biostratigraphic analysis of planktic foraminifers confirms that the bidart section at the eastern margin of the atlantic ocean exhibits a continuous and complete cretaceous paleogene k pg transition interval the biozones and subzones recorded in this section are less expanded than their equivalent in tunisian sections el kef global stratotype section and point gssp for the k pg boundary and elles auxiliary section but they are sufficiently thick to allow a detailed analysis of the evolution of the planktic foraminiferal assemblages across the k pg transition throughout the uppermost 4 m maastrichtian the planktic foraminiferal assemblages are highly diversified containing up to 72 species these maastrichtian assemblages are rich in cosmopolitan taxa 70 dominated by small biserial morphotypes which belong mainly to the genus heterohelix which coexist with less abundant but highly diverse tropical and subtropical species the extinction pattern at the bidart section suggests a sudden catastrophic mass extinction at the k pg boundary which affected at least 53 out of 72 species the species becoming extinct include globotruncanids e g contusotruncana spp globotruncana spp globotruncanita spp and complex heterohelicids e g racemiguembelina spp pseudotextularia spp gublerina spp at the bidart section only archaeoglobigerina cretacea disappears 2 m below the k pg boundary event specimens of 18 small and even tiny maastrichtian species are found at the lowermost danian only a few of these species belonging to the genera of guembelitria hedbergella and heterohelix are considered to be real cretaceous survivor species whereas the specimens belonging to the rest are most probably reworked because they differ in their preservation throughout lowermost danian the planktic foraminiferal assemblages are dominated by opportunistic species of the genus guembelitria these opportunists are associated to small and poorly diversified pioneer globigerinids palaeoglobigerina spp and parvularugoglobigerina spp these assemblages became progressively more diversified across the early danian containing species with cancellate walls eoglobigerina spp parasubbotina spp subbotina triloculinoides and praemurica spp and new taxa of biserial heterohelicids woodringina spp and chiloguembelina spp suggesting a paleoenvironmental recovery

sr isotope evolution of maastrichtian seawater determined from the chalk of hemmoor nw germany in 140 metres of maastrichtian white chalk nannofossil chalk exposed near hemmoor nw germany values of 87sr 86sr increase from 0 707760 in the belemnella sumensis zone lower maastrichtian at the base of the section 54 5 m referred to 0 m at a prominent marl m900 to 0 707821 in the belemnella baltica danica zone upper maastrichtian at the top of the section 84 5 m a plateau in 87sr 86sr occurs between 5m and 50m in the section probably as a result of a very high rate of sedimentation in this interval a belemnite and associated nannofossil chalk have similar 87sr 86sr values suggesting that there has been little diagenetic alteration of the 87sr 86sr ratios in the chalk which therefore preserves its original 87sr 86sr comparison of 87sr 86sr and nannofossil zonations for sequences at bidart france and dsdp sites reveals discordance and so possible diachronism of the basal boundaries of nannofossil zones cc25b and cc25c

radiogenic isotopes systematics and applications to earth surface processes and chemical stratigraphy radiogenic isotopes have wide application to chemical stratigraphy geochronology provenance studies and studies of temporal changes in earth surface processes this paper briefly reviews the principles of radiogenic isotope geochemistry and the distribution of a number of elements of interest in the environment and then uses this information to explore the range of applications to chemical stratigraphy and other fundamental subjects of sedimentary geology many of these applications center on the reconstruction of secular variations in paleoseawater isotope signals these seawater isotope curves can be used for stratigraphic correlation and to assess changes through earth history in processes such as tectonic uplift climate change biogeochemical cycling ocean circulation crustal growth and surface water evolution understanding the modern biogeochemical cycle of the element isotope system of interest is essential for gaining the maximum information regarding the operation of ancient cycles the main sources of uncertainty for reconstructing seawater isotope curves involve diagenetic alteration sample impurities and errors in age assignments rigorous sample selection criteria and pretreatment methods are keys to reconstructing the most accurate seawater isotope curves applications are discussed for the rb sr sm nd la ce lu hf re os u th pb k ar and cosmogenic isotope systems d 2003 elsevier b v all rights reserved

tectonic forcings of maastrichtian ocean climate evolution a global compilation of deep sea isotopic records suggests that maastrichtian ocean climate evolution tvas tectonically driven during the early maastrichtian the atlantic intermediate deep ocean was isolated from the pacific indian and southern oceans deep water formed in the high latitude north atlantic and north pacific at the early late maastrichtian boundary a major reorganization of oceanic circulation patterns occurred resulting in the development of a thermohaline circulation system similar to that of the modem oceans a combination of isotopic and plate kinematic data suggests that this event was triggered by the final breaching of tectonic sills in the south atlantic and the initiation of north south flow of intermediate and deep water in the atlantic the onset of laramide tectonism during the mid maastrichtian led to the concurrent draining of major epicontinental seaways together these events caused cooling increased latitudinal temperature gradients increased ventilation of the deep ocean and affected a range of marine biota

late quaternary megafloods from glacial lake atna southcentral alaska u s a abstract geomorphic stratigraphic geotechnical and biogeographic evidence indicate that failure of a pleistocene ice dam between 15 5 and 26 ka generated a megaflood from glacial lake atna down the matanuska valley while it has long been recognized that lake atna occupied 9000 km2 of south central alaska s copper river basin little attention has focused on the lake s discharge locations and behaviors digital elevation model and geomorphic analyses suggest that progressive lowering of the lake level by decanting over spillways exposed during glacial retreat led to sequential discharges down the matanuska susitna tok and copper river valleys lake atna s size 50 ka duration and sequential connection to four major drainages likely made it a regionally important late pleistocene freshwater refugium we estimate a catastrophic matanuska megaflood would have released 500 1400 km3 at a maximum rate of 3 106 m3 s 1 volumes for the other outlets ranged from 200 to 2600 km3 and estimated maximum discharges ranged from 0 8 to 11 3 106 m3 s 1 making lake atna a serial generator of some of the largest known freshwater megafloods

strontium isotopes in early jurassic seawater abstract the analysis of well preserved well dated belemnites and oysters from the jurassic of great britain has resulted in a well constrained detailed seawater strontium isotope curve for the early jurassic the preservation of fossil low mg calcite was monitored using mn fe 13 c and 18 o iron was the most useful indicator with about 75 of the samples containing more than 150 ppm fe showing 87 sr 86 sr ratios elevated relative to adjacent points on the curve high mn concentrations less often correlated with elevated 87 sr 86 sr ratios however low mn concentrations 87 sr 86 sr 13 c and 18 o proved to be insensitive to diagenesis as it affects 87 sr 86 sr the principal features of the strontium isotope curve include a rise to about 0 70772 in the latest triassic and earliest jurassic hettangian from the hettangian the curve begins a roughly linear descent through the sinemurian and pliensbachian following a small levelling off and increase in the late pliensbachian the curve falls rapidly to its early jurassic minimum of 0 70706 it then gently increases through the toarcian until the falciferum zone where it shows an apparently abrupt increase to 0 70719 before continuing its slow increase to 0 70728 in the aalenian bajocian middle jurassic this reversal of the downwards trend established in the sinemurian and pliensbachian had not been previously identified the sinemurian and pliensbachian section of the curve potentially allows correlation and dating to within 1 or 2 ammonite subzones 0 5 to 1 ma

a 35 myr record of helium in pelagic limestones from italy implications for interplanetary dust accretion from the early maastrichtian to the middle eocene we have determined the helium concentration and isotopic composition of a suite of early maastrichtian through middle eocene pelagic limestones in the italian apennines the results provide a 35 myr record of the implied flux of extraterrestrial 3he which is a proxy for the accretion rate of interplanetary dust particles idps our measurements show that the 3he flux was fairly constant in the maastrichtian except for possible minor increases factor of two or less from 70 5 ma to 68 ma and at 66 ma which probably reflect transient increases in the accretion rate of asteroidal and or cometary idps we find no evidence for an increase in idp accretion at or immediately before the k t boundary implying that the k t impact was not associated with enhanced solar system dustiness this observation precludes the possibility that the k t impactor was a member of a major comet shower and is more consistent with impact of a lone comet or asteroid our data suggest a 2 to 4 fold increase in idp accretion between 57 and 54 ma followed by a factor of three decrease over an 4 myr period in the early to middle eocene the duration and magnitude of this variability is inconsistent with previous observations attributed to a shower of long period comets and is more likely the result of collisions in the asteroid belt and or kuiper belt in the entire 35 myr record we find no evidence for major enhancements of the idp accretion rate of the type expected from comet showers our results in combination with earlier 3he measurements do not support models that predict recurrent comet showers with periods of 38 myrs if there is a periodicity in the cratering record that is caused by periodic modulation of the oort cloud it is not evident in the apennine sediment data along with the 3he measurements we also obtained 4he concentrations which record temporal changes in the flux or composition of terrigenous matter the most significant change in 4he occurs in the last 4 myrs of the cretaceous over which the concentration of 4he in the detrital component rises by 300 this rise tracks a strong increase in the seawater 87 sr 86 sr ratio suggesting a globally significant change in the composition of continental detritus delivered to the oceans possibly arising from increased continental weathering

intense acidic volcanism at the cretaceous tertiary boundary abstract a 87 sr 86 sr spike in seawater strontium with amplitude 2 10 4 and duration of order 2 ma is superimposed on longer term variations at the cretaceous tertiary boundary the anomaly has been attributed to increased continental runoff due either to meteorite impact related acid rain or sea level regression we speculate here that the spike could have resulted from intense explosive acid volcanism preceding the development of the deccan traps a good model both in tectonic position and geochemical characteristics for these as yet elusive acidic products is provided by granites in the seychelles islands and particularly mahe

a cretaceous and jurassic geochronology an integrated geomagnetic polarity and geologic time scale for the jurassic and cretaceous periods is presented based on various methods according to the availability of definitive isotopic ages an age calibrated sea floor spreading model is used to interpolate the ages of the kimmeridgian to barremian and the campanian to maestrichtian stages numerical age estimates for the aptian to santonian stage boundaries follow published isotopic age determinations the hypothesis of equal duration of ammonite zones is employed as a vernier to apportion time for the hettangian to oxfordian stages the new scale results in ages of 208 ma for the base of the jurassic 144 ma for the jurassic cretaceous boundary and 66 5 ma for the top of the cretaceous the integrated biostratigraphic magnetostratigraphic and geochronometric record serves as a working hypothesis for geologic correlation of jurassic and cretaceous strata

detailed record of the neogene sr isotopic evolution of seawater from dsdp site 590b a detailed study of strontium isotope variations in neogene marine carbonate sediments from deep sea drilling project site 590b using techniques that allow the 87sr 86sr ratio to be determined to better than 0 00001 gives a high resolution record of the sr isotopic evolution of seawater the data show that the rate of change of the marine 87sr 86sr ratio has varied significantly even on time scales as short as 1 m y periods of particularly rapid growth appear to follow major marine regressions and probably reflect an increase in the delivery of radiogenic sr from the continents coupled with a decreased submarine carbonate dissolution rate greater carbonate compensation depth periods of relatively slowly changing 87sr 86sr follow major marine transgressions on the basis of correlations with the marine oxygen isotope record and the times of major continental glacier growth it is inferred that the effects of sea level variations are modified by climatic factors that affect the intensity of continental weathering and runoff the effects of sea floor generation rate variations are not discernible for the neogene the maximum attainable stratigraphic resolution using sr isotopes is between 0 1 and 2 m y for this time period

strontium isotope stratigraphy for late cretaceous time direct numerical calibration of the sr isotope curve based on the us western interior the 87sr 86sr of sr in macrofossil carbonate from upper cretaceous strata deposited in the western interior seaway usa provides a sr isotope curve for late cretaceous time cenomanian early maastrichtian the curve is calibrated biostratigraphically against the most refined ammonite zonation known for the interval and calibrated numerically with 39ar 40ar dates for 20 bentonites within the sequence marine 87sr 86sr decreased from 0 70743 in the late middle cenomanian to a late cretaceous minimum of 0 70730 in the late turonian 89 ma from the minimum 87sr 86sr increased through a middle campanian inflexion minimum at 77 ma maximum at 78 80 ma to reach 0 70772 at the campanian maastrichtian boundary thereafter 87sr 86sr increased through a very short inflexion in the latest early maastrichtian to the limit of our sampling in the earliest late maastrichtian the inflexions provide global event markers for correlation for most of the period covered by our curve resolution in dating and correlation of 0 8 ma should be achievable with our 2 s d precision in measurement of 18 10 6 our 87sr 86sr data show no evidence of having been affected by influxes of freshwater into the us western interior seaway from rivers including those that drained the sevier orogenic belt

stable δ13c δ18o and strontium isotopes through the paleocene at gebel aweina eastern tethyan region abstract stable 13 c 18 o and strontium 87 sr 86 sr isotopic records have been established through the paleocene section at gebel aweina in the eastern desert egypt the section has been formed in a shelf upper bathyal environment and spans the interval from planktonic foraminiferal zones p1d to p6a or p6b integrated evaluation of isotopic results and scanning electron microscope observations suggest that strontium and whole rock 13 c records reflect primarily original isotopic trends whereas 18 o and foraminiferal 13 c values have been severely affected by diagenesis the whole rock 13 c record exhibits a continuous increase of 4 from the early paleocene to middle late paleocene the increase is followed by a stepwise 13 c decrease of the same magnitude through the late late paleocene and onwards the gross trends of this 13 c record have earlier been registered in many coeval deep sea sections but there are also some significant disparities at aweina for example the paleocene carbon isotopic changes have a higher amplitude in the deep sea the mid to late paleocene 13 c increase has been interpreted to reflect high biological productivity and or changes in the global carbon mass balance the 13 c decrease in the upper part of the aweina section can be identified as the paleocene eocene transitional long term 10 3 kyr negative 13 c shift which may reflect a major reorganisation in global oceanic circulation patterns the well known latest paleocene deep sea benthic foraminiferal extinction event has been found in the upper part of the aweina section and coincides with a distinct and rapid 13 c decrease of 1 5 the benthic extinction event and the associated 13 c anomaly thus represent important stratigraphic markers also in more shallow environments the gebel aweina 13 c record shows considerably lower values compared to the global 13 c record during early and early late paleocene and in the latest paleocene in the early late paleocene foraminiferal zones p3a to the base of p4 the aweina 13 c values increase rapidly by 1 5 and converge with the global record thereafter the two records covary up to the benthic extinction event after which they diverge the convergence between the records may reflect sea level rise and more open water mass exchange between the eastern tethys and the world ocean the similarity of pilot 13 c records from greece and tunisia with the aweina record support this interpretation diagenetic processes however cannot be ruled out and further studies are required to determine the significance of the 13 c depletions in the eastern tethyan sediments the 87 sr 86 sr ratios through the paleocene at gebel aweina are remarkably invariable close to a value of 0 7077 this is the same trend that has been reported in some earlier detailed studies conducted on well preserved calcitic material from the paleocene indicating original sr isotopic signatures at gebel aweina the homogeneity of sr isotopic ratios throughout the paleocene contrasts with the prominent changes observed in the carbon isotope record indicating a decoupling of the mechanisms regulating the mass fluxes of these elements the invariable sr isotopic ratios suggest stable conditions as regards to relative changes in mass fluxes of riverine and or hydrothermal sr during the paleocene

diagenesis and sr isotopic evolution of seawater using data from dsdp 590b and 575 new sr isotopic and concentration analyses of bulk carbonate and porewaters from a carbonate rich miocene section sampled at dsdp site 575 are reported and used along with our earlier data from a section of similar age at dsdp site 590b in a numerical model to determine for each site the rate of sr exchange during diagenesis and the degree to which this amount of exchange has shifted the87sr86sr of the bulk carbonate from the ratio each increment of sediment had when first deposited despite the fact that the two sites have very different water depth 4536 m at 575 vs 1299 m at 590b different sedimentation rate 10 m my at 575 vs 40 m my at 590b and significantly different porewater sr2 gradients we find that the rate of sr exchange as a function of sediment age is almost indistinguishable between the two sites the rate of sr exchange determined at the two sites is such that the resulting shift in bulk carbonate87sr86sr due to diagenesis is small compared to the total range of87sr86sr values measured but large compared to the analytical uncertainty of the individual isotopic ratio measurements by taking this shift into account we reconstruct the original87sr86sr of each increment of carbonate sampled which when plotted as a function of age becomes our best estimate of the sr isotopic evolution of seawater because sr is very well mixed in the ocean at any given time there is a single worldwide value of seawater87sr86sr therefore if we are quantitatively accounting for the effect sr exchange we should find the same seawater evolution curve regardless of what dsdp site is used when we compare the observed bulk carbonate87sr86sr vs age at the two sites they are seen to differ by amounts that are sometimes large compared to the analytical uncertainties of the measurements however when these data are corrected for the post depositional sr isotopic shifts predicted by our diagenetic model we find almost perfect agreement this agreement suggests that we have made a realistic determination of the rate of sr exchange and its consequences in terms of shifting the87sr86sr of the bulk carbonate and more importantly that sr isotopes can be used to correlate marine sediments with an accuracy comparable to the very small analytical uncertainties of modern isotopic measurements

rb sr sm nd k ca o and h isotopic study of cretaceous tertiary boundary sediments caravaca spain evidence for an oceanic impact site isotopic ratios and trace element abundances were measured on samples of ir enriched clay at the cretaceous tertiary boundary and in carbonate and marl from 5 cm below and 3 cm above the boundary samples were leached with acetic acid to remove carbonate and with hydrochloric acid leachates and residues were measured the sr nd o and h isotopic compositions of the boundary clay residues are distinct from those of the stratigraphically neighboring materials the data indicate that most of the clay material was derived from a terrestrial source with relatively low87sr 86sr and high143nd 144nd ratios the 18o data suggest that the detritus has been modified by submarine weathering k ca and rb sr systematics as well as o isotope ratios of k feldspar spherules within the boundary clay suggest that they are predominantly authigenic and may have formed after the time of deposition however sm nd and rb sr isotopic data indicate that the spherules contain relict material that provides information on the nature of the original detritus the isotopic evidence for foreign terrestrial detritus in the boundary clay the low rare earth element concentrations and high ni concentration support the hypothesis of a terminal cretaceous asteroidal impact that produced a global layer of fallout the data are most easily explained if the impact site was on oceanic crust rather than continental crust and if a substantial fraction of the fallout was derived from relatively deep within the lithosphere 3 km this would probably require a single large impactor

variations in the strontium isotopic composition of seawater during the neogene the authors report 261 strontium isotopic analyses of well preserved planktonic foraminifers from three deep sea drilling project sites 519 588 and 607 these samples cover the period from 24 ma to present with an average of approximately one sample per 100 ka the combination of high sample density and uniformity of analytical procedures has produced a well defined record of changes in the sup 87 sr sup 86 sr of seawater during the neogene the record can be viewed as a series of essentially linear segments with slopes ranging from as high as 6 times 10 sup minus 5 m y to as low as 0 m y the times associated with major inflections in the curve do not appear to correspond to simple geologic phenomena such as eustatic cycles but are probably controlled by a combination of tectonic and climatic factors that influenced the abundance and isotopic composition of terrestrial strontium input to the oceans the strontium isotopic data are consistent with a progressive increase in the chemical weathering rates of the continents during the neogene probably related to repeated glaciations increased exposure of continents by lowered sea level and increased continental relief resulting from high rates of tectonic uplift

uppermost campanian maestrichtian strontium isotopic biostratigraphic and sequence stratigraphic framework of the new jersey coastal plain firm stratigraphic correlations are needed to evaluate the global significance of unconformity bounded units sequences we correlate the well developed uppermost campanian and maestrichtian sequences of the new jersey coastal plain to the geomagnetic polarity time scale gpts by integrating sr isotopic stratigraphy and biostratigraphy to do this we developed a maestrichtian ca 73 65 ma sr isotopic reference section at deep sea drilling project hole 525a in the southeastern atlantic ocean maestrichtian strata can then be dated by measuring their 87 sr 86 sr composition calibrating to the gpts of s c cande and d v kent 1993 personal commun and using the equation age ma 37 326 894 52 639 89 87 sr 86 sr sr stratigraphic resolution for the maestrichtian is estimated as 1 2 to 2 m y at least two unconformity bounded units comprise the uppermost campanian to maestrichtian strata in new jersey the lower one the marshalltown sequence is assigned to calcareous nannofossil zones cc20 21 nc19 and cc22b nc20 it ranges in age from 74 1 to 69 9 ma based on sr isotope age estimates the overlying navesink sequence is assigned to calcareous nannoplankton zones cc25 26 nc21 23 it ranges in age from 69 3 to 65 ma based on sr isotope age estimates the upper part of this sequence the tinton formation has no calcareous planktonic control sr isotopes provide an age estimate of 66 1 2 ma latest maestrichtian sequence boundaries at the base and the top of the marshalltown sequence match boundaries elsewhere in the atlantic coastal plain owens and gohn 1985 and the inferred global sea level record of haq et al 1987 they support eustatic changes as the mechanism controlling depositional history of this sequence however the latest maestrichtian record in new jersey does not agree with haq et al 1987 we attribute this to correlation and time scale differences near the cretaceous paleogene boundary high sedimentation rates in the latest maestrichtian of new jersey shrewsbury member of the red bank formation and the tinton formation suggest tectonic uplift and or rapid progradation during deposition of the highstand systems tract

antipodal hotspots and bipolar catastrophes were oceanic large body impacts the cause abstract one aspect of the hotspot distribution that has received little attention is its antipodal character of 45 primary hotspots found in most hotspot compilations 22 49 form antipodal pairs within observed hotspot drift limits 20 mm yr in addition the available ages or possible age ranges for both hotspots of an antipodal pair tend to be similar 10 myr difference or overlap monte carlo simulations indicate that the antipodal primary hotspots locations and ages are not due to chance at the 99 confidence level p

evidence for thermohaline circulation reversals controlled by sea level change in the latest cretaceous fluctuations in oxygen 18 o and carbon 13 c isotope values of benthic foraminiferal calcite from the tropical pacific and southern oceans indicate rapid reversals in the dominant mode and direction of the thermohaline circulation during a 1 m y interval 71 70 ma in the maastrichtian at the onset of this change benthic foraminiferal 18 o values increased and were highest in low latitude pacific ocean waters whereas benthic and planktic foraminiferal 13 c values decreased and benthic values were lowest in the southern ocean subsequently benthic foraminiferal 18 o values in the indo pacific decreased and benthic and planktic 13 c values increased globally these isotopic patterns suggest that cool intermediate depth waters derived from high latitude regions penetrated temporarily to the tropics the low benthic 13 c values at the southern ocean sites however suggest that these cool waters may have been derived from high northern rather than high southern latitudes correlation with eustatic sea level curves suggests that sea level change was the most likely mechanism to change the circulation and or source s of intermediate depth waters we thus propose that oceanic circulation during the latest cretaceous was vigorous and that competing sources of intermediate and deep water formation linked to changes in climate and sea level may have alternated in importance

late cretaceous campanian carbon isotope events sea level change and correlation of the tethyan and boreal realms abstract carbon stable isotope stratigraphy provides unique insights into environmental change during the campanian the longest 83 5 71 3 ma but least well understood stage of the late cretaceous a new carbon isotope 13c profile for a 500 m thick campanian basal maastrichtian tethyan pelagic hemipelagic section near el kef northern tunisia is calibrated using data from a biostratigraphically well constrained succession at kalaat senan the general shapes of the tunisian 13c reference curve and published tethyan 13c profiles from elles tunisia and bidart sw france and a boreal curve for the trunch borehole eastern england are remarkably similar in all three areas a positive carbon isotope event of 0 2 13c in the mid campanian dated at 78 7 ma and a negative excursion of 0 4 in the upper campanian at 74 8 ma can be correlated between tunisia and england a positive excursion of 0 3 at 83 7 ma spans the santonian campanian boundary these isotope events enable precise inter regional correlations that are consistent with published nannofossil data review of campanian sea level data from north africa the middle east and northern europe indicates that major shifts in 13c profiles coincide with changes in eustatic sea level relatively stable 13c values in the lower campanian and their long term fall through the upper campanian reflect high and then falling eustatic sea levels and increased carbonate production short term 600 kyr positive excursions record greater organic productivity and or organic matter preservation and decreased carbonate fluxes during periods of rapid sea level rise and the drowning of carbonate platforms excursions were terminated by falling nutrient supply and increased carbonate deposition associated with epicontinental sea expansion and renewed carbonate platform growth during the late transgression and highstand negative excursions are linked principally to reworking of marine and terrestrial organic matter during rapid sea level fall carbon isotope stratigraphy is a powerful tool for correlation which can be used to test the validity of campanian global biostratigraphic frameworks and improve our understanding of the nature and timing of late cretaceous sea level change

recovery of the deep sea floor after the cretaceous paleogene boundary event the benthic foraminiferal record in the basque cantabrian basin and in south eastern spain abstract a detailed analysis of the upper cretaceous and lower paleogene benthic foraminiferal assemblages 63 m from the middle bathyal loya section basque cantabrian basin southwestern france has been carried out the benthic foraminiferal and palaeoenvironmental turnover across the k pg boundary at loya has been compared to that observed in the nearby bidart section both sections exhibit mesotrophic conditions in the uppermost maastrichtian and a drastic decrease in the nutrient supply to the sea floor in coincidence with the k pg boundary moreover a faunal recovery of the assemblages is observed through the lowermost danian the pattern of faunal and palaeoenvironmental recovery in the basque cantabrian basin has been compared to that observed in the middle bathyal agost and caravaca sections south eastern spain where a similar decrease in the food supply to the sea floor is observed in coincidence with the k pg boundary however whereas low oxygen conditions have been recorded in the lowermost danian in these two sections no evidence for oxygen deficiency has been found in the basque cantabrian basin thus pointing to the regional and not global nature of low oxygen conditions following the k pg boundary event benthic foraminifera from the g cretacea biozone suggest environmental instability in the basque cantabrian basin and in southeastern spain such environmental stress has been related not only to the collapse of the food web due to the extinction of calcareous primary producers but also to a rapidly changing food supply driven by phytoplankton blooms although stabilization of the ecosystems in surface waters probably occurred towards the upper part of the g cretacea biozone data available from the ps pseudobulloides biozone at bidart and agost indicate that food supply to the benthos had not completely recovered at least 200 kyr after the k pg boundary

volcanism around k t boundary time its role in an impact scenario for k t extinction events abstract a widespread debate on the cretaceous tertiary k t boundary 65 1 ma extinctions has largely revolved around an impact or a volcanic cause evidence for both events is strengthened by recent work impact triggered deccan volcanism or independent impact and mantle plume events have been suggested this review examines evidence for both events and suggests that they overlapped in time but with globally uneven effects the combined effects produced generally inhospitable k t environments leading to mass extinctions although some life forms flourished afterwards volcanic contributions to the k t boundary environment probably include increased platinum group element pge and acid rain fall out particularly from large scale mantle upwellings e g deccan cameroon and coral sea events a previously proposed post k t greenland starting plume apparently already existed in the cretaceous k t features such as the iridium ir anomaly most likely include longer term volcanic as well as sudden meteoritic impact contributions volcanic contributions were greatest from southern hemisphere sources whereas meteorite impacts featured in the northern hemisphere

the maastrichtian record from shatsky rise northwest pacific a tropical perspective on global ecological and oceanographic changes we present new isotopic and micropaleontological data from a depth transect on shatsky rise that record the response of the tropical pacific to global biotic and oceanographic shifts during the mid maastrichtian results reveal a coupling between the upper ocean characterized by a weak thermocline and low to intermediate productivity and intermediate waters during the earliest maastrichtian oxygen and neodymium isotope data suggest a significant contribution of relatively warm intermediate water from the north pacific isotopic shifts through the early maastrichtian suggest that this warmer water mass was gradually replaced by cooler waters originating in the southern ocean although the cooler water mass remained dominant through the remainder of the maastrichtian it was displaced intermittently at shallow intermediate depths by north pacific intermediate water the globally recognized mid maastrichtian event similar to 69 ma manifested by the brief appearance of abundant inoceramid bivalves over shallow portions of shatsky rise is characterized by an abrupt increase similar to 2degrees 3degrees c in sea surface temperatures a greater flux of organic matter out of the surface ocean and warmer similar to 4degrees c intermediate waters results implicate simultaneous changes in surface waters and the sources distribution patterns of intermediate water masses as an underlying cause for widespread biotic and oceanographic changes during mid maastrichtian time

evidence for a small 0 000 030 but resolvable increase in seawater 87sr 86sr ratios across the cretaceous tertiary boundary previous studies of 87 sr 86 sr patterns across the cretaceous tertiary k t boundary have generated inconsistent results analyses of samples from ocean drilling program hole 1049c provide better taphonomic and diagenetic control than has been previously achieved and indicate 1 that there was a rapid increase of 0 000 030 in seawater 87 sr 86 sr ratios across the k t boundary 2 that post k t cretaceous foraminifera at this site are reworked and 3 that subtle diagenetic overprinting affects the basal 15 cm of the danian ooze these conclusions are consistent with the asteroid impact hypothesis reworking rather than survivorship confirms nearly complete extinction of cretaceous tethyan planktic foraminifera the 87 sr 86 sr excursion can be explained by enhanced continental weathering perhaps related to acid rain in the aftermath of the k t impact

wisconsinan stratigraphy of the cuyahoga valley in the erie basin northeastern ohio during the wisconsinan stage ice of the cuyahoga lobe flowed southward from the erie basin through a lowland created by an ancestral cuyahoga river the paleovalley of the cuyahoga river is filled with the pre woodfordian tills and lacustrine deposits the oldest till the mogadore till overlies proglacial lacustrine deposits after retreat of mogadore ice into the erie basin ice readvanced to deposit a previously unnamed till northampton till over deltaic and lacustrine deposits of lake cuyahoga northampton ice melted back into the erie basin after depositing the core of the summit county morainic complex northampton ice then readvanced over deposits of proglacial lake independence and formed the defiance moraine aside from minor leaching of carbonates and weathering of clay minerals little evidence of the farmdalian substage exists woodfordian kent lavery and hiram tills were deposited over pre woodfordian deposits the multiple nature of the pre woodfordian tills in the cuyahoga lobe is sim