Description of a contourite depositional system on the Demerara Plateau: Results from geophysical data and sediment cores

Type Article
Date 2016-08
Language English
Author(s) Tallobre Cedric1, 2, Loncke Lies1, 2, Bassetti Maria-Angela1, 2, Giresse Pierre1, 2, Bayon Germain3, Buscail Roselyne1, 2, de Madron Xavier Durrieu1, 2, Bourrin Francois1, 2, Vanhaesebroucke Marc1, 2, Sotin Christine1, 2
Affiliation(s) 1 : Univ Perpignan, Ctr Format & Rech Environm Mediterraneens CEFREM, UMR 5110, Via Domitia,52 Ave Paul Alduy, F-66860 Perpignan, France.
2 : CNRS, Ctr Format & Rech Environm Mediterraneens CEFREM, UMR 5110, 52 Ave Paul Alduy, F-66860 Perpignan, France.
3 : IFREMER, Unite Rech Geosci Marines, F-29280 Plouzane, France.
Source Marine Geology (0025-3227) (Elsevier Science Bv), 2016-08 , Vol. 378 , P. 56-73
DOI 10.1016/j.margeo.2016.01.003
WOS© Times Cited 26
Note IGUANES Scientific Party: C. Basile, S. Bermell, H. Berrenstein, C. Cathalot, J.C. Caprais, L. Droz, D. Graindorge, B. Hebert, A. Heuret, J.F. Lebrun, A. Maillard, T. Marsset, M. Mercier de Lépinay, F. Pattier, E. Poetisi, W.R. Roest, C. Sotin, and B.C. SI : The contourite log-book: significance for palaeoceanography, ecosystems and slope instability
Keyword(s) Marginal plateau, Contourite, Comet tail, Demerara Plateau
Abstract The Demerara Plateau, belonging to the passive transform margin of French Guiana, was investigated during the IGUANES cruise in 2013. The objectives of the cruise were to explore the poorly-known surficial sedimentary column overlying thick mass transport deposits as well as to understand the factors controlling recent sedimentation. The presence of numerous bedforms at the seafloor was observed thanks to newly acquired IGUANES bathymetric, high resolution seismic and chirp data, while sediment cores allowed the characterization of the deposits covering the mass transport deposits. Modern oceanographic conditions were determined in situ, using mooring monitoring over a 10-month period. Our data indicate the presence of a Contourite Depositional System along the Demerara Plateau, most likely related to bottom current activity of the North Atlantic Deep Water (NADW). However, at the regional scale, large longitudinal waves parallel the NADW flow. Their shape and orientation seem to be inherited from interactions between bottom currents and paleomorphologies expressed at the top of mass transport deposits. Their evolution is possibly driven by the intensity of bottom current activity that might have changed over time. Overall, this work presents an integrated approach combining seismic and sedimentological evidence to study the processes at the origin of contourite formation in the Demerara Plateau. Other regional factors, such as local slope values and slope instability, also control sedimentation.
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Tallobre Cedric, Loncke Lies, Bassetti Maria-Angela, Giresse Pierre, Bayon Germain, Buscail Roselyne, de Madron Xavier Durrieu, Bourrin Francois, Vanhaesebroucke Marc, Sotin Christine (2016). Description of a contourite depositional system on the Demerara Plateau: Results from geophysical data and sediment cores. Marine Geology, 378, 56-73. Publisher's official version : https://doi.org/10.1016/j.margeo.2016.01.003 , Open Access version : https://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00308/41957/