Facies clustering in deep-water successions of the Magura zone of the Outer Western Carpathians: implications for interpretation of submarine-fan environments

Abstract

Statistical analysis of facies clustering in deep-water successions in combination with their facies characteristics has been applied to interpretation of the depositional sub-environment of two selected sedimentary sequences, which expose the Upper Eocene Kýcera Member of the Zlin Formation of the Raca Unit and the Middle Eocene–Lower Oligocene Racibor Formation of the Krynica (Oravska Magura) Unit of the Magura Zone of the Outer Western Carpathians. Clustering patterns of three bed-by-bed variables, namely coarse division thickness, coarse division thickness percentages, and basal grain size were analyzed. Apart from coarse division thickness percentages of the Kýcera Member section, all the datasets passed the Hurst K test and, according to their facies characteristics, revealed the lobe-interlobe motif. Although the employment of this technique confirmed the advantages of its practical utilization in interpretation of submarine fan environments, its widespread application is limited to good exposures where adequate quantity and quality of data is available.