Methodology and Paleogeographic Interpretation of Flysch Formations: A Summary of Studies in the Maritime Alps

Abstract

Reconstructing the paleogeography of flysch basins necessitates well-planned data collection programs from the start. It is recommended that information, collected conjointly in field and laboratory investigations, be recorded in a systematic manner with an eventual electronic computer program in view. Data should be easily translated into machine code for rapid selection, sequencing, grouping, calculation, and even automatic plotting on base maps. The recognition and delimitation of lateral facies variability patterns, more readily visualized when the processed data are presented in the form of isopachous, paleocurrent, and lithofacies maps, are the essential steps in interpreting conditions under which flysch sediments accumulated in basins. The results of megascopic and microscopic investigations of the Annot Sandstone flysch in the French and Italian Maritime Alps are highlighted, and solutions to both general and specific paleogeographic problems are illustrated.