Abstract
The Adventure Plateau, located in the NW sector of the Sicilian Channel, experienced several episodes of exposure/erosion and subsequent drowning, with the most recent occurring after the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). Unlike other parts of the Sicilian Channel, the Adventure Plateau is relatively tectonically stable and is therefore best suitable for reconstructing its coastal configuration before the post-LGM marine transgression. Here, we use high-resolution seismic data to identify and map the palaeo-coastline at the LGM on the basis of the internal architecture of the prograding wedges (i.e., the location of the subaqueous clinoform rollover point) and the erosional markers such as the subaerial unconformities and the wave ravinement surfaces. These data, which show an extreme variability in the palaeo-morphology of the coastal margins of the Adventure Plateau, have been complemented with vintage seismic profiles in order to entirely cover its perimeter. The mapped LGM coastline has then been compared to predictions from glacial isostatic adjustment (GIA) modeling, which considers the horizontal migration of the shorelines in response to sea level rise and to Earth’s rotational and deformational effects associated with deglaciation. The two shorelines (i.e., the coastline derived from the marine data interpretation and the one derived from the GIA model) are in good agreement at 21 kyears BP, although some discrepancies occur in the southern part of the plateau, where the seabed slope is extremely gentle, which makes the clinoform rollover points and the buried erosional unconformities difficult to detect. After 20 kyears BP, an acceleration in the rate of the sea level rise occurred. The results of this study indicate the importance of comparing experimental data with model predictions in order to refine and calibrate boundary parameters and to gain a better picture of the evolution of sea level rise over various time scales.
Highlights
Introduction iationsThe Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), defined as the most recent time period when the continental ice sheets reached their maximum total mass, coincided with a global sea level minimum
In marine sectors where high-resolution seismic and bathymetric data have sufficient areal coverage and where it is possible to correlate similar morphological and geometric elements linked to the LGM sea level lowstand, the trend of the palaeo-coastlines can be confidently traced
From this point of view, the Adventure Plateau is a good candidate for the following reasons: (i) a series of high-resolution marine data that cross most of the plateau’s perimeter are available; (ii) the area has not been subjected, at least throughout the Quaternary, to tectonic uplift or subsidence, which considerably complicate the identification on the profiles of the palaeo-coastline morphological markers and introduce significant errors in the reconstructions; and (iii) the edges of the Adventure Plateau are characterized by a morphological variability, with slopes ranging from
Summary
Setting the Adventure data, is compared with the palaeo-shoreline derived from the glacial isostatic adjustment. ~8000 km Adventure Plateau, located in the northwestern part of depths the Sicilian km, is similar to that known for the other shallow areas of the Sicilian Channel, as it Channel, is morphologically and structurally limited by regions where water depthsisexpart250 of the is composed of Sicily a Triassic–Eocene predominantly ceed m. This sector of the Sicilian Channel is affected by the Capo Granitola and Sciacca fault systems, which are part of a lithospheric-scale strike-slip fault zone running roughly N–S and crossing most of the Sicilian Channel [26–28] This structure does not significantly influence the tectonic context of the study area since it is located about 20 km to the east of the margin of the Adventure Plateau on which we have concentrated our analyses
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
