Abstract
margin stratigraphy. CONTINENTAL MARGINS are complex regions of the Earth, because they are the interface between terrestrial and marine environments. Many natural processes occurring on land or in the ocean combine to influence continental margins. Commonly, these processes are accentuated on margins; for example: fluvial discharge reaches its maximum at river mouths: many physical oceanographic processes (e.g., tides, surface gravity waves) are intensified by shal lowing water depths. Consequently, the processes affecting the fate of sedimentary particles are diverse and energetic, and superposition (often with nonlinear coupl ing) of relevant processes makes stratigraphic investigation difficult. However, such investigation is worth the effort, because the record of processes operating on continental margins is frequently preserved in the strata formed at the seabed. Therefore the history for many of the events influencing the Earth (both on land and in the ocean) can be unraveled by carefully docul-aenting and accurately interpreting sedimentary strata on continental margins. Accomplishing this for two distinctly different study areas--northern California and New Jersey-is a general goal of the STRATAFORM program. STRATA FORmation on Margins (STRATAFORM) was initiated in 1994 by the Office of Naval Research (Marine Geology and Geophysics) as a coordinated multi-investigator study of cont inental-margin stratigraphy, As stated above, a goal of the program is better inteq~retalion of the high-resolut ion sedimentary record preserved on shelves and slopes. Another general goal is better prediction of strata, in space and
Highlights
continental-margin stratigraphy is best studied from a holistic perspective
An especially important cross-cutting group is responsible for a long-term observation effort in northern California, which will provide continuous physical and sedimentological data over a 5-y period from both the continental shelf and slope
The conditions found on the northern California margin are ideal for causing large-scale slope failure and mass movement (Pratson et al, 1996, this issue)
Summary
The layering of sediment on continental margins (i.e., stratigraphy) has been studied in numerous ways. One common approach is for marine geologists to measure active processes (e.g., bottom shear stresses, benthic biological mixing, sediment accumulation rates) and relate them to strata being created Another approach is for marine geophysicists to document stratigraphic relationships through seismic records, and from these to interpret the histow of formative processes. Different processes are dominant on different portions of the shelf and slope, allowing a range of stratigraphic signatures to be investigated Superposition of these signatures through geological time creates the stratigraphic record, which is documented by the seismic tools with progressively greater penetration. Additional, but lesser, effort is given to adjacent environments landward (fluvial to inner shelf) and seaward (lower slope) To investigate these regions effectively, the STRATAFORM program has >30 principal investigators. These scientists have been organized into three primary projects, as described below
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