Subsea Channels and Incidence of Thermogenic Hydrocarbons in the Mid-proximal Bengal Fan, West of the Andaman-Nicobar Islands

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Mid-fan areas in the Bay of Bengal to the west of the Andaman-Nicobar Islands and to the east of the 90 E ridge display remarkable channel-levee and interlevee characteristics over the seabed. These subsea channels at 3,000 m or more water depth have specific orientations along NNE or NNW. Most of these major and minor channels are at present inactive, except one running along the eastern part of the area following the reported subduction suture (Currey et al., 1979). The other channels in the western part retain the configuration of a floor-bank combination but are covered with a thin deposition of pelagic organisms without any significant terrigenous inputs to a depth of around 25 cm below the seabed. On the other hand, the active channel to the east is filled with continuous hemipelagic to terrigenous inputs up to at least 1.5 m bsf. The pelagic organisms of the upper 25 cm of seabed over the inactive channels as well as in their banks and interlevee areas are mainly represented by foraminiferal tests and thus constitute foraminiferal ooze. Most of the seafloor is covered by such ooze except in the easternmost part, where the active channel brings a terrigenous influx in the form of turbidites. The fan deposition has been restricted to the easternmost active channel since the early Holocene. The age of the pelagites that constitute the 25-cm top sediment slice is assumed to represent about 8,000 years, calculated at the rate of deposition of 3 cm 1,000 years (Kennet, 1982). Thus, most of the western seabed has not experienced any fan deposition during the last 8,000 years. However, below 25 cm, the entire area is seen to have experienced fan deposition as evidenced by occurrence of terrigenous silt and clay. Significantly, incidence of thermogenic hydrocarbons is proved in the levee-in terlevee complexes of the central part. Being closer to the subduction zone, gas seepages through pervasive fissures are perhaps more pronounced here.