Deep-sea tsunami deposits in the Proto-Caribbean Sea at the Cretaceous/Tertiary boundary
Goto, K.; Tada, R.; Tajika, E.; Matsui, T. (2008). Deep-sea tsunami deposits in the Proto-Caribbean Sea at the Cretaceous/Tertiary boundary, in: Shiki, T. et al. (Ed.) Tsunamiites: features and implications. pp. 251-275
In: Shiki, T. et al. (2008). Tsunamiites: Features and implications. Elsevier: Amsterdam. ISBN 978-0-444-51552-0. xiii, 411 pp., more
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| Keywords |
Impacts
Water waves > Surface water waves > Tsunamis
ASW, Caribbean [Marine Regions]
Marine/Coastal |
| Author keywords |
K/T-impact, Tsunamiite, Crater-induced tsunami, Proto-Caribbean Sea |
| Authors | | Top |
- Goto, K.
- Tada, R.
- Tajika, E.
- Matsui, T.
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| Abstract |
The lithology and the sedimentary mechanisms of Cretaceous/Tertiary (K/T)-boundary deposits in the proto-Caribbean Sea, including the Pen˜alver, the Cacarajı´cara and the Moncada Formations in north-western to western Cuba, and at Deep Sea Drilling Project (DSDP) sites 536 and 540, are summarized here to investigate the differences in influence of the K/T tsunami resulting from the depositional depth and setting around the proto-Caribbean Sea. The Pen˜alver Formation accumulated on the north-western slope of the Cretaceous Cuban arc. The lower part of the Formation is composed of calcirudites containing grains derived from a shallow platform developed on the Cuban volcanic arc, and is considered to have been deposited by debris flows triggered by the Chicxulub impact seismic wave. The upper part is composed of calcarenites to calcilutites containing grains derived from hemipelagic to pelagic sediments, and is interpreted to have formed under the influence of the tsunami, based on its upward fining, the regional homogeneity of source materials of pelagic to hemipelagic origin and the occurrence of allochthonous materials. Sedimentary structures indicative of current influence increase in number with decreasing estimated depositional depth of the Pen˜alver Formation, which can be interpreted as a decrease of the tsunami effect with increasing depth. A similar trend is known from other K/T-boundary deep-sea tsunami deposits around the proto-Caribbean Sea. Paleocurrent analyses of the Pen˜alver and the Moncada Formations in western Cuba indicate a first crater-ward-directed tsunami wave in the proto-Caribbean Sea, suggesting that the tsunami was formed by ocean water that first filled and then flowed out of the crater depression. Evidence of ocean water invading the crater immediately after the impact further supports this hypothesis. |
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