Submarine canyons of the continental margin, east Bass Strait (Australia)

Conolly, John R.

doi:10.1016/0025-3227(68)90026-1

Cited by 20 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 5 publications

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“…The few examples of sub‐Recent to Present submarine canyons in non‐tropical ramps described until now are all southern Australian basins (Leach & Wallace, 2001; Mitchell et al. , 2007a); the most representative example is the Bass Canyon (Pliocene to Recent) (Conolly, 1968; Mitchell et al. , 2007b).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sedimentary processes in a submarine canyon excavated into a temperate‐carbonate ramp (Granada Basin, southern Spain)

Puga‐Bernabéu¹,

Martín²,

Braga³

2008

Sedimentology

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During the Late Tortonian, shallow‐water temperate carbonates were deposited in a small bay on a gentle ramp linked to a small island (Alhama de Granada area, Granada Basin, southern Spain). A submarine canyon (the ‘Alhama Submarine Canyon’) developed close to the shoreline, cross‐cutting the temperate‐carbonate ramp. The Alhama Submarine Canyon had an irregular profile and steep slopes (10° to 30°). It was excavated in two phases reflected by two major erosion surfaces, the lowermost of which was incised at least 50 m into the ramp. Wedge‐shaped and trough‐shaped, concave‐up beds of calcareous (terrigenous) deposits overlie these erosional surfaces and filled the canyon. A combination of processes connected to sea‐level changes is proposed to explain the evolution of the Alhama Submarine Canyon. During sea‐level fall, part of the carbonate ramp became exposed and a river valley was excavated. As sea‐level rose, river flows continued along the submerged, former river‐channel, eroding and deepening the valley and creating a submarine canyon. At this stage, only some of the transported conglomerates were deposited locally. As sea‐level continued to rise, the river mouth became detached from the canyon head; littoral sediments, transported by longshore and storm currents, were now captured inside the canyon, generating erosive flows that contributed to its excavation. Most of the canyon infilling took place later, during sea‐level highstand. Longshore‐transported well‐sorted calcarenites/fine‐grained calcirudites derived from longshore‐drift sandwaves poured into and fed the canyon from the south. Coarse‐grained, bioclastic calcirudites derived from a poorly sorted, bioclastic ‘factory facies’ cascaded into the canyon from the north during storms.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sedimentary processes in a submarine canyon excavated into a temperate‐carbonate ramp (Granada Basin, southern Spain)

Puga‐Bernabéu¹,

Martín²,

Braga³

2008

Sedimentology

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“…Shepard (1981) speculated that modern submarine canyons were likely to be the product of a number of processes and, of more importance, he suggested that the long-time persistence of such processes was of great importance in canyon formation. Major canyon structures in the carbonate Seaspray Group first develop during the Oligocene (Conolly 1968) and Middle Miocene (Maung & Cadman 1992;Bernecker et al 1997;Feary & Loutit 1998;Holdgate et al 2000). Yet, it has been suggested that the Bass Canyon (sensu stricto) may have structural origins that relate to the breakup of Gondwana, where it may have acted as a conduit for clastic sediments in the Late Cretaceous (Hill et al 1998 slope-confined canyons, may span considerable lengths of time in the geological record, responding to, and preserving, long-term oceanographic conditions.…”

Section: Pleistocene and Holocene Sedimentation Ratesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The Bass Canyon and its largest tributary, the Everard Canyon, were first described by Conolly (1968) using soundings from the Royal Australian Navy Hydrographic Office. Facies distribution maps of the surficial sediments of the Gippsland and surrounding shelves were produced by Davies and Marshall (1973), Jones et al (1975), Davies (1979), Jones and Davies (1983) and Smith et al (2001).…”

Section: Previous Workmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Modern submarine canyons are common on the continental slope across southern Australia (von der Borch 1968;Exon et al 2005). The most prominent of these are the Albany Canyons , the Murray Canyons (Sprigg 1947;Hill & De Deckker 2004;Hill et al 2005), the Glenelg Canyons (Leach & Wallace 2001) and the Gippsland Basin canyons (Conolly 1968). The Bass Canyon of the Gippsland Basin is arguably the largest and most spectacular of these modern canyon systems.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Ancient (infilled) canyons are considerably less well documented, and as such, surprisingly little is known about their evolution and significance on palaeo-continental margins (Leach & Wallace 2001;Bertoni & Cartwright 2005). Seismic profiles of the offshore Gippsland Basin reveal complex canyon-fill structures from the Early Oligocene (Conolly 1968;Maung & Cadman 1992;Holdgate et al 2000;Wallace et al 2002), and show evidence that the geometry and size of the modern-day Bass Canyon system are influenced at least partially by precursor Pliocene canyon systems. The Glenelg Canyons also have a geological record which extends back into the Oligocene (Leach & Wallace 2001), while Hill et al (1998Hill et al ( , 2005 and Exon et al (2005) have suggested histories for the Bass, Murray and Albany Canyons that may extend back to Cretaceous continental breakup.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Pliocene – Pleistocene history of the Gippsland Basin outer shelf and canyon heads, southeast Australia

Mitchell

Holdgate

Wallace

2007

Australian Journal of Earth Sciences

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The Gippsland Basin on Australia's southeastern continental margin is host to a number of large shelfbreaching canyons that form part of the Bass Canyon system. Analysis of high-resolution bathymetry data and biostratigraphically controlled shallow seismic data across the shelf and upper slope and associated canyon heads shows that widespread erosion at the canyon heads began in the earliest Pleistocene (CN13a, 1.95 -1.72 Ma). Deep V-shaped channels were eroded into pre-existing U-shaped channels. Erosion was not necessarily a response to Pleistocene lowstands but followed a period where (carbonate) sedimentation rates on the shelf were greatly elevated. Both carbonate production and erosion were likely to be amplified, if not caused, by intensification of the Bass Cascade density current during Late Pliocene eustatic highstands. During the Middle Pleistocene (CN14a, 0.95 -0.47 Ma) outer shelf canyon-head channels were rapidly infilled. Canyon-head channels migrated laterally across the shelf, predominantly in a northeast direction, influenced by the prevailing northeast moving Bass Cascade. Upper slope canyon heads have remained largely non-depositional exposing Pliocene strata at the seafloor. A minor episode of deformation occurred during the Middle Pliocene (CN12, 3.70 -1.95 Ma) that produced low-amplitude open folds in Upper Pliocene and older sediments, beneath the northern inner shelf. Beneath the central inner shelf and middle shelf, similar open folds developed during the Late Pliocene to at least the Middle Pleistocene (CN13 -CN14a, 1.95 -0.47 Ma).

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The South Australian Continental Margin and the Australian-Antarctic Sector of the Southern Ocean

Williams

Corliss

1982

The Ocean Basins and Margins

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Submarine canyons of the continental margin, east Bass Strait (Australia)

Cited by 20 publications

References 5 publications

Sedimentary processes in a submarine canyon excavated into a temperate‐carbonate ramp (Granada Basin, southern Spain)

Sedimentary processes in a submarine canyon excavated into a temperate‐carbonate ramp (Granada Basin, southern Spain)

Pliocene – Pleistocene history of the Gippsland Basin outer shelf and canyon heads, southeast Australia

The South Australian Continental Margin and the Australian-Antarctic Sector of the Southern Ocean

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