Herman A. Karl

Development of large submarine canyons in the Bering Sea, indicated by morphologic, seismic, and sedimentologic characteristics

Seven large submarine canyons cut the Beringian continental margin. Three of these are among the world9s largest submarine canyons. Bering is 400 km long, Navarinsky and Zhemchug are each 100 km wide at the shelf break, and volumes of sediment removed from these three canyons range from 4,300 to 5,800 km 3 an order of magnitude larger than any submarine canyons incised in the margin of the lower 48 states. Two major events set the stage for the development of the Beringian margin and the dissection of these canyons: (1) the jump of the subduction zone to the Aleutian trench in Late Cretaceous-early Tertiary time that changed the margin from active to passive and (2) the low stands of sea level during the Cenozoic glacial stages. The position and configuration of these canyons have been determined, or strongly influenced, by structural features of the margin. Some of the Beringian canyon systems appear to occupy continental-margin embayments, perhaps residual structural configurations inherited from the time of subduction. The principal mechanisms responsible for cutting and shaping the canyons are extensive slumps and slides that carried large volumes of continental-margin sediment to the base of the slope. Second in importance are sediment gravity flows (debris flows, mud flows, and turbidity currents) that eroded and transported shelf and slope sediment to the rise and far into the Aleutian basin, contributing significantly to the 4- to 11-km-thick rise wedge and >2-km-thick sedimentary sequence of the basin floor.

Internal-wave currents as a mechanism to account for large sand waves in Navarinsky Canyon head, Bering Sea

ABSTRACT Sand waves are found in the heads of four of five large submarine canyons that incise the northern continental margin of the Bering Sea. The sand waves occur in a restricted depth zone of about 175-490 m. Those in Navarinsky Canyon, the area surveyed in most detail, are best developed in water depths of 300-375 m; they average 5 m in height and about 650 m in wavelength, with crests oriented subparallel to isobaths and almost perpendicular to the axes of the two main branches of the canyon. We speculate that internal-wave currents are responsible for the sand waves. Currents generated by internal waves are a particularly attractive mechanism for at least three reasons: 1) the energy of the internal waves could be amplified in the head of Navarinsky Canyon, especially in the area of the sand wave field; 2) upslope boundary-layer intensification of internal-wave currents might be sufficient to move the sediment composing the sand waves; and 3) the wavelengths of higher-frequency internal waves closely match the spacing of the sand waves. Although we based our assumptions on present-day conditions, we do not know if the sand waves are active. Consequently, we do not discount the possibility that the sand waves could have originated in the Pleistocene when Navarinsky Canyon headed in a shallow embayment that was receiving large quantities of sediment discharged by glacial meltwater streams. These conditions probably caused strong vertical density gradients in the coastal waters, which would have been more favorable than those today for the propagation of high-frequency internal waves.

Bottom Currents And Sediment Transport on San Pedro Shelf, California

ABSTRACT GEOPROBE (Geological Processes Bottom Environmental) tripods were used to measure bottom currents, pressure, and light transmission and scattering and to obtain time-series photographs of the sea floor at depths of 23 m and 67 m on San Pedro shelf between 18 April and 6 June 1978. Winds were light (< 5 m/s) with a mean direction from the southwest throughout the measurement period. Hourly averaged currents 1 m above the bottom never exceeded 21 cm/s; average speeds were about 5 cm/s at the 23-m site and 6.8 cm/s at 67 m, and the strongest currents were produced by the tides. The mean flow of bottom water was less than 3 cm/s at both GEOPROBES and was rather persistently southward (offshelf). Wave-generated bottom currents and bottom-pressure variations were sampled at hourly intervals; average wave period and wave height were 12.8 s and 0.44 m, respectively, at the 23-m site. Wave orbital velocities ranged from about 5 to 30 cm/s at 23 m and from 2 to 8 cm/s at 67 m. Bottom photographs at 67 m show that the relatively sluggish tide-generated and mean currents were below threshold velocity for the silty, very fine sand throughout the observational period. Threshold depth for wave rippling of very fine sand averaged about 28 m with a range from about 12 m to 50 m. Wave-generated currents were the only currents that exceeded threshold levels. The wave currents maintained relatively high concentrations of sediment in suspension near the bottom over the inner shelf (< 25 m), and this material (principally silt and clay) was transported offshore by the weak mean flow. Approximately 50% of this material was deposited as the bottom orbital velocities decreased to subthreshold values ( 10-15 cm/s). The o served movement of fine sediment across the inner shelf can account for a portion of the mud content of the modern silty sands on the central shelf and on the outer shelf. However, it is clear that the sand fractions, which constitute greater than 70% of the central shelf substrate, must be transported during high-energy winter storms.

Speculations on processes responsible for mesoscale current lineations on the continental shelf, southern California

Abstract A side-scan sonar survey of San Pedro shelf, California, reveals areas of mesoscale current lineations oriented approximately north-northeast in water depths of 20–25 m. Widths of sand ribbons range from 40 to 120 m and intervening erosional furrows, from 15 to 50 m. A conceptual model shows that the scale and orientation of current lineations agree with the dimensions and axial directions of Langmuir circulations theoretically generated by a combination either of southerly and southwesterly winds with regular trains of swell from the southern hemisphere or of two sets of wave trains crossing from the south and west. These longitudinal bedforms indicate shore-normal sediment transport at the times and on the areas of the shelf when and where they have been observed.

Seismic and Geochemical Evidence for Shallow Gas in Sediment on Navarin Continental Margin, Bering Sea

Marine seismic studies coupled with geochemical investigations demonstrate that hydrocarbon gases are ubiquitous in the near-surface (<= 250 m or 820 ft depth) sediment of the Navarin continental margin in the northern Bering Sea. Three types of acoustic anomalies appear to be related to the presence of gas in the sediment. These anomalies are most prevalent in the northern half of the Navarin basin. Acoustic anomalies attributed to gas hydrates and to diagenetic boundaries are present on seismic records of the lower slope between Navarinsky and Zhemchug Canyons. Hydrocarbon gases, methane through butanes, are common in the surface (<= 5 m or 17 ft depth) sediment of the Navarin continental margin. Methane, the most abundant hydrocarbon gas, is present in amounts ranging from 84,000 to 1 µL/L of wet sediment. These concentrations are two to three orders of magnitude greater than the other hydrocarbon gases. The highest concentrations of methane (greater than 1,000 µL/L) were measured in sediment of Navarinsky Canyon and over the central part of the Navarin basin. The source of methane is mainly biogenic, but the hydrocarbon gas compositions in 17 of 141 cores suggest the presence of thermogenic gas. Most of these 17 cores are from the continental slope at water depths greater than 150 m (490 ft). No direct correlation could be found between acoustic anomalies and gas concentrations in the sediment. This lack of correlation is probably due to the limited penetration of the gravity corer and the spotty distribution of hydrocarbon concentrations.

Chemical gradients in sediment cores from an EPA reference site off the Farallon Islands : Assessing chemical indicators of dredged material disposal in the deep sea

Heavy metal and organic contaminants have been determined in undisturbed sediment cores from the US Environmental Protection Agency reference site for dredged material on the continental slope off San Francisco. As expected, the concentrations are significantly lower than toxic effects guidelines, but concentrations of PCBs, PAHs, Hg, Pb, and Clostridium perfringens (a bacterium spore found in sewage) were nearly two or more times greater in the surface sediments than in intervals deeper in the cores. These observations indicate the usefulness of measuring concentration gradients in sediments at the San Francisco deep ocean disposal site (SF-DODS) where a thin (0.5 cm thick) layer of dredged material has been observed beyond the boundary. This thin layer has not been chemically characterized by the common practice of homogenizing over the top 10 cm. An estimated 300 million cubic yards of dredged material from San Francisco Bay are expected to be discharged at the SF-DODS site during the next 50 years. Detailed depth analysis of sediment cores would add significant new information about the fate and effects of dredged material in the deep sea.

Shallow subsurface geology of the continental shelf, Gulf of the Farallones, California, and its relationship to surficial seafloor characteristics

Abstract The Gulf of the Farallones is located on a continental margin that is tectonically active and has experienced eustatic fluctuations of sea level throughout the Quaternary. Bathymetry of the Gulf suggests that it is different from the average continental shelf off California in that instead of a seafloor that slopes gently seaward from the shoreline to the shelf edge (dominantly west to southwest), much of the Gulf shelf slopes to the northwest, a direction that is subparallel to that of the adjacent mainland shoreline. Isobaths are oblique to shore-normal for much of the Gulf shelf as opposed to the more typical shore-parallel isobaths. This northwest trend is parallel to that of the offshore granitic outcrops, the Farallon Island ridge and Cordell Bank. 3.5 kHz shallow subsurface profiles show a regional unconformity (basal unconformity of this study) that truncates bedrock and typically is overlain by a very thin veneer (1–2 m or less) of acoustically transparent unconsolidated sediment. In places, the basal unconformity appears to be coincident with the seafloor. Where the basal unconformity is within 1–2 m of the seafloor, side-scan sonar reveals that either bedrock pierces the seafloor or numerous linear depressions dissect the shelf seafloor. Side-scan sonar shows that the central part of the study area is characterized by numerous linear depressions that are on the order of 1–3 m deep, several meters to 5 km in length, and from 250 m to 2 km in width. The only Holocene unconsolidated sediment in excess of 1–2 m that has accumulated on the Gulf shelf is located where the bedrock surface is topographically depressed. The topographic lows are situated south of the Point Reyes headland and southwest of the Golden Gate. The sediment deposits that overlie these lows attain thicknesses up to 15–20 m; however, their average thickness is less than 10 m. Structure contours on the basal unconformity surface, essentially the top of the bedrock platform, also show that it is topographically high at its southern end and low at its northern end; the slope of the platform is therefore to the northwest. The seafloor mimics the attitude of the bedrock platform owing to the lack of appreciable sediment cover and hence also slopes northwest. This accounts for the oblique to shore-normal orientation of isobaths in the Gulf and the northwestward slope of the seafloor. The results of this investigation suggest that eustatic sea level fluctuations in conjunction with local tectonics had a profound effect on the deposition, erosion, and preservation of sediment on the Gulf shelf throughout the Quaternary and that the shallow subsurface greatly influences many aspects of the present surficial morphology.

Discovery of two new large submarine canyons in the Bering Sea

Abstract The Beringian continental margin is incised by some of the worlds largest submarine canyons. Two newly discovered canyons, St. Matthew and Middle, are hereby added to the roster of Bering Sea canyons. Although these canyons are smaller and not cut back into the Bering shelf like the five very large canyons, they are nonetheless comparable in size to most of the canyons that have been cut into the U.S. eastern continental margin and much larger than the well-known southern California canyons. Both igneous and sedimentary rocks of Eocene to Pliocene age have been dredged from the walls of St. Matthew and Middle Canyons as well as from the walls of several of the other Beringian margin canyons, thus suggesting a late Tertiary to Quaternary genesis of the canyons. We speculate that the ancestral Yukon and possibly Anadyr Rivers were instrumental in initiating the canyon-cutting processes, but that, due to restrictions imposed by island and subsea bedrock barriers, cutting of the two newly discovered canyons may have begun later and been slower than for the other five canyons.

Large sand waves in Navarinsky Canyon head, Bering Sea

Sand waves are present in the heads of large submarine canyons in the northwestern Bering Sea. They vary in height between 2 to 15 m and have wavelengths of 600 m. They are not only expressed on the seafloor, but are also well defined in the subsurface and resemble enormous climbing bed forms. We conjecture that the sand waves originated during lower stands of sea level in the Pleistocene. Although we cannot explain the mechanics of formation of the sand waves, internal-wave generated currents are among four types of current that could account for these large structures.

Sea-floor drainage features of Cascadia Basin and the adjacent continental slope, northeast Pacific Ocean

Abstract Sea-floor drainage features of Cascadia Basin and the adjacent continental slope include canyons, primary fan valleys, deep-sea valleys, and remnant valley segments. Long-range sidescan sonographs and associated seismic-reflection profiles indicate that the canyons may originate along a mid-slope escarpment and grow upslope by mass wasting and downslope by valley erosion or aggradation. Most canyons are partly filled with sediment, and Quillayute Canyon is almost completely filled. Under normal growth conditions, the larger canyons connect with primary fan valleys or deep-sea valleys in Cascadia Basin, but development of accretionary ridges blocks or re-routes most canyons, forcing abandonment of the associated valleys in the basin. Astoria Fan has a primary fan valley that connects with Astoria Canyon at the fan apex. The fan valley is bordered by parallel levees on the upper fan but becomes obscure on the lower fan, where a few valley segments appear on the sonographs. Apparently, Nitinat Fan does not presently have a primary fan valley; none of the numerous valleys on the fan connect with a canyon. The Willapa—Cascadia—Vancouver—Juan de Fuca deep-sea valley system bypasses the submarine fans and includes deeply incised valleys to broad shallow swales, as well as within-valley terraces and hanging-valley confluences.