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Nile floods recorded in deep Mediterranean sediments

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 January 2017

Emmanuelle Ducassou ,
Thierry Mulder ,
Sébastien Migeon ,
Eliane Gonthier ,
Anne Murat ,
Marie Revel ,
Lucilla Capotondi ,
Stefano M. Bernasconi ,
Jean Mascle  and
Sébastien Zaragosi
Emmanuelle Ducassou*
Affiliation:
Université Bordeaux 1, UMR EPOC, avenue des facultés, 33405 Talence, France
Thierry Mulder
Affiliation:
Université Bordeaux 1, UMR EPOC, avenue des facultés, 33405 Talence, France
Sébastien Migeon
Affiliation:
Géosciences-Azur, BP48, 06235 Villefranche-sur-Mer, France
Eliane Gonthier
Affiliation:
Université Bordeaux 1, UMR EPOC, avenue des facultés, 33405 Talence, France
Anne Murat
Affiliation:
Cnam-Intechmer, BP324, 50103 Cherbourg, France
Marie Revel
Affiliation:
Géosciences-Azur, BP48, 06235 Villefranche-sur-Mer, France
Lucilla Capotondi
Affiliation:
ISMAR – Marine Geology Section CNR, via Gobetti 101, 40129 Bologna, Italy
Stefano M. Bernasconi
Affiliation:
ETH Zurich, Geologisches Institut, 8092 Zuerich, Switzerland
Jean Mascle
Affiliation:
Géosciences-Azur, BP48, 06235 Villefranche-sur-Mer, France
Sébastien Zaragosi
Affiliation:
Université Bordeaux 1, UMR EPOC, avenue des facultés, 33405 Talence, France
*
*Corresponding author. Fax: +33 5 56 84 08 48. E-mail address:e.ducassou@epoc.u-bordeaux1.fr (E. Ducassou).
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Abstract

Clastic mud beds rich in continental organic matter are observed recurrently in the Nile deep-sea turbidite system. They formed during flooding periods of the river similar to those that induce sapropel formation and occurred during periods of increased density stratification of the eastern Mediterranean. The very fine-grained flood deposits are intercalated within pelagic sediments, sapropels and Bouma-type turbidites. These flood deposits form by the successive reconcentrations of surface (hypopycnal) plumes by convective sedimentation, which in turn generate a fine-grained low-energy hyperpycnal flow. Sea-level high stands seem also to favor hypopycnal plume formation and increase clastic mud bed formation. Consequently, these muddy clastic beds provide a direct link between deep-marine sedimentary records and continental climatic change through flood frequency and magnitude.

Keywords

Eastern MediterraneanFlood-related depositsConvective sedimentationPluvial periodsSapropelsNile floods
Type
Original Articles
Information
Quaternary Research , Volume 70 , Issue 3 , November 2008 , pp. 382 - 391
Copyright
University of Washington

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