The Geology of Continental Margins THE GEOLOGY OF CONTINENTAL MARGINS edited by Creighton A. Burk and Charles L. Drake Springer Science+Business Media, LLC Creighton A. Burk Charles L. Drake Chief Geologist Professor of Earth Sciences Mobil Oii Corporation Dartmouth College Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data Burk, Creighton A. The Geology of Continental Margins. 1. Continental margins. 2. Submarine geology. 1. Drake, Charles L., 1924- joint author. II. Title. QE39.B85 551.4'608 74-16250 All rights reserved No part of this book may be translated or reproduced in any form without written permission from Springer-Verlag. © 1974 Springer Science+Business Media New York Originally published by Springer-Verlag New York Inc in 1974 Softcover reprint of the hardcover lst edition 1974 Additional material to this book can be downloaded from http://extras.springer.com. ISBN 978-3-662-01143-0 ISBN 978-3-662-01141-6 (eBook) DOI 10.1007/978-3-662-01141-6 Preface The continental margins of the world constitute the most impressive and largest physiographic feature of the earth's surface, and one of fundamentally great geological significance. Continental margins have been the subject of increasing attention in recent years, an interest focused by a body of new data that has provided new insights into their character. This interest was further stimulated by the realization that, in addition to the abundant living resources, continental margins contain petroleum and mineral resources that are accessible with existing technology. This realization, along with their basic geological importance, has provoked further research into the nature of continental margins throughout the world. A summary of these findings, as related to both recent and ancient continental margins, is the subject of this book. At various times in the past we had been approached individually to prepare a basic reference to continental margins; we then proposed to do such a volume jointly. However, the stimulus for the present volume eventually arose from a Penrose Conference arranged through the Geological Society of America. This conference was attended by specialists of numerous disciplines and from throughout the world, many of whom insisted that such a volume would be both timely and useful. Consequently, we agreed to undertake the task of assembling this book, with the objectives of making it available as soon and as inexpensively as possible. The volume received further impetus from the International Geodynamics Project. The U.S. Program noted that "a fundamental step at the outset of the Geodynamics Project is the preparation of syntheses designed with a view to their bearing on important problems of geodynamics." In view of the importance of continental margins to geodynamics, we expect that this volume contributes to this goal. The objectives of this volume are to provide an overall view of our present state of knowledge of all aspects of continental margins throughout the world, both modern and ancient. We hope that this will be a valuable reference for the researcher, economic explorer, teacher, student, and all others interested in continental margins and their diverse geological aspects, and that it will help guide future research and exploration. All contributors have been invited (some have been blackmailed or threatened). We have acted as sole editors and reviewers, and consequently must accept full responsibility for important contributions omitted and for any significant errors included. All contributors were encouraged to include important references in the bibliographies, whether cited or not. We hope that this will be an added contribution. During the final stages of editing, we were notified of the death of Maurice Ewing, one of whose last papers appears in the volume, The study of continental margins owes a great debt to Maurice. His interest goes back to the early 1930s when he carried out the first of a series of investigations entitled, "Geophysical Investigations on the Emerged and Submerged Atlantic Coastal Plain." These studies led to cooperative programs on many other margins of the world, including Argentina, Brazil, Japan, Canada, South Africa, Antarctica, Norway, the Caribbean and Mediterranean seas and elsewhere. Prof. Ewing was also instrumental in developing or modifying many geological and geophysical techniques. His drive and abilities made him a leader in this and other fields. He will be sorely missed. We are particularly grateful to all of the contributors for the rapid response to short deadlines that made it possible for this volume to be produced so quickly. A debt of gratitude is owed to Mobil Oil Corporation, particularly to John D. Moody, for encouragement and support during the inception and editorial stages. The cover was conceived and designed by Yvonne T. Burk. We are pleased to acknowledge particularly the patience and unstinting efforts of the charming and almost vice-free Carol L. Thompson, without which this book would still be in rough draft. C. A. Burk Princeton, New Jersey C. L. Drake August 1974 Hanover, New Hampshire v Publisher's Note Based on the advice of the Editors, an index has not been included in this volume. The reader should be able to locate specific information by using the detailed Table of Contents and well-designed chapter subdivisions. Contributors John W. Antoine, Decca Survey Systems, Inc., 8204 Westglen Drive, Houston, Texas 77042 F. Aubertin, Compagnie Francais du Petrole, 5 Rue Michel-Ange, Paris, France Jean-Marie Auzende, Centre Oceanologique de Bretagne, Boite Postale 337, 29.273 Brest Cedex, France Muawia Barazangi, Cornell University, Department of Geological Sciences, Ithaca, New York 14850 Felix P. Bentz, Mobil Oil Corporation-MEPSI, P .0. Box 900, Dallas, Texas 75221 Wolfgang H. Berger, University of California, San Diego, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, Geological Research Division, P.O. Box 1529, La Jolla, California 92037 B. Biju-Duval, Institut Francais du Petrole, 1 et 4, Avenue de Bois-Preau, 92-Rueil-Malmaison, Paris, France M. Clark Blake, Jr., U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Geological Survey, Geologic Division, Branch of Western Environmental Geology, 345 Middlefield Road, Menlo Park, California 94025 William R. Bryant, Texas A & M University, Oceanographic Department, College Station, Texas 77843 Creighton A. Burk, Mobil Oil Corporation, 221 Nassau Street, Princeton, New Jersey 08540 Carlos W. M. Campos, Petroleo Brasileiro S. A., Caixa Postal 809 XZ-00, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil M. J. Carr, Dartmouth College, Department of Earth Sciences, Hanover, New Hampshire 03755 James E. Case, U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Geological Survey, Office of Marine Geology, P.O. Box 6732, Corpus Christi, Texas 78411 Hans Closs, Bundesanstalf fur Bodenforschung, 3 Hannover, Postfach 230153, Federal Republic of Germany Robert G. Coleman, Branch of Field Chemistry and Petrology, U.S. Geological Survey, Geologic Division, 345 Middlefield Road, Menlo Park, California 94025 P. Courrier, Societe ELF pour la Recherche et !'Exploitation des Hydrocarbures, 7, Rue Nelaton, Paris, France Michael J. Cruickshank, U.S. Geological Survey, Conservation Division, 345 Middlefield Road, Menlo Park, California 94025 Joseph R. Curray, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, Geologic Research Division, P.O. Box 109, La Jolla, California 92037 Ian W. D. Dalziel, Columbia University, Department of Geology, New York, New York 10027 Jean-Raymond Delteil, ELF-ERAP, 7, Rue Nelaton, Paris, France John F. Dewey, State University of New York at Albany, Department of Geology, 1400 Washington Avenue, Albany, New York 12203 Charles L. Drake, Dartmouth College, Department of Earth Sciences, Hanover, New Hampshire 03755 Edgar S. Driver, Gulf Research and Development Center, Gulf Building, P.O. Drawer 2138, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15230 vii viii Contributors Kenneth J. Drummond, Mobil Oil Corporation, 221 Nassau Street, Princeton, New Jersey 08540 J. Dubois, Office de la Recherche Scientifique et Technique Outre-Mer, Centre de Noumea, Boite Postale 4, Noumea, New Caledonia N. Terence Edgar, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, Deep Sea Drilling Project, P.O. Box 1529, La Jolla, California 92037 Olaf Eldholm, University of Oslo, Department of Geology, Oslo, Norway W. Gary Ernst, University of California, Department of Geology, Institute of Geophysics and Planetary Physics, Los Angeles, California 90024 Maurice Ewing [deceased), Earth and Planetary Sciences Division, Marine Biomedical, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, Texas 77550 Robert L. Fisher, University of California, San Diego, Geologic Research Division, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, P.O. Box 109, La Jolla, California 92037 Roger Flood, Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139 Catherine Fondeur, Institut Francais du Petrole, 1 et 4, Avenue de Bois-Preau, 92-Rueil-Malmaison, Paris, France Gerald A. Fowler, University of Wisconsin, Parkside, Division of Science, Kenosha, Wisconsin 53140 S. C. Garde, National Geophysical Research Institute, Hyderabad-500007 [A.P.), India Robert N. Ginsburg, Comparative Sedimentology Laboratory, Division of Marine Geology and Geophysics, Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science, University of Miami, Fisher Island, Miami Beach, Florida 33139 Alan M. Goodwin, University of Toronto, Precambrian Research Group, Toronto 181, Canada G. Grau, Institut Francais du Petrole, 1 et 4, Avenue de Bois-Preau, 92-Rueil-Malmaison, Paris, France R. Guillaume, Societe Nationale des Petroles D'Aquitaine, B.P. No. 65, 64 Pau, France Trevor Hatherton, Department of Scientific and Industrial Research, Geophysics Division, P.O. Box 8005, Wellington, New Zealand James W. Hawkins, Jr., University of California, San Diego, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, P.O. Box 1529, La Jolla, California 92037 Dennis E. Hayes, Lamont-Doherty Geological Observatory of Columbia University, Palisades, New York 10964 Bruce C. Heezen, Lamont-Doherty Geological Observatory of Columbia University, Palisades, New York 10964 Karl Hinz, Bundesanstalt fur Bodenforschung, Hannover-Buchholz, FRG, Stilleweg 2, Germany Charles D. Hollister, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, Massachusetts 02543 Robert E. Houtz, Lamont-Doherty Geological Observatory of Columbia University, Palisades, New York 10964 W. Porter Irwin, U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Geological Survey, Geologic Division, Earthquake Tectonics Program, 345 Middlefield Road, Menlo Park, California 94025 Bryan L. !sacks, Cornell University, Department of Geological Sciences, Ithaca, New York 14850 Noel P. James, Memorial University of Newfoundland, Department of Geology, St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada David L. Jones, U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Geological Survey, Geologic Division, Branch of Western Environmental Geology, 345 Middlefield Road, Menlo Park, California 94025 Hans-Rudi Katz, New Zealand Geological Survey, Department of Scientific and Industrial Research, P.O. Box 30 368, Lower Hutt, New Zealand Charlotte E. Keen, Bedford Institute of Oceanography, P.O. Box 1006, Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, Canada Michael J. Keen, Faculty of Arts and Sciences, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada ix Contributors Peter E. Kent, BP Petroleum Development Ltd., Britannic House, Moor Lane, London EC2Y 9BU, England Toshio Kimura, Geological Institute, University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Hongo, Japan Laverne D. Kulm, Department of Oceanography, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon 97331 C. A. Landis, University of Otago, Geology Department, Dunedin, New Zealand J. Launay, Office de la Recherche Scientifique et Technique Outre-Mer, Centre de Noumea, Boite Postale 4, Noumea, New Caledonia J. Letouzey, Institut Francais du Petrole, 1 et 4, Avenue de Bois-Preau, 92-Rueil-Malmaison, Paris, France J. Louis, ELF-ERAP, 7, Rue Nelaton, Paris, France William J. Ludwig, Lamont-Doherty Geological Observatory of Columbia University, Palisades, New York 10964 Ray G. Martin, U.S. Geological Survey, P.O. Box 6732, Corpus Christi, Texas 78411 Jean Mascle, Centre Oceanologique de Bretagne, Boite Postale 337, 29.273-Brest Cedex, France John C. Maxwell, Department of Geological Sciences, University of Texas, Austin, P.O. Box 7909, Austin, Texas 78712 Michael A. Mayhew, University of Wisconsin, Department of Geological Sciences, Sabin Hall-Greene Museum, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53201 Arthur A. Meyerhoff; A.A.P.G. Headquarters, Box 979, Tulsa, Oklahoma 74101 Charles W. Hatten, Great Basin Petroleum Company, 1011 Gateway West, Century City, Los Angeles, California 90067 K. Miura, Petroleo Brasileiro S.A., Caixa Postal 809 XZ-00, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Lucien Montadert, Institut Francais du Petrole, 1 et 4, Avenue de Bois-Preau, 92-Rueil-Malmaison, Paris, France David G. Moore, Department of the Navy, Naval Undersea Center, San Diego, California 92132 J. Casey Moore, University of California, Santa Cruz, Division of Natural Sciences, Department of Geological Sciences, Santa Cruz, California 95060 Carlos Mordojovich, Empresa Nacional del Petroleo, Corporacion de Fomento de la Produccion, Casilla 3556, Santiago, Chile J. F. Mugniot, Compagnie Franciase des Petroles, 5, Rue Michel-Ange, Paris 16e, France Hari Narain, National Geophysical Research Institute, Hyderabad 500007 (A.P.). India Jack E. Oliver, Cornell University, Department of Geological Sciences, Ithaca, New York 14850 Jean-Louis Olivet, Centre Oceanologique de Bretagne, Boite Postale 337, 29.273-Brest Cedex, France Ned A. Ostenso, Ocean Science & Technology Division, Department of the Navy, Arlington, Virginia 22217 Gudmunder Palmason, Icelandic National Energy Authority, Reykjavik, Iceland Georges Pardo, Gulf Oil Company, U.S.A., P.O. Box 2100, Houston, Texas 77001 Philippe Patriat, Institut de Physique de Globe de Paris, Paris France F. C. Ponte, Petroleo Brasileiro, S.A., Caixa Postal 809 XZ-oo, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Thomas Pyle, University of South Florida, 830 1st Street South, St. Petersburg, Florida 33701 Philip D. Rabinowitz, Lamont-Doherty Geological Observatory of Columbia University, Palisades, New York 10964 C. Ravenne, Institut Francais de Petrole, 1 et 4, Avenue de Bois-Preau, 92-Rueil-Malmaison, Paris, France Vincent Renard, Centre Oceanologique de Bretagne, B.P. 337, 29.273 Brest Cedex, France X Contributors David G. Roberts, Institute of Oceanographic Sciences, Natural Environment Research Council, Brook Road, Wormley, Godalming, Surrey GU8 5UB, England David A. Ross, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Department of Geology & Geophysics, Woods Hole, Massachusetts 02543 J. Sancho, Societe Nationale des Petroles D'Aquitaine, B.P. No. 65, 64 Pau, France David W. Scholl, U.S. Geological Survey, Pacific-Arctic Branch of Marine Geology, Office of Marine Geology, 345 Middlefield Road, Menlo Park, California 94025 R. A. Scrutton, Grant Institute of Geology, Edinburgh, Scotland Donald R. Seely, Esso Production Research Company, P.O. Box 2189, Houston, Texas 77001 Eugen Seibold, Geologisch-Palaontologisches, Institat und Museum, Der Universitat Kiel, Olshausenstrasse 40/60, Kiel, FRG, Germany Robert E. Sheridan, University of Delaware, College of Arts and Sciences, Department of Geology, Newark, Delaware 19711 George G. Shor, Jr., University of California, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, P.O. Box 1529, La Jolla, California 92037 W. G. Siesser, Marine Geology Unit, Department of Geology, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa E. S. W. Simpson, Marine Geology Unit, Department of Geology, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa R. K. Stevens, Memorial University of Newfoundland, Department of Geology, St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada Jovan Stocklin, United Nations, Geological Survey Institute, Box 1555, Tehran, Iran R. E. Stoiber, Dartmouth College, Department of Earth Sciences, Hanover, New Hampshire 03755 R. L. Stoneley, BP Petroleum Development Ltd., Britannic House, Moor Lane, London EC2Y 9BU, England Donald J. P. Swift, Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratories, 15 Rickenbacker Causeway, Miami, Florida 33149 Manik Talwani, Lamont-Doherty Geological Observatory of Columbia University, Palisades, New York 10964 Carlos Urien, Cabot Petroleum (Argentina) Inc., Avenida Ptd R.S. Pena 852, Buenos Aires, Argentina Seiya Uyeda, Earthquake Research Institute, The University of Tokyo, Bunkyo-Ku, Tokyo, Japan Peter R. Vail, Esso Production Research Company, P.O. Box 2189, Houston, Texas 77001 Pierre Valery, ELF-ERAP, 7, Rue Nelaton, Paris, France John J, Veevers, School of Earth Sciences, Macquarie University, North Ryde, New South Wales, Australia 2113 Roland E. von Huene, U.S. Geological Survey, Department of the Interior, Reston, Virginia 22070 G. G. Walton, Esso Production Research Company, P.O. Box 2189, Houston, Texas 77001 Lewis G. Weeks, Weeks Natural Resources, Inc., 287 Riverside Avenue, Westport, Connecticut 06880 Harold Williams, Memorial University of Newfoundland, Department of Geology, St. John's Newfoundland, Canada E. Winnock, Institut Francais du Petrole, 1 et 4, Avenue de Bois-Preau, 92-Rueil-Malmaison, Paris, France Donald U. Wise, Department of Geology, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Massachusetts 01002 J. Lamar Worzel, Earth & Planetary Sciences Division, Marine Biomedical Institute, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, Texas 77550 J. J. Zambrano, Direccion Nacional de Hidrocarburos, Av. Julio A. Roca 651, 7°P., Buenos Aires, Argentina