THE EYRE SUB-BASIN: RECENT EXPLORATION RESULTS

1981 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 91 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Bein ◽  
M. L. Taylor

The Eyre Sub-basin of the Great Australian Bight Basin comprises a series of half-grabens with a maximum sediment thickness in the order of 6 000 m. It is bounded to the north by high-standing basement with a sedimentary cover about 550 m thick. To the west, sedimentary cover gradually thins and onlaps rising basement. To the south, a high- standing basement ridge separates the sediments within the Eyre Sub-basin from those of the Great Australian Bight Basin proper. The sedimentary pile apparently thickens south of the basement ridge where water depth increases to more than 1 400 m.The high basement trend bounding the sub-basin to the south plunges gradually to the east where it is eventually broken up by faulting. Seismic data from the eastern end of the sub-basin show progressive down-faulting of basement and increasing sediment thickness to the south.Jerboa 1 was drilled on a tilted basement fault block. It penetrated 1 739 m of sedimentary section, which is believed to be a condensed sequence representative of most of the total sedimentary fill of the sub-basin. Middle to Late Jurassic (Callovian-Kimmeridgian) sediments were encountered above basement, and the sequence continued almost unbroken into the Late Cretaceous (Cenomanian). Minor unconformities occur between the non-marine Aptian sequence and the overlying marine Albian, and between the Albian and Cenomanian. A major unconformity separates the Cenomanian from the overlying Tertiary section, interpreted to have been deposited after the separation of Australia from Antarctica.

2010 ◽  
Vol 181 (6) ◽  
pp. 477-501 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xavier Le Pichon ◽  
Claude Rangin ◽  
Youri Hamon ◽  
Nicolas Loget ◽  
Jin Ying Lin ◽  
...  

AbstractWe investigate the geodynamics of the Southeast Basin with the help of maps of the basement and of major sedimentary horizons based on available seismic reflection profiles and drill holes. We also present a study of the seismicity along the Middle Durance fault. The present seismic activity of the SE Basin cannot be attributed to the Africa/Eurasia shortening since spatial geodesy demonstrates that there is no significant motion of Corsica-Sardinia with respect to Eurasia and since gravitational collapse of the Alps has characterized the last few millions years. Our study demonstrates that the basement of this 140 by 200 km Triassic basin has been essentially undeformed since its formation, most probably because of the hardening of the cooling lithosphere after its 50% thinning during the Triassic distension. The regional geodynamics are thus dominated by the interaction of this rigid unit with the surrounding zones of active deformation. The 12 km thick Mesozoic sediment cover includes at its base an up to 4 km thick mostly evaporitic Triassic layer that is hot and consequently highly fluid. The sedimentary cover is thus decoupled from the basement. As a result, the sedimentary cover does not have enough strength to produce reliefs exceeding about 500 to 750 m. That the deformation and seismicity affecting the basin are the results of cover tectonics is confirmed by the fact that seismic activity in the basin only affects the sedimentary cover. Based on our mapping of the structure of the basin, we propose a simple mechanism accounting for the Neogene deformation of the sedimentary cover. The formation of the higher Alps has first resulted to the north in the shortening of the Diois-Baronnies sedimentary cover that elevated the top of Jurassic horizons by about 4 km with respect to surrounding areas to the south and west. There was thus passage from a brittle-ductile basement decollement within the higher Alps to an evaporitic decollement within the Diois-Baronnies. This shortening and consequent elevation finally induced the southward motion of the basin cover south of the Lure mountain during and after the Middle Miocene. This southward motion was absorbed by the formation of the Luberon and Trévaresse mountains to the south. To the east of the Durance fault, there is no large sediment cover. The seismicity there, is related to the absorption of the Alps collapse within the basement itself. To the west of the Salon-Cavaillon fault, on the other hand, gravity induces a NNE motion of the sedimentary cover with extension to the south and shortening to the north near Mont Ventoux. When considering the seismicity of this area, it is thus important to distinguish between the western Basin panel, west of the Salon-Cavaillon fault affected by very slow NNE gliding of the sedimentary cover, with extension to the south and shortening to the north; the central Basin panel west of the Durance fault with S gliding of the sedimentary cover and increasing shortening to the south; and finally the basement panel east of the Durance fault with intrabasement absorption of the Alps collapse through strike-slip and thrust faults.


1966 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 71 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adrian Kapel

Results of past surface and subsurface geological and geophysical surveys indicate that the Cooper's Creek area has been a sedimentary basin from Lower Palaeozoic time to at least the beginning of Cretaceous time.The Cooper's Creek Basin is bounded to the east by the Canaway Ridge, to the south by a basement ridge that runs from Naryilco to Kopperamanna, to the north by a folded trend that runs from Warbreccan to Kopperamanna.Sediments from Cambrian to Recent age have been encountered in wells drilled by Delhi-Santos. It is postulated that the present basin originated in post-Siluro-Devonian time after the Bowning orogeny.Physiographically the axis of the basin is reflected by the Cooper's Creek.


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anke Dannowski ◽  
Heidrun Kopp ◽  
Ingo Grevemeyer ◽  
Dietrich Lange ◽  
Martin Thowart ◽  
...  

Abstract. The Ligurian Basin is located in the Mediterranean Sea to the north-west of Corsica at the transition from the western Alpine orogen to the Apennine system and was generated by the south-eastward trench retreat of the Apennines-Calabrian subduction zone. Late Oligocene to Miocene rifting caused continental extension and subsidence, leading to the opening of the basin. Yet, it still remains enigmatic if rifting caused continental break-up and seafloor spreading. To reveal its lithospheric architecture, we acquired a state of the art seismic refraction and wide-angle reflection profile in the Ligurian Basin. The seismic line was recorded in the framework of SPP2017 4D-MB, the German component of the European AlpArray initiative, and trends in a NE-SW direction at the centre of the Ligurian Basin, roughly parallel to the French coastline. The seismic data recorded on the newly developed GEOLOG recorder, designed at GEOMAR, are dominated by sedimentary refractions and show mantle Pn arrivals at offsets of up to 70 km and a very prominent wide-angle Moho reflection. The main features share several characteristics (i.e. offset range, continuity) generally associated with continental settings rather than documenting oceanic crust emplaced by seafloor spreading. Seismic tomography results are augmented by gravity data and yield a 7.5–8 km thick sedimentary cover which is directly underlain by serpentinised mantle material at the south-western end of the profile. The acoustic basement at the north-eastern termination is interpreted to be continental crust, thickening towards the NE. Our study reveals that the oceanic domain does not extend as far north as previously assumed and that extension led to extreme continental thinning and exhumation of sub-continental mantle which eventually became serpentinised.


2007 ◽  
Vol 44 (11) ◽  
pp. 1551-1565 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lori A Cook ◽  
Sonya A Dehler ◽  
Sandra M Barr

A prominent positive magnetic anomaly spans the 100 km distance between Prince Edward Island and Cape Breton Island in the southern Gulf of St. Lawrence. The anomaly occurs in an area of complex structure where Appalachian terrane boundaries are poorly resolved because of thick late Paleozoic sedimentary cover. Analysis of the magnetic anomaly led to the interpretation that it is produced by four separate, approximately circular, source bodies aligned along the northwesterly trend of the anomaly. Seismic data, physical property measurements, and magnetic and gravity anomalies were used to further investigate the anomaly sources through forward modeling techniques. The four source bodies have densities and magnetic susceptibilities compatible with dioritic to granitic compositions. Modeling also suggests that basement to the north of the plutons has higher density and susceptibility than basement to the south, and hence the source bodies are interpreted as plutons emplaced along the boundary between Ganderian composite terranes to the north and the Ganderian Brookville – Bras d’Or terrane to the south. This interpretation suggests that the Ganderia–Avalonia boundary is located farther south, and shows the need for re-evaluation of the location and role of the Canso fault in offsetting terranes between Cape Breton Island and southern New Brunswick.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Sanjay Paul Samuel

<p>The Paleocene interval within the Canterbury Basin has been relatively understudied with respect to the Neogene and Cretaceous intervals. Within the Paleocene interval is the Tartan Formation and the Charteris Bay Sandstone, which are potential source and reservoir rocks respectively. These two formations have not been previously mapped in the offshore Canterbury Basin and their limits have not been defined. This study utilises a database of nearly 12,000km of 2D seismic data together with data from four open–file wells and sidewall core samples from three wells and newly availiable biostratigraphic information to better constrain the chronostratigraphical interpretation of seismic data. Seismic mapping together with corroboration from well correlation and core lithofacies analysis revealed new insights into the development of the offshore Canterbury Basin through the Paleocene. These include the delineation of the lateral extents and thicknesses of the Tartan Formation and Charteris Bay Sandstone and location of the palaeo shelf–slope break and also the development of a new well correlation panel that incorporates the Tartan Formation for the first time.  This study presents four new paleogeographic maps for the offshore Canterbury Basin that significantly improves our understanding of the development of the basin during the Paleocene. These maps show that during the Earliest Paleocene, the mudstones of the Katiki Formation were being deposited in the south of the study area, with the siltier sediments of the Conway Formation being deposited in the north. The coarser grained Charteris Bay Sandstone was deposited from Early to possibly Middle Paleocene in the northeast. The mudstones of the Moeraki Formation were being deposited in the south at this time. From Middle to Late Paleocene, the mudstones of the Moeraki Formation were deposited in the south and these mudstones onlapped against the Charteris Bay Sandstone which remained as a high in the north. The Tartan Formation was deposited during the Late Paleocene in the central and southern areas of the offshore Canterbury Basin, during a relative fall in sea–level. Deposition had ceased in the north of the study area or erosion possibly removed Late Paleocene sediments from there. During the Latest Paleocene, the mudstones of the Moeraki Formation were deposited over the Tartan Formation in the central and southern parts of the offshore Canterbury Basin with the northern area undergoing erosion, sediment bypass or both.</p>


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Sanjay Paul Samuel

<p>The Paleocene interval within the Canterbury Basin has been relatively understudied with respect to the Neogene and Cretaceous intervals. Within the Paleocene interval is the Tartan Formation and the Charteris Bay Sandstone, which are potential source and reservoir rocks respectively. These two formations have not been previously mapped in the offshore Canterbury Basin and their limits have not been defined. This study utilises a database of nearly 12,000km of 2D seismic data together with data from four open–file wells and sidewall core samples from three wells and newly availiable biostratigraphic information to better constrain the chronostratigraphical interpretation of seismic data. Seismic mapping together with corroboration from well correlation and core lithofacies analysis revealed new insights into the development of the offshore Canterbury Basin through the Paleocene. These include the delineation of the lateral extents and thicknesses of the Tartan Formation and Charteris Bay Sandstone and location of the palaeo shelf–slope break and also the development of a new well correlation panel that incorporates the Tartan Formation for the first time.  This study presents four new paleogeographic maps for the offshore Canterbury Basin that significantly improves our understanding of the development of the basin during the Paleocene. These maps show that during the Earliest Paleocene, the mudstones of the Katiki Formation were being deposited in the south of the study area, with the siltier sediments of the Conway Formation being deposited in the north. The coarser grained Charteris Bay Sandstone was deposited from Early to possibly Middle Paleocene in the northeast. The mudstones of the Moeraki Formation were being deposited in the south at this time. From Middle to Late Paleocene, the mudstones of the Moeraki Formation were deposited in the south and these mudstones onlapped against the Charteris Bay Sandstone which remained as a high in the north. The Tartan Formation was deposited during the Late Paleocene in the central and southern areas of the offshore Canterbury Basin, during a relative fall in sea–level. Deposition had ceased in the north of the study area or erosion possibly removed Late Paleocene sediments from there. During the Latest Paleocene, the mudstones of the Moeraki Formation were deposited over the Tartan Formation in the central and southern parts of the offshore Canterbury Basin with the northern area undergoing erosion, sediment bypass or both.</p>


1969 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 136
Author(s):  
D. D. Taylor

The surface Coastal Limestone in the Perth basin extends from Cape Leeuwin in the South to Geraldton in the north forming a strip along the coast up to 15 miles wide. Over a great portion of this area the reflection seismic results are unreliable. Seismic studies on the limestone disclose some aspects of the problem and indicate ways to improve the quality of the data.


1969 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 60
Author(s):  
R. Smith ◽  
P. Kamerling

Geophysical exploration carried out in the Great Australian Bight since 1966, combined with geological fieldwork in the adjacent land areas, has made it possible to outline the broad geological framework of the area.The "basement" consists of two major units, an offshore extension of the locally metamorphic Cambrian Kanmantoo Group in the south-east and the extension of the West Australian Archaean shield in the north-west. The boundary is thought to follow a trend extending westerly from the Cygnet-Snelling fault zone on Kangaroo Island.In two areas the basement has been downfaulted, thus creating depositional areas for thick sequences of sediments, namely the Elliston trough to the west of Eyre Peninsula and the Duntroon basin, south of Eyre Peninsula and west of Kangaroo Island.The geological setting of the Duntroon basin appears to be comparable with the Otway basin and a Jurassic- Cretaceous age is assumed for the folded sequence of sediments overlying the basement and underlying the Tertiary with angular unconformity. The basin was possibly partially and temporarily closed to the south and open to marine influences from the west.In the Elliston trough the lower part of the section which has low to medium velocity seismic character, is probably Mesozoic, as is evidenced by the Upper Jurassic encountered in its onshore extension. Proterozoic-Cambrian sediments may overlie the basement in the eastern part of the trough. Deformation of the Mesozoic is limited to the mouth of the trough where there is indication of a base- Tertiary unconformity. This trough was probably also open to marine influences to the west.Along the continental margin between the basins and also south of the Eucla basin a thin Mesozoic section, conformably underlying the Tertiary, is probably present, gradually thickening towards the continental slope.In the onshore area Tertiary sedimentation started with local deposition of clastics during the Middle Eocene, which also may have been the case off the Eucla basin, in the Elliston trough and in the Duntroon basin. Carbonate sedimentation took place from the Middle-Upper Eocene onwards, to reach its widest areal extent during the Lower Miocene. A hiatus during the Oligocene may have occurred in the western part of the Bight as is the case in the Eucla basin.Only weak deformation of the Tertiary in the offshore area has been observed. This generally occurs over Mesozoic structures in the Duntroon basin and as draping over topographic basement highs at the mouth of the Elliston trough.No significant hydrocarbon indications are known from the surrounding land areas, but the well-documented bitumen strandings along the coast point to offshore seepages indicating generation of hydrocarbons in the general area.At this stage prospects must be regarded as speculative.although a folded probable Mesozoic sequence forms an objective in the Duntroon basin while prospective Mesozoic-Tertiary section appears to be present in the Elliston trough, where structural evaluation is still at a relatively early stage.


1928 ◽  
Vol 65 (10) ◽  
pp. 433-448 ◽  
Author(s):  
F. M. Trotter ◽  
S. E. Hollingworth

The area covered by this paper embraces the northern end of the Pennines—the uplands of Lower Carboniferous rocks centred about Alston, together with the low ground of the Tyne-Irthing gap to the north. It is bounded on the west by the Vale of Eden. The Pennine portion is separated structurally from the regions to the north and west by the Stublick and Pennine Faults respectively. The former trends E.N.E., it has a downthrow to the north and has resulted in the preservation of the string of Coal Measures outliers which form a connecting link between the Cumberland and Northumberland coalfields. The Pennine Fault, trending S.S.E., with a throw of several thousand feet to the west, brings the New Red rocks of the Vale of Eden against the Lower Carboniferous beds of the Pennine Escarpment. These two faults meet at right angles near Castle Carrock. To the south the Pennine Fault dies out near Stainmore, and another dislocation, the Dent Fault, trending S.S.W., develops, and eventually links up with the Craven Faults which have an E.S.E. trend. These four faults, as pointed out by Professor Kendall, have the form of a reversed 3, and the region within this figure has become known generally as the Northumbrian Fault Block. Professor Marr has aptly termed the southern half of this area the “Rigid Block”. The northern half of the Northumbrian Fault Block, which will be shown to possess many characters in common with the southern half, is here called the “Aiston Block”. Its limits are defined on three sides—by the Stublick Fault on the north, the Pennine Fault on the west, and by the Stainmore depression on the south. The last thus divides the Northumbrian Fault Block into two, physiographically and structurally. The eastern boundary of the Alston Block is concealed beneath the Mesozoic rocks.


2009 ◽  
Vol 4 ◽  
pp. 71-84 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. V. Prokopiev ◽  
J. Toro ◽  
J. K. Hourigan ◽  
A. G. Bakharev ◽  
E. L. Miller

Abstract. The Okhotsk terrane, located east of the South Verkhoyansk sector of the Verkhoyansk fold-and-thrust belt, has Archean crystalline basement and Riphean to Early Paleozoic sedimentary cover similar to that of the adjacent the North Asian craton. However, 2.6 Ga biotite orthogneisses of the Upper Maya uplift of the Okhotsk terrane yielded Early Devonian 40Ar/39Ar cooling ages, evidence of a Mid-Paleozoic metamorphic event not previously known. These gneisses are also intruded by 375±2 Ma (Late Devonian) calc-alkaline granodiorite plutons that we interpret as part of a continental margin volcanic arc. Therefore, Late Devonian rifting, which affected the entire eastern margin of North Asia separating the Okhotsk terrane from the North Asian craton, was probably a back-arc event. Our limited 40Ar/39Ar data from the South Verkhoyansk metamorphic belt suggests that low grade metamorphism and deformation started in the Late Jurassic due to accretion of the Okhotsk terrane to the North Asia margin along the Bilyakchan fault. Shortening and ductile strain continued in the core of the South Verkhoyansk metamorphic belt until about 120 Ma due to paleo-Pacific subduction along the Uda-Murgal continental margin arc.


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