VAST NEOGENE LAMINATED DIATOM MAT DEPOSITS FROM THE EASTERN EQUATORIAL PACIFIC-OCEAN

被引:104
作者
KEMP, AES
BALDAUF, JG
机构
[1] TEXAS A&M UNIV SYST,DEPT OCEANOG,COLL STN,TX 77843
[2] TEXAS A&M UNIV SYST,OCEAN DRILLING PROGRAM,COLL STN,TX 77843
关键词
D O I
10.1038/362141a0
中图分类号
O [数理科学和化学]; P [天文学、地球科学]; Q [生物科学]; N [自然科学总论];
学科分类号
07 ; 0710 ; 09 ;
摘要
THE eastern equatorial Pacific upwelling region is responsible for up to 50% of global 'new' production1 and is regarded as a barometer of ocean change. Here we report evidence, from several sediment cores in the region, for repeated episodes of increased equatorial primary production between 15 and 4.4 million years ago, on a scale that is undocumented in the modern ocean. Mats of the diatom Thalassiothrix were rapidly deposited as successive laminations at rates exceeding 10 cm per thousand years; mat deposits can be correlated for distances of more than 2,000 km. It is surprising that the laminations were preserved at all: conventional models suggest that bioturbation caused by the benthic sediment community will disrupt such laminations unless there is insufficient oxygen in the water to support the biological activity. In this case, however, the strength of the mats and the scale of their deposition may have overwhelmed the benthos, so that the laminations were preserved by physical means. These remarkable deposits provide a unique window into the Neogene tropical ocean-climate system, and should enable quantification of ancient deep-sea fluxes and the study of short-term (sub-Milankovitch) variability in the ocean.
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页码:141 / 144
页数:4
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