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The Malta-Sicily Escarpment: mass movement dynamics in a sediment-undersupplied margin

The Malta-Sicily Escarpment: mass movement dynamics in a sediment-undersupplied margin
The Malta-Sicily Escarpment: mass movement dynamics in a sediment-undersupplied margin
The Malta-Sicily Escarpment (MSE) is a steep carbonate escarpment that appears to have largely remained isolated from inputs of fluvial and littoral sediments since the Messinian Salinity Crisis. Mass movement activity has so far only been inferred from sediment cores at the base of the MSE. In this study we use geophysical and sedimentological data acquired from the upper MSE and outer Malta Plateau to: (i) map and characterise the dominant forms of mass movements, and (ii) determine the nature and origin of these mass movements, and their role in the evolution of the MSE. We document 67 mass movement scars across 370 km2 of seafloor. Slope instability entailed translational slides, spreads and debris flows that mobilised Plio-Pleistocene outer shelf hemipelagic/pelagic sediments or carbonate sequences across the upper continental slope. Slope failure events are caused by loss of support associated with the formation of channels, gullies, canyon heads and fault-related escarpments. Mass movements play a key role in eroding the seafloor and transferring material to the lower MSE. In particular, they control the extent of headward and lateral extension of submarine canyons, facilitate tributary development, remove material from the continental shelf and slope, and feed sediment and drive its transport across the submarine canyon system.
978-3-319-00971-1
37
317-328
Springer
Micallef, Aaron
608ce404-a7ab-4a9a-bd84-cb6d0515ed39
Georgiopoulou, Aggeliki
1cc90c8c-49e7-4be1-9117-851793dcfe57
Le Bas, Timothy
f0dbad80-bb38-412c-be77-b8b9faef1854
Mountjoy, Joshu
e4e94306-5bcd-4517-b34b-de99df70c05a
Huvenne, Veerle
f22be3e2-708c-491b-b985-a438470fa053
Lo Iacono, Claudio
2ec2b5f4-a134-462b-b8ba-f7bd757040f5
Krastel, S.
Behrmann, J-H.
Volker, D.
Stipp, M.
Berndt, C.
Urgeles, R.
Chaytor, J.
Huhn, K.
Strasser, M.
Harbitz, C.B.
Micallef, Aaron
608ce404-a7ab-4a9a-bd84-cb6d0515ed39
Georgiopoulou, Aggeliki
1cc90c8c-49e7-4be1-9117-851793dcfe57
Le Bas, Timothy
f0dbad80-bb38-412c-be77-b8b9faef1854
Mountjoy, Joshu
e4e94306-5bcd-4517-b34b-de99df70c05a
Huvenne, Veerle
f22be3e2-708c-491b-b985-a438470fa053
Lo Iacono, Claudio
2ec2b5f4-a134-462b-b8ba-f7bd757040f5
Krastel, S.
Behrmann, J-H.
Volker, D.
Stipp, M.
Berndt, C.
Urgeles, R.
Chaytor, J.
Huhn, K.
Strasser, M.
Harbitz, C.B.

Micallef, Aaron, Georgiopoulou, Aggeliki, Le Bas, Timothy, Mountjoy, Joshu, Huvenne, Veerle and Lo Iacono, Claudio (2014) The Malta-Sicily Escarpment: mass movement dynamics in a sediment-undersupplied margin. In, Krastel, S., Behrmann, J-H., Volker, D., Stipp, M., Berndt, C., Urgeles, R., Chaytor, J., Huhn, K., Strasser, M. and Harbitz, C.B. (eds.) Submarine Mass Movements and Their Consequences: 6th International Symposium. (Advances in Natural and Technological Hazards Research, 37) Cham, CH. Springer, pp. 317-328. (doi:10.1007/978-3-319-00972-8_28).

Record type: Book Section

Abstract

The Malta-Sicily Escarpment (MSE) is a steep carbonate escarpment that appears to have largely remained isolated from inputs of fluvial and littoral sediments since the Messinian Salinity Crisis. Mass movement activity has so far only been inferred from sediment cores at the base of the MSE. In this study we use geophysical and sedimentological data acquired from the upper MSE and outer Malta Plateau to: (i) map and characterise the dominant forms of mass movements, and (ii) determine the nature and origin of these mass movements, and their role in the evolution of the MSE. We document 67 mass movement scars across 370 km2 of seafloor. Slope instability entailed translational slides, spreads and debris flows that mobilised Plio-Pleistocene outer shelf hemipelagic/pelagic sediments or carbonate sequences across the upper continental slope. Slope failure events are caused by loss of support associated with the formation of channels, gullies, canyon heads and fault-related escarpments. Mass movements play a key role in eroding the seafloor and transferring material to the lower MSE. In particular, they control the extent of headward and lateral extension of submarine canyons, facilitate tributary development, remove material from the continental shelf and slope, and feed sediment and drive its transport across the submarine canyon system.

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More information

Published date: 2014
Organisations: Marine Geoscience

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 362809
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/362809
ISBN: 978-3-319-00971-1
PURE UUID: 0a0c7d70-65c0-4b31-a635-dbb536c0cc93
ORCID for Veerle Huvenne: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0001-7135-6360

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Date deposited: 06 Mar 2014 15:05
Last modified: 15 Mar 2024 03:19

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Contributors

Author: Aaron Micallef
Author: Aggeliki Georgiopoulou
Author: Timothy Le Bas
Author: Joshu Mountjoy
Author: Veerle Huvenne ORCID iD
Author: Claudio Lo Iacono
Editor: S. Krastel
Editor: J-H. Behrmann
Editor: D. Volker
Editor: M. Stipp
Editor: C. Berndt
Editor: R. Urgeles
Editor: J. Chaytor
Editor: K. Huhn
Editor: M. Strasser
Editor: C.B. Harbitz

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