Sequence-stratigraphic signatures of hemipelagic siltstones in deep-water successions: The Lower Pleistocene Kiwada and Otadai Formations, Boso Peninsula, Japan

Sotaro Takano, Makoto Ito*, Takanori Nakano, Keiji Horikawa, Yuzuru Nakamura, Takahiro Saito

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

17 Scopus citations

Abstract

Sequence-stratigraphic signatures of hemipelagic siltstones were investigated using profiles of the magnetic susceptibility and selected chemical composition of the Early Pleistocene deep-water successions of the Kiwada and Otadai Formations on the Boso Peninsula, Japan. In the context of an independently developed sequence-stratigraphic framework for the submarine-fan deposits of the Otadai Formation, the magnetic susceptibility and chemical composition, such as the concentrations of TiO2, MgO and Fe2O3, show that the lowstand systems tract deposits have higher values of these parameters than the transgressive and highstand systems tract deposits. In contrast, the CaO contents have inverse relationships with the magnetic susceptibility and are higher in the transgressive and highstand systems tract deposits. The positions of sequence boundaries largely coincide with the horizons from which the magnetic susceptibility and the contents of mafic component increase abruptly. The sequence-stratigraphic variations in the magnetic susceptibility and chemical composition of the submarine-fan hemipelagic siltstones are due to increases in the input of fine-grained, terrigenous clastic sediments from midwater flow suspension, in addition to the direct fluvial supply of relatively unmodified terrigenous clastic sediments during relative sea-level lowstands, although grain size of hemipelagic siltstones does not exhibit any distinct variation through depositional sequences. The Kiwada Formation is characterized by siltstone-dominated basin-plain deposits and its sequence-stratigraphic classification has been difficult when using just lithofacies features. Nevertheless, the profiles of the magnetic susceptibility and chemical composition of the basin-plain deposits are similar to those of the submarine-fan deposits with duration largely equivalent to the 41,000-years obliquity cycle of the Early Pleistocene oxygen isotope sea-level index. This finding indicates that the profiles of the magnetic susceptibility and chemical composition of hemipelagic siltstones reflect sequence-stratigraphic variation in the input of fine-grained terrigenous clastic sediments to the deep-water environments and are crucial for the recognition of cryptic sequence boundaries in hemipelagic successions.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)189-206
Number of pages18
JournalSedimentary Geology
Volume170
Issue number3-4
DOIs
StatePublished - 2004/09/02

Keywords

  • Basin-plain deposits
  • Chemical composition
  • Hemipelagic siltstones
  • Magnetic susceptibility
  • Sequence stratigraphy
  • Submarine-fan deposits

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Geology
  • Stratigraphy

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Sequence-stratigraphic signatures of hemipelagic siltstones in deep-water successions: The Lower Pleistocene Kiwada and Otadai Formations, Boso Peninsula, Japan'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this