Topic:The End is Just the Beginning... Leg 194 Wrap-upBroadcast 7:February 28, 2001

Mrs. Joan Linsley

Advantages of Ocean Drilling

• Deep sea sediments and rock formations are less disturbed than on land.

• Each layer represents the environment at a specific time.

Hypothesis:

Coring in this region will enable us to determine the

timing and magnitude of sea level changes during the last

fifteen million years.

Why Here?

• The edge of the continental margin in this region is stable and not subjected to tectonic forces.

• The reefs are sensitive to sea level change because they are living and within a few meters of the sea surface.

Marion Seismic Record

Basement & Exposure

ExposureSurface

Early & Mid-Miocene Deposition

CarbonatePlatform

SlopeDeposits

Hemi-pelagicSediments

Mid-Miocene Exposure

Exposure Surface

CarbonatePlatform

SlopeDeposits

Hemi-pelagicSediments

Late Miocene Deposition

CarbonatePlatform

SlopeDeposits

Hemi-pelagicSediments

Late Miocene ExposureExposureSurfaceCarbonate

Platform

SlopeDeposits

Hemi-pelagicSediments

Pliocene-Pleistocene Deposition

CarbonatePlatform

SlopeDeposits

Hemi-pelagicSediments

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Question!!