Middle Miocene events in ODP and DSDP sites of the Ross Sea

Seismic correlation of glacial unconformities from the Ross Sea outer continental shelf to chronostratigraphic control at DSDP sites 272 and 273 indicates that at least two West Antarctic Ice Sheet (WAIS) expansions occurred during the early part of the middle Miocene (i.e. well before completion of...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Bart, Philip J
Format: Dataset
Language:English
Published: PANGAEA 2003
Subjects:
120-747
28-272
28-273_Site
Antarctic Ocean
COMPCORE
Composite Core
Deep Sea Drilling Project
DRILL
Drilling/drill rig
DSDP
Glomar Challenger
Joides Resolution
Leg120
Leg28
South Indian Ridge
South Indian Ocean
Antarctic
East Antarctic Ice Sheet
Indian
Ross Sea
Transantarctic Mountains
West Antarctic Ice Sheet
West Antarctica
Antarc*
Antarctica
Ice Sheet
Online Access:https://doi.pangaea.de/10.1594/PANGAEA.722496
https://doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.722496
Description
Summary:Seismic correlation of glacial unconformities from the Ross Sea outer continental shelf to chronostratigraphic control at DSDP sites 272 and 273 indicates that at least two West Antarctic Ice Sheet (WAIS) expansions occurred during the early part of the middle Miocene (i.e. well before completion of continental-scale expansion of the East Antarctic Ice Sheet (EAIS) inferred from delta18O and eustatic shifts). Therefore, if the volume of the EAIS was indeed relatively low, and if the Ross Sea age model is valid, then these WAIS expansions/contractions were not a direct consequence of EAIS expansion over the Transantarctic Mountains onto West Antarctica. An in-situ development of the WAIS during the middle Miocene suggests that either West Antarctic land elevations were above sea level and/or that air and water temperatures were sufficiently cold to support a marine-based ice sheet. Additional chronostratigraphic and lithologic data are needed from Antarctic margins to test these speculations.

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