What is a turbidite and how do they form?

Turbidites are sea-bottom deposits formed by massive slope failures. Rivers flowing into the ocean deposit sediments on the continenal shelf and slope.

What processes result in turbidite deposits?

Reservoir-Making Processes Turbidite reservoirs are often deposited from mixed sand-mud flows, and comprise a bottom sand-rich part and a mud layer at the top. Turbidites are more likely to result in mud-based layer cakes rather that perfect reservoirs.

What is a turbidite quizlet?

Turbidites: -the sediment that is deposited by a turbidity current is called a turbidite. -These are well-sorted and well-graded sediments (which means that as the current speed slows down progressively finer sediments are deposited. ) -Turbidites are found on continental slopes and rises.

What is turbidite flow?

Turbidites are subaqueous flows that begin with a slope failure. As sediment builds up and the slope gets steeper and steeper, and earthquake or simply oversteepening of the slope can cause a submarine debris flow, ie a turbidity current. This flow extends down the slope with a dense mixture of sediment and water.

Where do turbidity currents occur?

Turbidity currents—downhill flows of sediment-laden water that occur in lakes and oceans—are one of the primary processes responsible for transporting sediment from coastal regions to the deep sea.

What type of sediment are turbidite deposits?

turbidite, a type of sedimentary rock composed of layered particles that grade upward from coarser to finer sizes and are thought to have originated from ancient turbidity currents in the oceans.

What is turbidite?

Written By: Turbidite, a type of sedimentary rock composed of layered particles that grade upward from coarser to finer sizes and are thought to have originated from ancient turbidity currents in the oceans.

Where are turbidite oceanic systems found?

Turbidite systems can be found on the continental margins and adjacent bathyal domains in most oceans and seas; such systems range greatly in size, up to many kilometers across ( Table 2) ( Kolla and Coumes, 1987; Middleton, 2003 ).

What are the characteristics of turbiditic sediments?

Freshly deposited turbiditic sediments contain relatively well-oxygenated pore water and a relatively high amount of food. At first, the sediment is colonized by small opportunistic deposit feeders producing Phycosiphon, rather than by the larger sediment-feeding producers of Nereites ( Fig. 8.10 ).

What are the best books on turbidite systems?

Mutti, E., 1985. Turbidite systems and their relations to depositional sequences. In Zuffa, G. (ed.), Provenance of Arenites. Dordrecht: D. Reidel Publishing Co, pp. 65 – 93. Mutti, E., and Normark, W. R., 1987. Comparing examples of modern and ancient turbidite systems: problems and concepts.