Nicolae Panin - Academia.edu (original) (raw)
Papers by Nicolae Panin
Abstract. The present article is in extenso version of the paper « Histoire Quaternaire du Delta ... more Abstract. The present article is in extenso version of the paper « Histoire Quaternaire du Delta du Danube. Essai d'interprétation des faciès des dépôts deltaïques » signed by N. Panin that was published in 1972 in Cercetari Marine No. 4, p. 5-15. The first author of the present paper decided to present the initial in extenso version of the article as an historical document representing a step forward in the knowledge of the Danube Delta geological structure and evolution. A sedimentological analysis at the knowledge level of the seventies of data from more than 100 drillings is presented and consequently an interpretation of the delta geological structure and development is given. This new interpretation was based on a modern at that time knowledge about the deltaic sedimentary processes and the Black Sea evolution during the Quaternary. It was proposed as an alternative to the older hypothesis of Liteanu et al. (1961). The new hypothesis stated that the Danube Delta represents...
Coastal Research Library, 2017
Any petroleum exploration or regional model construction need a detailed understanding of the geo... more Any petroleum exploration or regional model construction need a detailed understanding of the geologic evolution of the basin under consideration. This is possible only through a careful regional scale interpretation of the data available. The prolongation of any geological model from a relatively well to a less constrained area is always challenging. This is the case of the Western Black Sea Basin where the stratigraphic correlation from the shelf to deep water is not straightforward. So far this was in part due to the fact that the backbone of any regional interpretation in the Black Sea have been the OGS and DSS lines acquired in 70s that were available as paper sections only. The acquisition and publication of the new regional industry lines, driven by the new deep water hydrocarbon exploration, eased and improved the geological interpretation of this area.
The article presents a detailed analysis of the underwater morphology of the entire Black Sea bas... more The article presents a detailed analysis of the underwater morphology of the entire Black Sea basin beyond the shelf break. The focus is on submarine valley systems on continental slope and rise zones, and partially in the abyssal plain area. The present research is among the very few studies that have undertaken a morphological analysis on a regional scale, for an entire marine basin. This achievement was possible by using the publicly available EMODnet bathymetric map of the Black Sea. The Black Sea submarine valleys networks are presented in a map-sketch. It includes 25 valley systems, 5 groups of simple first order channels, and other number of simple, not associated channels. The 25 valley systems are adding up more than 110 main channels and tributaries. Morphological description and analysis of each of the mapped systems is given – shape and plan view morphology, dimensions (length and surface) and slope gradient. Some considerations about the amount of sediments supplied by ...
Dan Constantin Jipa, a great friend, an eminent, brilliant scientist, who has completely dedicate... more Dan Constantin Jipa, a great friend, an eminent, brilliant scientist, who has completely dedicated his life to Earth Sciences, passed away onSeptember 28, 2020. Adieu dear friend! He worked with total dedication for over 60 years and his enthusiasm and interest in the profession did notfade even at the last moment - two months earlier, he was in the Bucegi Mountains where he had resumed his study of the Bucegi Conglomerates.We were good friends, we worked together and we supported each other to the best of our ability.
IntroductIon The development of the Danube Delta is closely dependent of the evolution of the Bla... more IntroductIon The development of the Danube Delta is closely dependent of the evolution of the Black Sea water level on one hand and to the development of the Danube River, of its sediment and water discharge on another. It is well known that during the Quaternary the Black Sea water level changed many times, in accordance with drastic climatic changes (glaciations and inter-glaciations). The Bosporous strait with its sill placed at about-34 m had determined a specific regional behaviour of the Black Sea when the water level was lower the sill depth, as the connection with the Mediterranean Sea, was interrupted and the Black Sea water level varied under the local hydrological and climatic conditions. In the last 100 ka there were at least three high-stands: during the Karangatian phase of the Black Sea (~125-~65 ka BP), during the Surozhian phase (~40-25 ka BP) and after the melting of Würmian icecap (the melting occurred after ~16-15 ka BP). Another low stand is documented during the
The year 1993 represents for us a milestone. In 1993, a new Research – Development – Innovation u... more The year 1993 represents for us a milestone. In 1993, a new Research – Development – Innovation unit, dedicated to Marine Sciences – the Romanian Centre of Marine Geology and Geo-ecology was founded. After three years only, the Centre became an institute of national importance, the National Institute of R & D for Marine Geology and Geo-ecology – GeoEcoMar. The institute GeoEcoMar had a rapid development, and gained large acceptance from the international scientific community and established numerous connections with institutes and universities all around the World.
Sedimentology, 1966
ABSTRACT
Marine Geology, 2000
A regional water level curve for the northwestern Black Sea covering lowstands of the past 900 ka... more A regional water level curve for the northwestern Black Sea covering lowstands of the past 900 ka has been inferred from shelf terraces and coastal onlaps identified in seismic data. Corrections for sediment compaction, isostatic response to sediment load and thermal subsidence were included. A water level lowstand of Ϫ151 m was found for the last glaciation, ca 30 m lower than the global sea level stand at the Last Glacial Maximum. Water level could develop independently in the Black Sea due to its isolation from the global oceans when the water level of the Black Sea was lower than its outlet. In addition, a deepsea fan complex in the northwestern Black Sea was investigated by seismic reflection, showing that it can be divided into the Danube fan and the Dniepr fan (also fed by the rivers Dniestr and Southern Bug). Eight seismic sequences were distinguished in the northwestern Black Sea and their thicknesses and facies distributions mapped. The two lowermost sequences consist mainly of unchannelized mass transport deposits (slumps, slides, debris flows), while the six upper sequences with their typical channel-levee systems as well as overbank and mass transport deposits constitute the deepsea fan complex. Correlation of fan development with the regional water level curve yields an inferred age of ca 900 ka BP for the Danube fan; development of the Dniepr fan started probably about 100 ka later. Computed average sedimentation rates range between 1.19 and 2.19 m/ka for the Danube fan and between 1.07 and 2.03 m/ka for the Dniepr fan. The corresponding rates for sediment accumulation are 68-141 t/a and 41-82 t/a. Mean denudation rates in the drainage area are computed to be 0.027-0.105 mm/a and 0.017-0.127 mm/a, respectively.
Global and Planetary Change, 2013
The Danube River Basin-Black Sea area represents a unique natural laboratory for studying the int... more The Danube River Basin-Black Sea area represents a unique natural laboratory for studying the interplay between lithosphere and surface as well as source to sink relationships and their impact on global change. This paper addresses some information on the "active sink" of the system; i.e. the Danube deep sea fan and the Black Sea basin. The present study focuses on the distal sedimentary processes and the evolution of sedimentation since the Last Glacial Maximum. This is investigated through recently acquired long piston coring and shallow seismic data recovered at the boundary of influence of the distal part of the Danube turbidite system (to the northwest) and the Turkish margin (to the south). This dataset provides a good record of the recent changes in the sedimentary supply and climato-eustasy in the Black Sea region during the last 25 ka. This study demonstrates that the deep basin deposits bear the record of the Late Quaternary paleoenvironmental changes and that the western Black Sea constitutes an asymmetric subsident basin bordered by a northern passive margin with confined, mid-size, mud-rich turbidite systems mainly controlled by sea-level, and a southern turbidite ramp margin, tectonically active. Highlights ► Oceanographic results from survey carried out in the western Black Sea are presented. ► The Danube fan distal part: the Black Sea main depositional feature is described. ► This study is on the morphology and gravity sedimentation in the Black Sea deep basin. ► Data were collected at the boundary between the Danube fan and the Turkish margin. ► The dataset provide a good record of sedimentary supply and climato-eustatic changes.
Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science, 2002
Suspended matter and sediments from the Danube River and the adjacent northwestern Black Sea were... more Suspended matter and sediments from the Danube River and the adjacent northwestern Black Sea were analysed for organic carbon, nitrogen and biogenic carbonate and silica, as well as for different fractions of organic matter such as amino acids and carbohydrates. In addition, the nitrogen isotopic composition of surficial sediments of the NW Black Sea was examined. Particulate organic carbon (POC) contents decrease with total suspended solid (TSS) concentration due to dilution by mineral matter derived from upstream and riverbed erosion. The contribution of labile constituents such as amino acids and carbohydrates to POC remains uniform across the measured TSS contents. This suggests that any possible decrease in labile POC (LPOC) from dilution with refractory organic matter is masked by inputs of fresh organic matter from tributaries downstream. Comparison of TSS, POC and LPOC leaving the Iron Gate I barrier at the head of the Danube delta shows that the bulk of material currently entering the Black Sea is derived from inputs from tributaries and riverbed erosion, downstream of the Iron Gate I. The nature and distribution of organic matter in the surface sediments of the Black Sea are influenced by mixing between Danube-derived material and freshly produced organic matter on the shelf and in the open sea, on the one hand, and by oxic degradation during transport from the shelf to the abyssal Black sea, on the other. Preliminary data on the stable isotopic composition of nitrogen in surface sediments of the Black Sea further suggest that organic matter production on the shelf and the adjacent northwestern Black Sea is fuelled by different nitrogen sources.
ABSTRACT Two distinct but interfingering fans exist in the northwestern BlackSea: the Danube fan ... more ABSTRACT Two distinct but interfingering fans exist in the northwestern BlackSea: the Danube fan fed by the River Danube during fan accretion, and the Dniepr fan built up by the Ukranian rivers Dniepr, Dniestr and Bug. Within each of these fans, the six upper seismic sequences comprise fan-typical facies associations with pronounced channel-levee systems and levees which pass laterally into overbank deposits. These sequences are separated from each other by condensed sections. Fan accretion proceeds via channelized turbidity flows and mass transport processes, in the course of which avulsion and channel migration commonly occur. Ten acoustic facies subtypes classified into four facies groups have been identified for the youngest sequence. They allow in turn the distribution of channel deposits coarse- and fine-grained levees as well as various mass transport units to be mapped. Mass transport processes appear to have been more dominant in the Dniepr fan. Morphometric analysis of the channels suggests that the Danube and Dniepr fans are highly sinuous, mud-rich systems which adjust their channel slopes to accommodate the flow volume and sediment load of the turbidity input. The Danube fan has generally a lower valley slope and a higher sinuosity than the Dniepr fan, indicating that its source material is finer. The Danube and Dniepr fans were accreted during the past 480 ka (sequences 3 to 8). Average deposition rates for the fan sequences range from 2 .4 to 7.2 m/ka and the volume of material deposited within a sea level cycle lies between 4,300 km3 and 9,590 km3.
Corneliu Dinu, a bright figure of Romanian Geology, of Romanian science, left us after a life ded... more Corneliu Dinu, a bright figure of Romanian Geology, of Romanian science, left us after a life dedicated to Geology and to teaching of young specialists. A life in which Cornel, let me call him so, because we were bound by a warm friendship for many decades, which was based on the identical understanding of the basic notions of life, of human duty, of fairness and honesty and of professional interests, tried to give everything to society, to build and shape young people and specialists for the good of the country.
Abstract. The present article is in extenso version of the paper « Histoire Quaternaire du Delta ... more Abstract. The present article is in extenso version of the paper « Histoire Quaternaire du Delta du Danube. Essai d'interprétation des faciès des dépôts deltaïques » signed by N. Panin that was published in 1972 in Cercetari Marine No. 4, p. 5-15. The first author of the present paper decided to present the initial in extenso version of the article as an historical document representing a step forward in the knowledge of the Danube Delta geological structure and evolution. A sedimentological analysis at the knowledge level of the seventies of data from more than 100 drillings is presented and consequently an interpretation of the delta geological structure and development is given. This new interpretation was based on a modern at that time knowledge about the deltaic sedimentary processes and the Black Sea evolution during the Quaternary. It was proposed as an alternative to the older hypothesis of Liteanu et al. (1961). The new hypothesis stated that the Danube Delta represents...
Coastal Research Library, 2017
Any petroleum exploration or regional model construction need a detailed understanding of the geo... more Any petroleum exploration or regional model construction need a detailed understanding of the geologic evolution of the basin under consideration. This is possible only through a careful regional scale interpretation of the data available. The prolongation of any geological model from a relatively well to a less constrained area is always challenging. This is the case of the Western Black Sea Basin where the stratigraphic correlation from the shelf to deep water is not straightforward. So far this was in part due to the fact that the backbone of any regional interpretation in the Black Sea have been the OGS and DSS lines acquired in 70s that were available as paper sections only. The acquisition and publication of the new regional industry lines, driven by the new deep water hydrocarbon exploration, eased and improved the geological interpretation of this area.
The article presents a detailed analysis of the underwater morphology of the entire Black Sea bas... more The article presents a detailed analysis of the underwater morphology of the entire Black Sea basin beyond the shelf break. The focus is on submarine valley systems on continental slope and rise zones, and partially in the abyssal plain area. The present research is among the very few studies that have undertaken a morphological analysis on a regional scale, for an entire marine basin. This achievement was possible by using the publicly available EMODnet bathymetric map of the Black Sea. The Black Sea submarine valleys networks are presented in a map-sketch. It includes 25 valley systems, 5 groups of simple first order channels, and other number of simple, not associated channels. The 25 valley systems are adding up more than 110 main channels and tributaries. Morphological description and analysis of each of the mapped systems is given – shape and plan view morphology, dimensions (length and surface) and slope gradient. Some considerations about the amount of sediments supplied by ...
Dan Constantin Jipa, a great friend, an eminent, brilliant scientist, who has completely dedicate... more Dan Constantin Jipa, a great friend, an eminent, brilliant scientist, who has completely dedicated his life to Earth Sciences, passed away onSeptember 28, 2020. Adieu dear friend! He worked with total dedication for over 60 years and his enthusiasm and interest in the profession did notfade even at the last moment - two months earlier, he was in the Bucegi Mountains where he had resumed his study of the Bucegi Conglomerates.We were good friends, we worked together and we supported each other to the best of our ability.
IntroductIon The development of the Danube Delta is closely dependent of the evolution of the Bla... more IntroductIon The development of the Danube Delta is closely dependent of the evolution of the Black Sea water level on one hand and to the development of the Danube River, of its sediment and water discharge on another. It is well known that during the Quaternary the Black Sea water level changed many times, in accordance with drastic climatic changes (glaciations and inter-glaciations). The Bosporous strait with its sill placed at about-34 m had determined a specific regional behaviour of the Black Sea when the water level was lower the sill depth, as the connection with the Mediterranean Sea, was interrupted and the Black Sea water level varied under the local hydrological and climatic conditions. In the last 100 ka there were at least three high-stands: during the Karangatian phase of the Black Sea (~125-~65 ka BP), during the Surozhian phase (~40-25 ka BP) and after the melting of Würmian icecap (the melting occurred after ~16-15 ka BP). Another low stand is documented during the
The year 1993 represents for us a milestone. In 1993, a new Research – Development – Innovation u... more The year 1993 represents for us a milestone. In 1993, a new Research – Development – Innovation unit, dedicated to Marine Sciences – the Romanian Centre of Marine Geology and Geo-ecology was founded. After three years only, the Centre became an institute of national importance, the National Institute of R & D for Marine Geology and Geo-ecology – GeoEcoMar. The institute GeoEcoMar had a rapid development, and gained large acceptance from the international scientific community and established numerous connections with institutes and universities all around the World.
Sedimentology, 1966
ABSTRACT
Marine Geology, 2000
A regional water level curve for the northwestern Black Sea covering lowstands of the past 900 ka... more A regional water level curve for the northwestern Black Sea covering lowstands of the past 900 ka has been inferred from shelf terraces and coastal onlaps identified in seismic data. Corrections for sediment compaction, isostatic response to sediment load and thermal subsidence were included. A water level lowstand of Ϫ151 m was found for the last glaciation, ca 30 m lower than the global sea level stand at the Last Glacial Maximum. Water level could develop independently in the Black Sea due to its isolation from the global oceans when the water level of the Black Sea was lower than its outlet. In addition, a deepsea fan complex in the northwestern Black Sea was investigated by seismic reflection, showing that it can be divided into the Danube fan and the Dniepr fan (also fed by the rivers Dniestr and Southern Bug). Eight seismic sequences were distinguished in the northwestern Black Sea and their thicknesses and facies distributions mapped. The two lowermost sequences consist mainly of unchannelized mass transport deposits (slumps, slides, debris flows), while the six upper sequences with their typical channel-levee systems as well as overbank and mass transport deposits constitute the deepsea fan complex. Correlation of fan development with the regional water level curve yields an inferred age of ca 900 ka BP for the Danube fan; development of the Dniepr fan started probably about 100 ka later. Computed average sedimentation rates range between 1.19 and 2.19 m/ka for the Danube fan and between 1.07 and 2.03 m/ka for the Dniepr fan. The corresponding rates for sediment accumulation are 68-141 t/a and 41-82 t/a. Mean denudation rates in the drainage area are computed to be 0.027-0.105 mm/a and 0.017-0.127 mm/a, respectively.
Global and Planetary Change, 2013
The Danube River Basin-Black Sea area represents a unique natural laboratory for studying the int... more The Danube River Basin-Black Sea area represents a unique natural laboratory for studying the interplay between lithosphere and surface as well as source to sink relationships and their impact on global change. This paper addresses some information on the "active sink" of the system; i.e. the Danube deep sea fan and the Black Sea basin. The present study focuses on the distal sedimentary processes and the evolution of sedimentation since the Last Glacial Maximum. This is investigated through recently acquired long piston coring and shallow seismic data recovered at the boundary of influence of the distal part of the Danube turbidite system (to the northwest) and the Turkish margin (to the south). This dataset provides a good record of the recent changes in the sedimentary supply and climato-eustasy in the Black Sea region during the last 25 ka. This study demonstrates that the deep basin deposits bear the record of the Late Quaternary paleoenvironmental changes and that the western Black Sea constitutes an asymmetric subsident basin bordered by a northern passive margin with confined, mid-size, mud-rich turbidite systems mainly controlled by sea-level, and a southern turbidite ramp margin, tectonically active. Highlights ► Oceanographic results from survey carried out in the western Black Sea are presented. ► The Danube fan distal part: the Black Sea main depositional feature is described. ► This study is on the morphology and gravity sedimentation in the Black Sea deep basin. ► Data were collected at the boundary between the Danube fan and the Turkish margin. ► The dataset provide a good record of sedimentary supply and climato-eustatic changes.
Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science, 2002
Suspended matter and sediments from the Danube River and the adjacent northwestern Black Sea were... more Suspended matter and sediments from the Danube River and the adjacent northwestern Black Sea were analysed for organic carbon, nitrogen and biogenic carbonate and silica, as well as for different fractions of organic matter such as amino acids and carbohydrates. In addition, the nitrogen isotopic composition of surficial sediments of the NW Black Sea was examined. Particulate organic carbon (POC) contents decrease with total suspended solid (TSS) concentration due to dilution by mineral matter derived from upstream and riverbed erosion. The contribution of labile constituents such as amino acids and carbohydrates to POC remains uniform across the measured TSS contents. This suggests that any possible decrease in labile POC (LPOC) from dilution with refractory organic matter is masked by inputs of fresh organic matter from tributaries downstream. Comparison of TSS, POC and LPOC leaving the Iron Gate I barrier at the head of the Danube delta shows that the bulk of material currently entering the Black Sea is derived from inputs from tributaries and riverbed erosion, downstream of the Iron Gate I. The nature and distribution of organic matter in the surface sediments of the Black Sea are influenced by mixing between Danube-derived material and freshly produced organic matter on the shelf and in the open sea, on the one hand, and by oxic degradation during transport from the shelf to the abyssal Black sea, on the other. Preliminary data on the stable isotopic composition of nitrogen in surface sediments of the Black Sea further suggest that organic matter production on the shelf and the adjacent northwestern Black Sea is fuelled by different nitrogen sources.
ABSTRACT Two distinct but interfingering fans exist in the northwestern BlackSea: the Danube fan ... more ABSTRACT Two distinct but interfingering fans exist in the northwestern BlackSea: the Danube fan fed by the River Danube during fan accretion, and the Dniepr fan built up by the Ukranian rivers Dniepr, Dniestr and Bug. Within each of these fans, the six upper seismic sequences comprise fan-typical facies associations with pronounced channel-levee systems and levees which pass laterally into overbank deposits. These sequences are separated from each other by condensed sections. Fan accretion proceeds via channelized turbidity flows and mass transport processes, in the course of which avulsion and channel migration commonly occur. Ten acoustic facies subtypes classified into four facies groups have been identified for the youngest sequence. They allow in turn the distribution of channel deposits coarse- and fine-grained levees as well as various mass transport units to be mapped. Mass transport processes appear to have been more dominant in the Dniepr fan. Morphometric analysis of the channels suggests that the Danube and Dniepr fans are highly sinuous, mud-rich systems which adjust their channel slopes to accommodate the flow volume and sediment load of the turbidity input. The Danube fan has generally a lower valley slope and a higher sinuosity than the Dniepr fan, indicating that its source material is finer. The Danube and Dniepr fans were accreted during the past 480 ka (sequences 3 to 8). Average deposition rates for the fan sequences range from 2 .4 to 7.2 m/ka and the volume of material deposited within a sea level cycle lies between 4,300 km3 and 9,590 km3.
Corneliu Dinu, a bright figure of Romanian Geology, of Romanian science, left us after a life ded... more Corneliu Dinu, a bright figure of Romanian Geology, of Romanian science, left us after a life dedicated to Geology and to teaching of young specialists. A life in which Cornel, let me call him so, because we were bound by a warm friendship for many decades, which was based on the identical understanding of the basic notions of life, of human duty, of fairness and honesty and of professional interests, tried to give everything to society, to build and shape young people and specialists for the good of the country.