Kenneth R Miller II - Profile on Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Papers by Kenneth R Miller II

3. Bethany Beach Site

Operations: Cobbs, Cobbs III, McLaughlin, Miller Lithostratigraphy: Baxter, Browning, Cramer, Her... more Operations: Cobbs, Cobbs III, McLaughlin, Miller Lithostratigraphy: Baxter, Browning, Cramer, Hernandez, Katz, McLaughlin, McKenna, Miller, Monteverde, Pekar, Ramsey, Strohmeier, Sugarman, Uptegrove Biostratigraphy: Spores, pollen, and dinocysts: ...

This white paper is based on a workshop report (Fulthorpe et al., 2008a) that identifies two fund... more This white paper is based on a workshop report (Fulthorpe et al., 2008a) that identifies two fundamental objectives for sea-level studies: 1) determine the pattern of global sea-level (eustatic) change and identify and quantify the mechanisms responsible for eustatic change through geological time, and 2) define the sedimentary and sequence stratigraphic responses to eustatic change in siliciclastic, carbonates and mixed depositional settings. Strategies for achieving these objectives include applying a drilling transect approach (integrating offshore and onshore drilling transects) to both icehouse and greenhouse targets and extending the approach to active margins to complement ongoing passive-margin drilling. Only through IODP drilling can we decipher the origin of the preserved stratigraphic record on continental margins and, in particular, quantify the record of global sea-level change (eustasy). Continental margin sediments, deposited within a few hundred meters of sea level, ...

Proceedings of the Ocean Drilling Program, 150 Scientific Results, 1996

Drilling on the New Jersey continental slope and rise provides an Eocene bathyal to abyssal depth... more Drilling on the New Jersey continental slope and rise provides an Eocene bathyal to abyssal depth transect and an Oligocene to Miocene bathyal transect that allow the calibration of benthic foraminiferal abundance changes to independent depth estimates through time. New Jersey Transect benthic foraminiferal faunal changes reflect global, regional, and local influences and provide constraints on paleobathymetry and sediment provenance. The New Jersey Transect yields cosmopolitan Eocene deep-water benthic foraminiferal faunas. Early to middle Eocene bathyal biofacies are characterized by Lenticulina spp., Alabamina wilcoxensis, and Osangularia spp., whereas coeval abyssal locations contain a deeper Nuttallides truempyi-dominated biofacies. A late middle Eocene shift to a bathyal biofacies dominated by Osαngulαriα spp., Buliminα αlαzαnensis, and Pulleniα bulloides reflects a global event that affected bathyal and abyssal sites. However, we lack an abyssal record to evaluate the full regional impact of this global event. Late Eocene bathyal faunas on the New Jersey Transect contain high abundances of Buliminα αlαzαnensis (up to 50%), similar to peak B. αlαzαnensis abundances reported from other Atlantic locations. We speculate that this uniform biofacies indicates that circum-Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico sites were ventilated by similar intermediate to upper deep-water masses in the late Eocene. A cosmopolitan Lenticulina spp.-dominated biofacies prevailed in the Oligocene to early Miocene bathyal zone; polymorphinids and A. wilcoxensis were common secondary components of this biofacies. A Uvigerina hispida-B. alazanensis-dominated biofacies characterized the middle Miocene. A coeval increase in Uvigerina spp.-dominated faunas occurred in the Gulf of Mexico, indicating that this increase may be regional in extent. The shift from the Lenticulina spp.-dominated biofacies to the Uvigerina hispida-B. alazanensis-dommatQá biofacies may be the regional expression of a global late early to early middle Miocene benthic foraminiferal turnover event and associated abundance changes. Oligocene to Miocene benthic foraminiferal biofacies changes at the slope sites exhibit sequence stratigraphic variations: (1) downslope-transported shelf taxa above several sequence boundaries (this may represent the slope expression of the shelf lowstand systems tracts) and in the upper parts of several sequences (within the slope equivalent of the shelf highstand systems tracts); (2) a preponderance of U. proboscidea occurs in the lower parts of several sequences (this may represent in situ biofacies within the slope expression of the lowstand systems tracts); (3) higher abundances of Stilostomella spp. occur in the upper parts of several sequences (this may represent the slope equivalent of the highstand systems tracts); and (4) and higher abundances of M. pompilioides span several sequence boundaries. We tentatively interpret the sections immediately above sequence boundaries as correlative to the lowstand systems tracts on the shelf. These sections contain predominantly in situ faunas with minor abundances of transported benthic foraminifers (<10% of the total fauna). Minor abundances of transported benthic foraminifers reappear in the upper parts of several sequences, and may reflect minor shedding of shelf sediments during highstand systems tracts progradation on the shelf. Sedimentation in the early middle Miocene and older intervals was dominated by pelagic settling at our slope sites (as it is today), and there is little benthic foraminiferal evidence for widespread downslope transport prior to the middle middle Miocene at our sites. In the Leg 150 region of the New Jersey slope, a dramatic change in the dominant mode of sedimentation occurred between Reflectors m3 (13.5 Ma) and m2 (12.5 Ma). This change is indicated by (1) a major increase in downslope transport of neritic (shelf) species; (2) dramatically increased sedimentation rates (>60 cm/yr); (3) increased terrigenous input; (4) submarine channel cutting; (5) high terrestrial carbon input; and (6) mobilization of biogenic carbonate to form diagenetic nodules. Transported benthic foraminifers dominate the upper middle Miocene to Pleistocene section of the slope cores, reflecting increased sediment supply due to the progradation of clinoforms that progressed from 90 km landward of Site 903 in the early Miocene to -60 km landward in the middle Miocene to less than 20 km landward in the Pleistocene. Cibicidoides eocaenus (Gümbel) Cibicidoides eocaenus/praemundulus intergrade Cibicidoides grimsdalei (Nuttall) Cibicidoides grosseperforatus van Morkhoven and Berggren Cibicidoides haitiensis (Coryell and Rivero) Cibicidoides havanensis (Cushman and Bermúdez) Cibicidoides havanensis/praemundulus intergrade Cibicidoides laurisae (Mallory) Cibicidoides micrus Bermúdez Cibicidoides mundulus (Brady, Parker, and Jones) Cibicidoides aff. mundulus Cibicidoides osangularis Cibicidoides pachyderma (Rzehak) Cibicidoides perlucidus (Nuttall) Cibicidoides popeliensis Myatlyuk Cibicidoides praemundulus Berggren and Miller Cibicidoides aff. praemundulus Cibicidoides? praemundulus Cibicidoides robertsonianus (Brady) Cibicidoides subhaidingerii (Parr) Cibicidoides subspiratus (Nuttall) Cibicidoides sp. A

Open-File Report, 2007

The imperfect direct record of Antarctic glaciation has led to the delayed recognition of the ini... more The imperfect direct record of Antarctic glaciation has led to the delayed recognition of the initiation of a continentsized ice sheet. Early studies interpreted initiation in the middle Miocene (ca 15 Ma). Most current studies place the first ice sheet in the earliest Oligocene (33.55 Ma), but there is physical evidence for glaciation in the Eocene. Though there are inherent limitations in sea-level and deep-sea isotope records, both place constraints on the size and extent of Late Cretaceous to Cenozoic Antarctic ice sheets. Sealevel records argue that small-to medium-size (typically 10-12 × 10 6 km 3 ) ephemeral ice sheets occurred during the greenhouse world of the Late Cretaceous to middle Eocene. Deep-sea δ 18 O records show increases associated with many of these greenhouse sea-level falls, consistent with their attribution to ice-sheet growth. Global cooling began in the middle Eocene and culminated with the major earliest Oligocene (33.55 Ma) growth of a large (25 × 10 6 km 3 ) Antarctic ice sheet that caused a 55-70 m eustatic fall and a 1‰ δ 18 O increase. This large ice sheet became a driver of climate change, not just a response to it, causing increased latitudinal thermal gradients and a spinning up of the oceans that, in turn, caused a dramatic reorganization of ocean circulation and chemistry.

Proceedings of the Ocean Drilling Program, 150X Scientific Results, 1997

We use Sr-isotopic age estimates to date siliciclastic, carbonate, and mixed siliciclastic-carbon... more We use Sr-isotopic age estimates to date siliciclastic, carbonate, and mixed siliciclastic-carbonate Oligocene and Miocene sequences for the New Jersey Coastal Plain and Florida Peninsula and to correlate sequence boundaries with the deep-sea δ 18 O record and the inferred eustatic record of Exxon. The New Jersey onshore Oligocene to lower Miocene sequences correlate reasonably well with the Florida Miocene sequences. However, the majority of middle Miocene sequences mapped in New Jersey are missing from central Florida. The age of Oligocene to Miocene sequence boundaries determined in continuous boreholes from New Jersey, Alabama, and Florida show excellent correlation with deep-sea δ 18 O increases, which are inferred glacioeustatic lowerings. This is strong confirmation that global sea-level change is a primary control on the timing of Oligocene to Miocene sequence boundaries for the coastal plain sections studied here. Whereas global sea level has a significant influence on coastal plain sequences, there are major differences in the preservation of sequences within the same depositional basin (e.g., Salisbury Embayment) and between basins (e.g., Florida basins vs. Salisbury Embayment). These intra-and interbasinal differences must be ascribed to noneustatic processes such as tectonics or differential erosion. Tectonic mechanisms include faulting of crustal blocks, mobile basins with evolving arches and depocenters, local flexural subsidence, or differential subsidence caused by sediment loading.

Proceedings of the Ocean Drilling Program, 150X Scientific Results, 1997

Stratigraphic correlation between shallow-water and deep-sea sections has proven notoriously diff... more Stratigraphic correlation between shallow-water and deep-sea sections has proven notoriously difficult because of hiatuses, diachrony of marker species, and diagenesis on the shelf. Isotope stratigraphy, biostratigraphy, and magnetostratigraphy reveal that sedimentation on the New Jersey Margin (Island Beach borehole) was relatively continuous during the late Paleocene and early Eocene (~58-52.5 Ma). All planktonic foraminiferal and calcareous nannofossil zones are represented at Island Beach. However, two disconformities are recognized in the upper Paleocene to lower Eocene section: a physical surface (lithologic change) at the Vincentown/Manasquan contact (uppermost Paleocene), which has a hiatus of ~0.3 m.y., and a ~0.4-m.y. gap associated with a paraconformity in the lower Eocene section. Stable isotopic data from the New Jersey Margin indicate that this neritic section can be successfully correlated to the deep sea using δ 13 C and δ 18 O of benthic foraminiferal calcite. Comparison between the Island Beach and global isotopic records (as represented by deep Pacific Site 577) shows that Island Beach parallels the global trend in both δ 18 O and δ 13 C. All major features of the late Paleocene to early Eocene global isotopic record are preserved, including general δ 18 O decrease, step-like δ 13 C decrease, and the well-known latest Paleocene δ 13 C excursion. We recognize three 1-to 1.5-m.y. δ 13 C steps over our interval of study at both Island Beach and the deep . These steps are correlative with intervals of increased paleodepth, as indicated by benthic foraminiferal biofacies studies, and decreased δ 18 O values. We suggest a link between increased temperature and sea level, and reduced organic carbon burial in the deep sea. Previous workers identified a latest Paleocene benthic foraminiferal faunal change on the New Jersey Margin (Clayton borehole). They suggested that this faunal turnover was the neritic correlative of the well-known latest Paleocene benthic extinction event. Our data indicate that at Island Beach, uppermost Paleocene δ 13 C and δ 18 O excursions occur above the disconformity and the associated shallow-water benthic foraminiferal faunal change. This isotopic excursion may be synchronous with the deep-sea extinction event or with a younger δ 13 C decrease. We suggest that the benthic foraminiferal event on the New Jersey Margin was the result of a dramatic water-depth increase on the shelf and was unrelated to the deep-sea extinction.

Proceedings of the Ocean Drilling Program, 150X Scientific Results, 1997

We present lithostratigraphic and paleoenvironmental interpretations of the Island Beach borehole... more We present lithostratigraphic and paleoenvironmental interpretations of the Island Beach borehole. This borehole provides the only Upper Cretaceous to lower Eocene section recovered by the New Jersey Coastal Plain Drilling Project (Ocean Drilling Program Leg 150X). Upper Cretaceous and Paleogene sections were deposited in relatively deep marine paleoenvironments (typically outer middle to outer neritic; 50-200 m paleowater depths) as a series of upsection shallowing sequences. Although the Oligocene section is relatively thick (267 ft [81.4 m]), it is poorly fossiliferous and provides the most equivocal Oligocene paleoenvironmental record of the three Leg 150X boreholes. Lower Miocene strata at this site consist of three poorly fossiliferous sequences (Kw1a, K1b, and Kw2a) deposited in shallow marine (inner neritic, near-shore, prodelta, and delta front) to fluvial environments. The Miocene sections also shallow upsection, both within sequences and within the Miocene as a whole. The surficial strata at Island Beach are composed of uppermost Pleistocene (?) to Holocene deposited as one deepening-upward succession representing fluvial to near-shore deposits. Tectonics progressively reshaped the basins in which Upper Cretaceous to Holocene strata were deposited. For example, Oligocene basins were mainly in southern New Jersey (Atlantic City and south), whereas the early Miocene Kirkwood basin was more expansive both updip and along strike to the north. Tectonic changes resulted in differential beveling of stratigraphic units and preferential preservation. For example, the lower Oligocene appears to be truncated north of Mays Landing, NJ, and is poorly represented at the Island Beach borehole.

Proceedings of the Ocean Drilling Program, 150X Scientific Results, 1997

A triad of processes controls the marine stratigraphic record: changes in sea level, tectonics, a... more A triad of processes controls the marine stratigraphic record: changes in sea level, tectonics, and sediment supply. Whereas the stratigraphic record may be objectively divided into sequences (unconformity-bounded units), the relative role of these three processes on development of passive continental margin sequences remains controversial. Three tasks must be accomplished before extracting process from the passive margin signal: the sequences must be identified, dated, and the facies changes within them mapped. The New Jersey Sea-level Transect (Ocean Drilling Program Leg 150X onshore drilling, Leg 150 slope drilling, and Leg 174A shelf drilling) has begun this task. The New Jersey Coastal Plain Drilling Project (Leg 150X) has completed boreholes at Island Beach (total depth 1223 ft [372.7 m]; April-May, 1993), Atlantic City (total depth 1452 ft [442.6 m]; June-August, 1993), and Cape May (total depth 1500 ft [457.2 m]; March-April, 1994). The papers contained in this volume present detailed lithostratigraphic, well-log, core-log, magnetostratigraphic, biostratigraphic, chemostratigraphic, paleoenvironmental, and hydrogeologic studies conducted on these boreholes. This introductory chapter outlines the general goals and strategies of onshore drilling in the context of the New Jersey Sea-level Transect, provides an overview of the material recovered onshore by Leg 150X in 1993Leg 150X in -1994, and discusses the nature of post-drilling studies and the need for future work. Highlights of Leg 150X include the following: 1. Studies herein develop a chronology of late middle Eocene to middle Miocene onshore sequence boundaries, correlate them with major δ 18 O increases, and confirm that these unconformities were formed by global sea-level lowerings. 2. Comparison of New Jersey sequences with the Exxon syntheses shows that the Exxon Eocene to middle Miocene sequences are recorded on the New Jersey Margin where their ages are well constrained. 3. A sequence stratigraphic framework was obtained for the Paleocene to middle Miocene by integrating chronologic, lithostratigraphic, well-log, core-log, benthic foraminiferal biofacies, and isotopic studies. These studies include evaluation of unconformities and flooding surfaces, delineating systems tract variations within sequences, and estimating water depth variations within sequences. 4. Other studies address hydrostratigraphy, pore-water quality, pore-water isotopic composition, clay mineralogy, silica diagenesis, core-log/well-log integration, biostratigraphy, palynology, and climate.

Paleoceanography, 2017

We present orbital‐scale resolution (~10 kyr) benthic foraminiferal δ18O and δ13C records from th... more We present orbital‐scale resolution (~10 kyr) benthic foraminiferal δ18O and δ13C records from the Kerguelen Plateau (Ocean Drilling Program Sites 751 and 747) from 14.5 to 20.0 Ma spanning the Miocene climate optimum (15–17 Ma). Our records fill a critical gap from ~17 to 18 Ma, a time when many other deep‐sea records are affected by dissolution. We tested the fidelity of published magnetobiostratigraphic age models for these sites by astronomically tuning to the 405 kyr eccentricity cycle. A comparison of spectral estimates between the untuned and tuned records, as well as coherency with Laskar's (2004) eccentricity solution, revealed quasi‐100 kyr cyclicity in δ18O and δ13C. There is only a weak signal associated with the 41 kyr obliquity cycle, likely due to the 10 kyr sampling limiting resolution. The δ18O variations point to persistent 405 and quasi‐100 kyr modulations of temperature and sea level changes through the early to middle Miocene as predicted by astronomical sol...

Proceedings of the Ocean Drilling Program, 150 Scientific Results, 1996

We analyzed specimens of mixed planktonic foraminifer species for Sr isotopes from the Oligocene ... more We analyzed specimens of mixed planktonic foraminifer species for Sr isotopes from the Oligocene to middle Miocene sections from boreholes (Ocean Drilling Program Sites 902, 903, 904, and 906; and outcrops on the New Jersey continental slope. We concentrated on the upper Oligocene-middle Miocene at Sites 903 and 904 (444 and 1129 m present water depth, respectively), the upper Oligocene-lowermost Miocene at Site 902 (811m water depth), and slope outcrops in Carteret and Lindenkohl canyons. Sr-isotopic age estimates of the Ocean Drilling Program boreholes provide a good stratigraphic framework for upper Oligocene to middle Miocene sections, overcoming problems with rare calcareous plankton zonal markers. When integrated with ongoing biostratigraphic and magnetostratigraphic studies, the Leg 150 sites will provide a precise chronology of slope reflectors that also correlate with sequences boundaries traced under the continental shelf. Preliminary integration is encouraging: (1) nine of the 10 Oligocene to middle Miocene slope reflectors (sequence boundaries) correlate with global δ 18 θ increases and with sequence boundaries in the onshore New Jersey coastal plain, arguing for a causal link between formation of sequence boundaries and glacioeustatic lowerings; and (2) several hiatuses on the slope also correlate with reflectors and the major δ 18 θ increases, although many of the seismic reflectors appear to be conformable at the slope boreholes. Outcrop studies date a major change in depositional regime in the earliest Oligocene; this "siliciclastic switch" from an Eocene carbonate ramp to a starved siliciclastic early Oligocene margin correlates with a global δ 18 θ increase and a regional cooling. Sediment starvation in the early Oligocene resulted in a poorly preserved record on the slope. Sedimentation rates subsequently increased in the middle Oligocene on the entire margin, when prograding clinoforms appeared beneath the modern shelf and rates increased again in the early to middle Miocene. We attribute this progradational change to lower long-term sea level, although hinterland tectonics may have played an important role.

Reviews of Geophysics, 1998

The New Jersey Sea Level Transect was designed to evaluate the relationships among global sea lev... more The New Jersey Sea Level Transect was designed to evaluate the relationships among global sea level (eustatic) change, unconformity‐bounded sequences, and variations in subsidence, sediment supply, and climate on a passive continental margin. By sampling and dating Cenozoic strata from coastal plain and continental slope locations, we show that sequence boundaries correlate (within ±0.5 myr) regionally (onshore‐offshore) and interregionally (New Jersey‐Alabama‐Bahamas), implicating a global cause. Sequence boundaries correlate with δ18O increases for at least the past 42 myr, consistent with an ice volume (glacioeustatic) control, although a causal relationship is not required because of uncertainties in ages and correlations. Evidence for a causal connection is provided by preliminary Miocene data from slope Site 904 that directly link δ18O increases with sequence boundaries. We conclude that variation in the size of ice sheets has been a primary control on the formation of sequenc...

Oceanography, 2011

B y K e N N e t h G . M i l l e r , G r e G o r y S . M o u N ta i N , J a M e S D . W r i G h t,... more B y K e N N e t h G . M i l l e r , G r e G o r y S . M o u N ta i N , J a M e S D . W r i G h t, a N D J a M e S V. B r o W N i N G a 180-Million-year record of Sea level and ice Volume Variations from continental Margin and Deep-Sea isotopic records Drilling conducted by the integrated ocean Drilling program (ioDp) on the inner, shallow part of the New Jersey shelf required the use of a threelegged lift boat. Not affected by tide or swell, a successful coring and downhole logging program through loosely consolidated shelf sediments was achieved. Photo courtesy of IODP/ECORD

Nature Geoscience, 2008

In the largest global cooling event of the Cenozoic Era, between 33.8 and 33.5 Myr ago, warm, hig... more In the largest global cooling event of the Cenozoic Era, between 33.8 and 33.5 Myr ago, warm, high-CO 2 conditions gave way to the variable 'icehouse' climates that prevail today. Despite intense study, the history of cooling versus ice-sheet growth and sea-level fall reconstructed from oxygen isotope values in marine sediments at the transition has not been resolved. Here, we analyse oxygen isotopes and Mg/Ca ratios of benthic foraminifera, and integrate the results with the stratigraphic record of sea-level change across the Eocene-Oligocene transition from a continental-shelf site at Saint Stephens Quarry, Alabama. Comparisons with deep-sea (Sites 522 (South Atlantic) and 1218 (Pacific)) δ 18 O and Mg/Ca records enable us to reconstruct temperature, ice-volume and sea-level changes across the climate transition. Our records show that the transition occurred in at least three distinct steps, with an increasing influence of ice volume on the oxygen isotope record as the transition progressed. By the early Oligocene, ice sheets were ∼25% larger than present. This growth was associated with a relative sea-level decrease of approximately 105 m, which equates to a 67 m eustatic fall.

Marine Geology, 1999

We have reconstructed the Oligocene to Middle Miocene paleobathymetry and stratigraphy of the New... more We have reconstructed the Oligocene to Middle Miocene paleobathymetry and stratigraphy of the New Jersey margin using a modified backstripping technique. By analyzing the geometry of the margin through time, we investigate its response to fluctuating sea level, changing climate, and variable sediment supply during the Tertiary. The reconstructions reveal a change in the margin morphology from a more steeply dipping (1 : 300 to 1 : 500) carbonate ramp in the Eocene to a flatter shelf with a sharp shelf edge at present. This was accomplished by an increase in the terrigenous sediment supply that filled available accommodation and caused progradation across the margin. We link the increase in sediment flux with climatic cooling rather than tectonic processes. The progradation is evidenced by a series of clinoforms whose formation was modulated by sea level and which extend over 100 km across the shelf. The height and dip of the clinoforms increased as they extended onto the deeper parts of the earlier ramp. The Miocene clinoform rollovers at the New Jersey margin had water depths of ¾60-130 m and are interpreted as the edge of a new continental shelf built over the older ramp. Sea-level fall was probably insufficient to drive the Miocene shorelines past the shelf breaks. Thus, measurements of sea-level amplitude based upon 'coastal' onlap over the clinoforms are not reliable.

Marine Geology, 2005

Backstripped eustatic estimates from New Jersey and the Russian platform show large (N25 m) and r... more Backstripped eustatic estimates from New Jersey and the Russian platform show large (N25 m) and rapid (b1 my) sea-level changes in the Late Cretaceous to early Eocene (99-49 Ma). The largest of these sea-level events occurred at the Campanian/ Maastrichtian boundary (71.5 Ma); we infer that ice growth and attendant sea-level lowering at 71.5 Ma were as great as many Oligocene and younger events (~40 m sea-level change). Glacioeustasy is the only known mechanism that can account for Late Cretaceous to early Eocene rapid changes because other hypothesized mechanisms (steric effects, water storage in lakes, deepwater changes, groundwater, or sea ice) are too slow or too small. In contrast to this evidence for glacioeustasy, ample geological evidence points to warm high-latitude temperatures at this time. The late Cenomanian-early Turonian d 18 O record highlights the enigma. This was the warmest interval of the past 200 my, yet it was bracketed by two inferred eustatic falls of ~25 m that were associated with two large (N 0.75x) deep-sea d 18 O increases (92-93 Ma, mid-Turonian and 96 Ma, mid-Cenomanian). We reconcile records of warm high latitudes with glacioeustasy by proposing that Late Cretaceous-early Eocene ice sheets generally reached maximum volumes of 8-12 Â 10 6 km 3 (20-30 m glacioeustatic equivalent), but did not reach the Antarctic coast; hence, coastal Antarctica (hence deep water) remained relatively warm even though there were significant changes in sea level as the result of glaciation. Unlike the Oligocene and younger icehouse world, these ice sheets only existed during short intervals of peak Milankovitch insolation, leaving Antarctica ice-free during much of the greenhouse Late Cretaceous to middle Eocene. These results highlight the need to re-evaluate the paradigm that polar ice sheets did not exist during times of warm high-latitude climates.

Marine and Petroleum Geology, 1996

The sedimentary fill of the Canterbury Basin, New Zealand, is the product of a long-term (80 Ma),... more The sedimentary fill of the Canterbury Basin, New Zealand, is the product of a long-term (80 Ma), tectonically controlled relative sea-level cycle with a megasequence geometry analogous to the sequence stratigraphic model of Vail (Am. Assoc.

Journal of Sedimentary Research, 2008

Paleogeographic, isopach, and deltaic lithofacies mapping of thirteen depositional sequences esta... more Paleogeographic, isopach, and deltaic lithofacies mapping of thirteen depositional sequences establish a 35 myr high resolution (. 1 Myr) record of Late Cretaceous wave-and tide-influenced deltaic sedimentation. We integrate sequences defined on the basis of lithologic, biostratigraphic, and Sr-isotope stratigraphy from cores with geophysical log data from 28 wells to further develop and extend methods and calibrations of well-log recognition of sequences and facies variations. This study reveals the northeastward migration of depocenters from the Cenomanian (ca. 98 Ma) through the earliest Danian (ca. 64 Ma) and documents five primary phases of paleodeltaic evolution in response to long-term eustatic changes, variations in sediment supply, the location of two long-lived fluvial axes, and thermoflexural basement subsidence: (1) Cenomanian-early Turonian deltaic facies exhibit marine and nonmarine facies and are concentrated in the central coastal plain; (2) high sediment rates, low sea level, and high accommodation rates in the northern coastal plain resulted in thick, marginal to nonmarine mixedinfluenced deltaic facies during the Turonian-Coniacian; (3) comparatively low sediment rates and high long-term sea level in the Santonian resulted in a sediment-starved margin with low deltaic influence; (4) well-developed Campanian deltaic sequences expand to the north and exhibit wave reworking and longshore transport of sands; and (5) low sedimentation rates and high long-term sea level during the Maastrichtian resulted in the deposition of a sediment-starved glauconitic shelf. Our study illustrates the widely known variability of mixed-influence deltaic systems, but also documents the relative stability of deltaic facies systems on the 10 6 -10 7 yr scale, with long periods of cyclically repeating systems tracts controlled by eustasy. Results from the Late Cretaceous further show that although eustasy provides the template for sequences globally, regional tectonics (rates of subsidence and accommodation), changes in sediment supply, proximity to sediment input, and flexural subsidence from depocenter loading determines the regional to local preservation and facies expression of sequences.

Geology, 2001

Previously published Oligocene eustatic records are compared with observed stratigraphic architec... more Previously published Oligocene eustatic records are compared with observed stratigraphic architecture at the New Jersey continental margin in order to evaluate the stratigraphic response to eustatic change. Lower to mid-Oligocene sequence boundaries (33.8-28.0 Ma) are associated with relatively long hiatuses (0.3-0.6 m.y.), in which sedimentation in many places terminated during eustatic falls and resumed early during eustatic rises. Upper Oligocene sequence boundaries are associated with relatively short hiatuses (Ͻ0.3 m.y.), and provide the best constraints on phase relations between sea-level forcing and margin response. The interval represented by each upper Oligocene sequence varies in dip profile. At updip locations, landward of the clinoform rollover in the underlying sequence boundary, sedimentation commenced after the eustatic low and terminated before the eustatic high (with partial erosion of any younger record). At downdip locations, sedimentation within each sequence was progressively delayed in a seaward direction, beginning during the eustatic rise and terminating near the eustatic low. Combining data from all available boreholes, ages of sequence boundaries (correlative surfaces) correspond closely with the timing of eustatic lows, and ages of condensed sections (intervals of sediment starvation) correspond with eustatic highs.

Geology, 1996

Six Oligocene sequences and one earliest Miocene sequence were identified at Island Beach, Atlant... more Six Oligocene sequences and one earliest Miocene sequence were identified at Island Beach, Atlantic City, and Cape May, New Jersey, and correlated to the ␦ 18 O proxy of glacioeustasy and the eustatic record of Haq et al. by integrating lithostratigraphy, biostratigraphy, Sr isotopic stratigraphy, and magnetostratigraphy. Seven global ␦ 18 O increases are recognized by correlating ␦ 18 O records among deep-sea sites; four of these increases (Oi1, Oi2, Oi2b, and Mi1; 33.5, 30.3, 27.1, and 23.8, respectively) were recognized previously, and three (Oi1a, Oi1b, and Oi2a; 32.8, 31.7, 28.3 Ma, respectively) are new. These ␦ 18 O increases correlate well with Oligocene unconformities, indicating a glacioeustatic control on sequence boundaries. Except for an unconformity and glacioeustatic lowering at ϳ28.3 Ma, the New Jersey Oligocene sequences correlate well with the Haq et al. record, although we question the amplitudes of their eustatic record. Controversy has surrounded the timing, amplitude, and cause of Oligocene global sea-level (eustatic) changes. Vail and and suggested a dramatic (Ͼ140 m) mid-Oligocene lowering while paleoceanographers maintained that the first Antarctic ice sheet formed in the middle Miocene (e.g., . This posed an enigma, because glacioeustatic change is the only known mechanism for large, rapid sea-level change (e.g., . Studies in the 1980s extended glacioeustasy to the beginning of the Oligocene; evidence for large Cenozoic ice sheets (i.e., an "icehouse world") is recorded by Oligocene glaciomarine sediments and high deep-sea ␦ 18 O values (summarized by . Although glacioeustasy provides a potential mechanism for large, rapid, sea-level change, independent verification of the record for the Oligocene has been hampered not only by poor continental margin records, but also by undersampled deep-sea ␦ 18 O records. Deep-sea benthic foraminiferal ␦ 18 O can be used to correlate and to evaluate temperature and ice-volume changes. noted four intervals of high Oligocene-earliest Miocene benthic foraminiferal ␦ 18 O values and used the ␦ 18 O values to define global zones (Oi1, Oi2, Oi2b, and Mi1 at 33.5 Ma, 30.3 Ma, 27.1 Ma, and 23.7 Ma, respectively; Fig. 1). Although high benthic foraminiferal ␦ 18 O values indicate the presence of ice sheets (e.g., Ͼ1.8‰ in Cibicidoides; Miller et al., 1991), they do not necessarily indicate the timing of ice growth, because benthic ␦ 18 O variations reflect both bottom-water temperature and ice-volume

Geology, 2003

We provide a record of global sea-level (eustatic) variations of the Late Cretaceous (99-65 Ma) g... more We provide a record of global sea-level (eustatic) variations of the Late Cretaceous (99-65 Ma) greenhouse world. Ocean Drilling Program Leg 174AX provided a record of 11-14 Upper Cretaceous sequences in the New Jersey Coastal Plain that were dated by integrating Sr isotopic stratigraphy and biostratigraphy. Backstripping yielded a Late Cretaceous eustatic estimate for these sequences, taking into account sediment loading, compaction, paleowater depth, and basin subsidence. We show that Late Cretaceous sea-level changes were large (Ͼ25 m) and rapid (K1 m.y.), suggesting a glacioeustatic control. Three large ␦ 18 O increases are linked to sequence boundaries (others lack sufficient ␦ 18 O data), consistent with a glacioeustatic cause and with the development of small (Ͻ10 6 km 3 ) ephemeral ice sheets in Antarctica. Our sequence boundaries correlate with sea-level falls recorded by Exxon Production Research and sections from northwest Europe and Russia, indicating a global cause, although the Exxon record differs from backstripped estimates in amplitude and shape.

3. Bethany Beach Site

Operations: Cobbs, Cobbs III, McLaughlin, Miller Lithostratigraphy: Baxter, Browning, Cramer, Her... more Operations: Cobbs, Cobbs III, McLaughlin, Miller Lithostratigraphy: Baxter, Browning, Cramer, Hernandez, Katz, McLaughlin, McKenna, Miller, Monteverde, Pekar, Ramsey, Strohmeier, Sugarman, Uptegrove Biostratigraphy: Spores, pollen, and dinocysts: ...

This white paper is based on a workshop report (Fulthorpe et al., 2008a) that identifies two fund... more This white paper is based on a workshop report (Fulthorpe et al., 2008a) that identifies two fundamental objectives for sea-level studies: 1) determine the pattern of global sea-level (eustatic) change and identify and quantify the mechanisms responsible for eustatic change through geological time, and 2) define the sedimentary and sequence stratigraphic responses to eustatic change in siliciclastic, carbonates and mixed depositional settings. Strategies for achieving these objectives include applying a drilling transect approach (integrating offshore and onshore drilling transects) to both icehouse and greenhouse targets and extending the approach to active margins to complement ongoing passive-margin drilling. Only through IODP drilling can we decipher the origin of the preserved stratigraphic record on continental margins and, in particular, quantify the record of global sea-level change (eustasy). Continental margin sediments, deposited within a few hundred meters of sea level, ...

Proceedings of the Ocean Drilling Program, 150 Scientific Results, 1996

Drilling on the New Jersey continental slope and rise provides an Eocene bathyal to abyssal depth... more Drilling on the New Jersey continental slope and rise provides an Eocene bathyal to abyssal depth transect and an Oligocene to Miocene bathyal transect that allow the calibration of benthic foraminiferal abundance changes to independent depth estimates through time. New Jersey Transect benthic foraminiferal faunal changes reflect global, regional, and local influences and provide constraints on paleobathymetry and sediment provenance. The New Jersey Transect yields cosmopolitan Eocene deep-water benthic foraminiferal faunas. Early to middle Eocene bathyal biofacies are characterized by Lenticulina spp., Alabamina wilcoxensis, and Osangularia spp., whereas coeval abyssal locations contain a deeper Nuttallides truempyi-dominated biofacies. A late middle Eocene shift to a bathyal biofacies dominated by Osαngulαriα spp., Buliminα αlαzαnensis, and Pulleniα bulloides reflects a global event that affected bathyal and abyssal sites. However, we lack an abyssal record to evaluate the full regional impact of this global event. Late Eocene bathyal faunas on the New Jersey Transect contain high abundances of Buliminα αlαzαnensis (up to 50%), similar to peak B. αlαzαnensis abundances reported from other Atlantic locations. We speculate that this uniform biofacies indicates that circum-Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico sites were ventilated by similar intermediate to upper deep-water masses in the late Eocene. A cosmopolitan Lenticulina spp.-dominated biofacies prevailed in the Oligocene to early Miocene bathyal zone; polymorphinids and A. wilcoxensis were common secondary components of this biofacies. A Uvigerina hispida-B. alazanensis-dominated biofacies characterized the middle Miocene. A coeval increase in Uvigerina spp.-dominated faunas occurred in the Gulf of Mexico, indicating that this increase may be regional in extent. The shift from the Lenticulina spp.-dominated biofacies to the Uvigerina hispida-B. alazanensis-dommatQá biofacies may be the regional expression of a global late early to early middle Miocene benthic foraminiferal turnover event and associated abundance changes. Oligocene to Miocene benthic foraminiferal biofacies changes at the slope sites exhibit sequence stratigraphic variations: (1) downslope-transported shelf taxa above several sequence boundaries (this may represent the slope expression of the shelf lowstand systems tracts) and in the upper parts of several sequences (within the slope equivalent of the shelf highstand systems tracts); (2) a preponderance of U. proboscidea occurs in the lower parts of several sequences (this may represent in situ biofacies within the slope expression of the lowstand systems tracts); (3) higher abundances of Stilostomella spp. occur in the upper parts of several sequences (this may represent the slope equivalent of the highstand systems tracts); and (4) and higher abundances of M. pompilioides span several sequence boundaries. We tentatively interpret the sections immediately above sequence boundaries as correlative to the lowstand systems tracts on the shelf. These sections contain predominantly in situ faunas with minor abundances of transported benthic foraminifers (<10% of the total fauna). Minor abundances of transported benthic foraminifers reappear in the upper parts of several sequences, and may reflect minor shedding of shelf sediments during highstand systems tracts progradation on the shelf. Sedimentation in the early middle Miocene and older intervals was dominated by pelagic settling at our slope sites (as it is today), and there is little benthic foraminiferal evidence for widespread downslope transport prior to the middle middle Miocene at our sites. In the Leg 150 region of the New Jersey slope, a dramatic change in the dominant mode of sedimentation occurred between Reflectors m3 (13.5 Ma) and m2 (12.5 Ma). This change is indicated by (1) a major increase in downslope transport of neritic (shelf) species; (2) dramatically increased sedimentation rates (>60 cm/yr); (3) increased terrigenous input; (4) submarine channel cutting; (5) high terrestrial carbon input; and (6) mobilization of biogenic carbonate to form diagenetic nodules. Transported benthic foraminifers dominate the upper middle Miocene to Pleistocene section of the slope cores, reflecting increased sediment supply due to the progradation of clinoforms that progressed from 90 km landward of Site 903 in the early Miocene to -60 km landward in the middle Miocene to less than 20 km landward in the Pleistocene. Cibicidoides eocaenus (Gümbel) Cibicidoides eocaenus/praemundulus intergrade Cibicidoides grimsdalei (Nuttall) Cibicidoides grosseperforatus van Morkhoven and Berggren Cibicidoides haitiensis (Coryell and Rivero) Cibicidoides havanensis (Cushman and Bermúdez) Cibicidoides havanensis/praemundulus intergrade Cibicidoides laurisae (Mallory) Cibicidoides micrus Bermúdez Cibicidoides mundulus (Brady, Parker, and Jones) Cibicidoides aff. mundulus Cibicidoides osangularis Cibicidoides pachyderma (Rzehak) Cibicidoides perlucidus (Nuttall) Cibicidoides popeliensis Myatlyuk Cibicidoides praemundulus Berggren and Miller Cibicidoides aff. praemundulus Cibicidoides? praemundulus Cibicidoides robertsonianus (Brady) Cibicidoides subhaidingerii (Parr) Cibicidoides subspiratus (Nuttall) Cibicidoides sp. A

Open-File Report, 2007

The imperfect direct record of Antarctic glaciation has led to the delayed recognition of the ini... more The imperfect direct record of Antarctic glaciation has led to the delayed recognition of the initiation of a continentsized ice sheet. Early studies interpreted initiation in the middle Miocene (ca 15 Ma). Most current studies place the first ice sheet in the earliest Oligocene (33.55 Ma), but there is physical evidence for glaciation in the Eocene. Though there are inherent limitations in sea-level and deep-sea isotope records, both place constraints on the size and extent of Late Cretaceous to Cenozoic Antarctic ice sheets. Sealevel records argue that small-to medium-size (typically 10-12 × 10 6 km 3 ) ephemeral ice sheets occurred during the greenhouse world of the Late Cretaceous to middle Eocene. Deep-sea δ 18 O records show increases associated with many of these greenhouse sea-level falls, consistent with their attribution to ice-sheet growth. Global cooling began in the middle Eocene and culminated with the major earliest Oligocene (33.55 Ma) growth of a large (25 × 10 6 km 3 ) Antarctic ice sheet that caused a 55-70 m eustatic fall and a 1‰ δ 18 O increase. This large ice sheet became a driver of climate change, not just a response to it, causing increased latitudinal thermal gradients and a spinning up of the oceans that, in turn, caused a dramatic reorganization of ocean circulation and chemistry.

Proceedings of the Ocean Drilling Program, 150X Scientific Results, 1997

We use Sr-isotopic age estimates to date siliciclastic, carbonate, and mixed siliciclastic-carbon... more We use Sr-isotopic age estimates to date siliciclastic, carbonate, and mixed siliciclastic-carbonate Oligocene and Miocene sequences for the New Jersey Coastal Plain and Florida Peninsula and to correlate sequence boundaries with the deep-sea δ 18 O record and the inferred eustatic record of Exxon. The New Jersey onshore Oligocene to lower Miocene sequences correlate reasonably well with the Florida Miocene sequences. However, the majority of middle Miocene sequences mapped in New Jersey are missing from central Florida. The age of Oligocene to Miocene sequence boundaries determined in continuous boreholes from New Jersey, Alabama, and Florida show excellent correlation with deep-sea δ 18 O increases, which are inferred glacioeustatic lowerings. This is strong confirmation that global sea-level change is a primary control on the timing of Oligocene to Miocene sequence boundaries for the coastal plain sections studied here. Whereas global sea level has a significant influence on coastal plain sequences, there are major differences in the preservation of sequences within the same depositional basin (e.g., Salisbury Embayment) and between basins (e.g., Florida basins vs. Salisbury Embayment). These intra-and interbasinal differences must be ascribed to noneustatic processes such as tectonics or differential erosion. Tectonic mechanisms include faulting of crustal blocks, mobile basins with evolving arches and depocenters, local flexural subsidence, or differential subsidence caused by sediment loading.

Proceedings of the Ocean Drilling Program, 150X Scientific Results, 1997

Stratigraphic correlation between shallow-water and deep-sea sections has proven notoriously diff... more Stratigraphic correlation between shallow-water and deep-sea sections has proven notoriously difficult because of hiatuses, diachrony of marker species, and diagenesis on the shelf. Isotope stratigraphy, biostratigraphy, and magnetostratigraphy reveal that sedimentation on the New Jersey Margin (Island Beach borehole) was relatively continuous during the late Paleocene and early Eocene (~58-52.5 Ma). All planktonic foraminiferal and calcareous nannofossil zones are represented at Island Beach. However, two disconformities are recognized in the upper Paleocene to lower Eocene section: a physical surface (lithologic change) at the Vincentown/Manasquan contact (uppermost Paleocene), which has a hiatus of ~0.3 m.y., and a ~0.4-m.y. gap associated with a paraconformity in the lower Eocene section. Stable isotopic data from the New Jersey Margin indicate that this neritic section can be successfully correlated to the deep sea using δ 13 C and δ 18 O of benthic foraminiferal calcite. Comparison between the Island Beach and global isotopic records (as represented by deep Pacific Site 577) shows that Island Beach parallels the global trend in both δ 18 O and δ 13 C. All major features of the late Paleocene to early Eocene global isotopic record are preserved, including general δ 18 O decrease, step-like δ 13 C decrease, and the well-known latest Paleocene δ 13 C excursion. We recognize three 1-to 1.5-m.y. δ 13 C steps over our interval of study at both Island Beach and the deep . These steps are correlative with intervals of increased paleodepth, as indicated by benthic foraminiferal biofacies studies, and decreased δ 18 O values. We suggest a link between increased temperature and sea level, and reduced organic carbon burial in the deep sea. Previous workers identified a latest Paleocene benthic foraminiferal faunal change on the New Jersey Margin (Clayton borehole). They suggested that this faunal turnover was the neritic correlative of the well-known latest Paleocene benthic extinction event. Our data indicate that at Island Beach, uppermost Paleocene δ 13 C and δ 18 O excursions occur above the disconformity and the associated shallow-water benthic foraminiferal faunal change. This isotopic excursion may be synchronous with the deep-sea extinction event or with a younger δ 13 C decrease. We suggest that the benthic foraminiferal event on the New Jersey Margin was the result of a dramatic water-depth increase on the shelf and was unrelated to the deep-sea extinction.

Proceedings of the Ocean Drilling Program, 150X Scientific Results, 1997

We present lithostratigraphic and paleoenvironmental interpretations of the Island Beach borehole... more We present lithostratigraphic and paleoenvironmental interpretations of the Island Beach borehole. This borehole provides the only Upper Cretaceous to lower Eocene section recovered by the New Jersey Coastal Plain Drilling Project (Ocean Drilling Program Leg 150X). Upper Cretaceous and Paleogene sections were deposited in relatively deep marine paleoenvironments (typically outer middle to outer neritic; 50-200 m paleowater depths) as a series of upsection shallowing sequences. Although the Oligocene section is relatively thick (267 ft [81.4 m]), it is poorly fossiliferous and provides the most equivocal Oligocene paleoenvironmental record of the three Leg 150X boreholes. Lower Miocene strata at this site consist of three poorly fossiliferous sequences (Kw1a, K1b, and Kw2a) deposited in shallow marine (inner neritic, near-shore, prodelta, and delta front) to fluvial environments. The Miocene sections also shallow upsection, both within sequences and within the Miocene as a whole. The surficial strata at Island Beach are composed of uppermost Pleistocene (?) to Holocene deposited as one deepening-upward succession representing fluvial to near-shore deposits. Tectonics progressively reshaped the basins in which Upper Cretaceous to Holocene strata were deposited. For example, Oligocene basins were mainly in southern New Jersey (Atlantic City and south), whereas the early Miocene Kirkwood basin was more expansive both updip and along strike to the north. Tectonic changes resulted in differential beveling of stratigraphic units and preferential preservation. For example, the lower Oligocene appears to be truncated north of Mays Landing, NJ, and is poorly represented at the Island Beach borehole.

Proceedings of the Ocean Drilling Program, 150X Scientific Results, 1997

A triad of processes controls the marine stratigraphic record: changes in sea level, tectonics, a... more A triad of processes controls the marine stratigraphic record: changes in sea level, tectonics, and sediment supply. Whereas the stratigraphic record may be objectively divided into sequences (unconformity-bounded units), the relative role of these three processes on development of passive continental margin sequences remains controversial. Three tasks must be accomplished before extracting process from the passive margin signal: the sequences must be identified, dated, and the facies changes within them mapped. The New Jersey Sea-level Transect (Ocean Drilling Program Leg 150X onshore drilling, Leg 150 slope drilling, and Leg 174A shelf drilling) has begun this task. The New Jersey Coastal Plain Drilling Project (Leg 150X) has completed boreholes at Island Beach (total depth 1223 ft [372.7 m]; April-May, 1993), Atlantic City (total depth 1452 ft [442.6 m]; June-August, 1993), and Cape May (total depth 1500 ft [457.2 m]; March-April, 1994). The papers contained in this volume present detailed lithostratigraphic, well-log, core-log, magnetostratigraphic, biostratigraphic, chemostratigraphic, paleoenvironmental, and hydrogeologic studies conducted on these boreholes. This introductory chapter outlines the general goals and strategies of onshore drilling in the context of the New Jersey Sea-level Transect, provides an overview of the material recovered onshore by Leg 150X in 1993Leg 150X in -1994, and discusses the nature of post-drilling studies and the need for future work. Highlights of Leg 150X include the following: 1. Studies herein develop a chronology of late middle Eocene to middle Miocene onshore sequence boundaries, correlate them with major δ 18 O increases, and confirm that these unconformities were formed by global sea-level lowerings. 2. Comparison of New Jersey sequences with the Exxon syntheses shows that the Exxon Eocene to middle Miocene sequences are recorded on the New Jersey Margin where their ages are well constrained. 3. A sequence stratigraphic framework was obtained for the Paleocene to middle Miocene by integrating chronologic, lithostratigraphic, well-log, core-log, benthic foraminiferal biofacies, and isotopic studies. These studies include evaluation of unconformities and flooding surfaces, delineating systems tract variations within sequences, and estimating water depth variations within sequences. 4. Other studies address hydrostratigraphy, pore-water quality, pore-water isotopic composition, clay mineralogy, silica diagenesis, core-log/well-log integration, biostratigraphy, palynology, and climate.

Paleoceanography, 2017

We present orbital‐scale resolution (~10 kyr) benthic foraminiferal δ18O and δ13C records from th... more We present orbital‐scale resolution (~10 kyr) benthic foraminiferal δ18O and δ13C records from the Kerguelen Plateau (Ocean Drilling Program Sites 751 and 747) from 14.5 to 20.0 Ma spanning the Miocene climate optimum (15–17 Ma). Our records fill a critical gap from ~17 to 18 Ma, a time when many other deep‐sea records are affected by dissolution. We tested the fidelity of published magnetobiostratigraphic age models for these sites by astronomically tuning to the 405 kyr eccentricity cycle. A comparison of spectral estimates between the untuned and tuned records, as well as coherency with Laskar's (2004) eccentricity solution, revealed quasi‐100 kyr cyclicity in δ18O and δ13C. There is only a weak signal associated with the 41 kyr obliquity cycle, likely due to the 10 kyr sampling limiting resolution. The δ18O variations point to persistent 405 and quasi‐100 kyr modulations of temperature and sea level changes through the early to middle Miocene as predicted by astronomical sol...

Proceedings of the Ocean Drilling Program, 150 Scientific Results, 1996

We analyzed specimens of mixed planktonic foraminifer species for Sr isotopes from the Oligocene ... more We analyzed specimens of mixed planktonic foraminifer species for Sr isotopes from the Oligocene to middle Miocene sections from boreholes (Ocean Drilling Program Sites 902, 903, 904, and 906; and outcrops on the New Jersey continental slope. We concentrated on the upper Oligocene-middle Miocene at Sites 903 and 904 (444 and 1129 m present water depth, respectively), the upper Oligocene-lowermost Miocene at Site 902 (811m water depth), and slope outcrops in Carteret and Lindenkohl canyons. Sr-isotopic age estimates of the Ocean Drilling Program boreholes provide a good stratigraphic framework for upper Oligocene to middle Miocene sections, overcoming problems with rare calcareous plankton zonal markers. When integrated with ongoing biostratigraphic and magnetostratigraphic studies, the Leg 150 sites will provide a precise chronology of slope reflectors that also correlate with sequences boundaries traced under the continental shelf. Preliminary integration is encouraging: (1) nine of the 10 Oligocene to middle Miocene slope reflectors (sequence boundaries) correlate with global δ 18 θ increases and with sequence boundaries in the onshore New Jersey coastal plain, arguing for a causal link between formation of sequence boundaries and glacioeustatic lowerings; and (2) several hiatuses on the slope also correlate with reflectors and the major δ 18 θ increases, although many of the seismic reflectors appear to be conformable at the slope boreholes. Outcrop studies date a major change in depositional regime in the earliest Oligocene; this "siliciclastic switch" from an Eocene carbonate ramp to a starved siliciclastic early Oligocene margin correlates with a global δ 18 θ increase and a regional cooling. Sediment starvation in the early Oligocene resulted in a poorly preserved record on the slope. Sedimentation rates subsequently increased in the middle Oligocene on the entire margin, when prograding clinoforms appeared beneath the modern shelf and rates increased again in the early to middle Miocene. We attribute this progradational change to lower long-term sea level, although hinterland tectonics may have played an important role.

Reviews of Geophysics, 1998

The New Jersey Sea Level Transect was designed to evaluate the relationships among global sea lev... more The New Jersey Sea Level Transect was designed to evaluate the relationships among global sea level (eustatic) change, unconformity‐bounded sequences, and variations in subsidence, sediment supply, and climate on a passive continental margin. By sampling and dating Cenozoic strata from coastal plain and continental slope locations, we show that sequence boundaries correlate (within ±0.5 myr) regionally (onshore‐offshore) and interregionally (New Jersey‐Alabama‐Bahamas), implicating a global cause. Sequence boundaries correlate with δ18O increases for at least the past 42 myr, consistent with an ice volume (glacioeustatic) control, although a causal relationship is not required because of uncertainties in ages and correlations. Evidence for a causal connection is provided by preliminary Miocene data from slope Site 904 that directly link δ18O increases with sequence boundaries. We conclude that variation in the size of ice sheets has been a primary control on the formation of sequenc...

Oceanography, 2011

B y K e N N e t h G . M i l l e r , G r e G o r y S . M o u N ta i N , J a M e S D . W r i G h t,... more B y K e N N e t h G . M i l l e r , G r e G o r y S . M o u N ta i N , J a M e S D . W r i G h t, a N D J a M e S V. B r o W N i N G a 180-Million-year record of Sea level and ice Volume Variations from continental Margin and Deep-Sea isotopic records Drilling conducted by the integrated ocean Drilling program (ioDp) on the inner, shallow part of the New Jersey shelf required the use of a threelegged lift boat. Not affected by tide or swell, a successful coring and downhole logging program through loosely consolidated shelf sediments was achieved. Photo courtesy of IODP/ECORD

Nature Geoscience, 2008

In the largest global cooling event of the Cenozoic Era, between 33.8 and 33.5 Myr ago, warm, hig... more In the largest global cooling event of the Cenozoic Era, between 33.8 and 33.5 Myr ago, warm, high-CO 2 conditions gave way to the variable 'icehouse' climates that prevail today. Despite intense study, the history of cooling versus ice-sheet growth and sea-level fall reconstructed from oxygen isotope values in marine sediments at the transition has not been resolved. Here, we analyse oxygen isotopes and Mg/Ca ratios of benthic foraminifera, and integrate the results with the stratigraphic record of sea-level change across the Eocene-Oligocene transition from a continental-shelf site at Saint Stephens Quarry, Alabama. Comparisons with deep-sea (Sites 522 (South Atlantic) and 1218 (Pacific)) δ 18 O and Mg/Ca records enable us to reconstruct temperature, ice-volume and sea-level changes across the climate transition. Our records show that the transition occurred in at least three distinct steps, with an increasing influence of ice volume on the oxygen isotope record as the transition progressed. By the early Oligocene, ice sheets were ∼25% larger than present. This growth was associated with a relative sea-level decrease of approximately 105 m, which equates to a 67 m eustatic fall.

Marine Geology, 1999

We have reconstructed the Oligocene to Middle Miocene paleobathymetry and stratigraphy of the New... more We have reconstructed the Oligocene to Middle Miocene paleobathymetry and stratigraphy of the New Jersey margin using a modified backstripping technique. By analyzing the geometry of the margin through time, we investigate its response to fluctuating sea level, changing climate, and variable sediment supply during the Tertiary. The reconstructions reveal a change in the margin morphology from a more steeply dipping (1 : 300 to 1 : 500) carbonate ramp in the Eocene to a flatter shelf with a sharp shelf edge at present. This was accomplished by an increase in the terrigenous sediment supply that filled available accommodation and caused progradation across the margin. We link the increase in sediment flux with climatic cooling rather than tectonic processes. The progradation is evidenced by a series of clinoforms whose formation was modulated by sea level and which extend over 100 km across the shelf. The height and dip of the clinoforms increased as they extended onto the deeper parts of the earlier ramp. The Miocene clinoform rollovers at the New Jersey margin had water depths of ¾60-130 m and are interpreted as the edge of a new continental shelf built over the older ramp. Sea-level fall was probably insufficient to drive the Miocene shorelines past the shelf breaks. Thus, measurements of sea-level amplitude based upon 'coastal' onlap over the clinoforms are not reliable.

Marine Geology, 2005

Backstripped eustatic estimates from New Jersey and the Russian platform show large (N25 m) and r... more Backstripped eustatic estimates from New Jersey and the Russian platform show large (N25 m) and rapid (b1 my) sea-level changes in the Late Cretaceous to early Eocene (99-49 Ma). The largest of these sea-level events occurred at the Campanian/ Maastrichtian boundary (71.5 Ma); we infer that ice growth and attendant sea-level lowering at 71.5 Ma were as great as many Oligocene and younger events (~40 m sea-level change). Glacioeustasy is the only known mechanism that can account for Late Cretaceous to early Eocene rapid changes because other hypothesized mechanisms (steric effects, water storage in lakes, deepwater changes, groundwater, or sea ice) are too slow or too small. In contrast to this evidence for glacioeustasy, ample geological evidence points to warm high-latitude temperatures at this time. The late Cenomanian-early Turonian d 18 O record highlights the enigma. This was the warmest interval of the past 200 my, yet it was bracketed by two inferred eustatic falls of ~25 m that were associated with two large (N 0.75x) deep-sea d 18 O increases (92-93 Ma, mid-Turonian and 96 Ma, mid-Cenomanian). We reconcile records of warm high latitudes with glacioeustasy by proposing that Late Cretaceous-early Eocene ice sheets generally reached maximum volumes of 8-12 Â 10 6 km 3 (20-30 m glacioeustatic equivalent), but did not reach the Antarctic coast; hence, coastal Antarctica (hence deep water) remained relatively warm even though there were significant changes in sea level as the result of glaciation. Unlike the Oligocene and younger icehouse world, these ice sheets only existed during short intervals of peak Milankovitch insolation, leaving Antarctica ice-free during much of the greenhouse Late Cretaceous to middle Eocene. These results highlight the need to re-evaluate the paradigm that polar ice sheets did not exist during times of warm high-latitude climates.

Marine and Petroleum Geology, 1996

The sedimentary fill of the Canterbury Basin, New Zealand, is the product of a long-term (80 Ma),... more The sedimentary fill of the Canterbury Basin, New Zealand, is the product of a long-term (80 Ma), tectonically controlled relative sea-level cycle with a megasequence geometry analogous to the sequence stratigraphic model of Vail (Am. Assoc.

Journal of Sedimentary Research, 2008

Paleogeographic, isopach, and deltaic lithofacies mapping of thirteen depositional sequences esta... more Paleogeographic, isopach, and deltaic lithofacies mapping of thirteen depositional sequences establish a 35 myr high resolution (. 1 Myr) record of Late Cretaceous wave-and tide-influenced deltaic sedimentation. We integrate sequences defined on the basis of lithologic, biostratigraphic, and Sr-isotope stratigraphy from cores with geophysical log data from 28 wells to further develop and extend methods and calibrations of well-log recognition of sequences and facies variations. This study reveals the northeastward migration of depocenters from the Cenomanian (ca. 98 Ma) through the earliest Danian (ca. 64 Ma) and documents five primary phases of paleodeltaic evolution in response to long-term eustatic changes, variations in sediment supply, the location of two long-lived fluvial axes, and thermoflexural basement subsidence: (1) Cenomanian-early Turonian deltaic facies exhibit marine and nonmarine facies and are concentrated in the central coastal plain; (2) high sediment rates, low sea level, and high accommodation rates in the northern coastal plain resulted in thick, marginal to nonmarine mixedinfluenced deltaic facies during the Turonian-Coniacian; (3) comparatively low sediment rates and high long-term sea level in the Santonian resulted in a sediment-starved margin with low deltaic influence; (4) well-developed Campanian deltaic sequences expand to the north and exhibit wave reworking and longshore transport of sands; and (5) low sedimentation rates and high long-term sea level during the Maastrichtian resulted in the deposition of a sediment-starved glauconitic shelf. Our study illustrates the widely known variability of mixed-influence deltaic systems, but also documents the relative stability of deltaic facies systems on the 10 6 -10 7 yr scale, with long periods of cyclically repeating systems tracts controlled by eustasy. Results from the Late Cretaceous further show that although eustasy provides the template for sequences globally, regional tectonics (rates of subsidence and accommodation), changes in sediment supply, proximity to sediment input, and flexural subsidence from depocenter loading determines the regional to local preservation and facies expression of sequences.

Geology, 2001

Previously published Oligocene eustatic records are compared with observed stratigraphic architec... more Previously published Oligocene eustatic records are compared with observed stratigraphic architecture at the New Jersey continental margin in order to evaluate the stratigraphic response to eustatic change. Lower to mid-Oligocene sequence boundaries (33.8-28.0 Ma) are associated with relatively long hiatuses (0.3-0.6 m.y.), in which sedimentation in many places terminated during eustatic falls and resumed early during eustatic rises. Upper Oligocene sequence boundaries are associated with relatively short hiatuses (Ͻ0.3 m.y.), and provide the best constraints on phase relations between sea-level forcing and margin response. The interval represented by each upper Oligocene sequence varies in dip profile. At updip locations, landward of the clinoform rollover in the underlying sequence boundary, sedimentation commenced after the eustatic low and terminated before the eustatic high (with partial erosion of any younger record). At downdip locations, sedimentation within each sequence was progressively delayed in a seaward direction, beginning during the eustatic rise and terminating near the eustatic low. Combining data from all available boreholes, ages of sequence boundaries (correlative surfaces) correspond closely with the timing of eustatic lows, and ages of condensed sections (intervals of sediment starvation) correspond with eustatic highs.

Geology, 1996

Six Oligocene sequences and one earliest Miocene sequence were identified at Island Beach, Atlant... more Six Oligocene sequences and one earliest Miocene sequence were identified at Island Beach, Atlantic City, and Cape May, New Jersey, and correlated to the ␦ 18 O proxy of glacioeustasy and the eustatic record of Haq et al. by integrating lithostratigraphy, biostratigraphy, Sr isotopic stratigraphy, and magnetostratigraphy. Seven global ␦ 18 O increases are recognized by correlating ␦ 18 O records among deep-sea sites; four of these increases (Oi1, Oi2, Oi2b, and Mi1; 33.5, 30.3, 27.1, and 23.8, respectively) were recognized previously, and three (Oi1a, Oi1b, and Oi2a; 32.8, 31.7, 28.3 Ma, respectively) are new. These ␦ 18 O increases correlate well with Oligocene unconformities, indicating a glacioeustatic control on sequence boundaries. Except for an unconformity and glacioeustatic lowering at ϳ28.3 Ma, the New Jersey Oligocene sequences correlate well with the Haq et al. record, although we question the amplitudes of their eustatic record. Controversy has surrounded the timing, amplitude, and cause of Oligocene global sea-level (eustatic) changes. Vail and and suggested a dramatic (Ͼ140 m) mid-Oligocene lowering while paleoceanographers maintained that the first Antarctic ice sheet formed in the middle Miocene (e.g., . This posed an enigma, because glacioeustatic change is the only known mechanism for large, rapid sea-level change (e.g., . Studies in the 1980s extended glacioeustasy to the beginning of the Oligocene; evidence for large Cenozoic ice sheets (i.e., an "icehouse world") is recorded by Oligocene glaciomarine sediments and high deep-sea ␦ 18 O values (summarized by . Although glacioeustasy provides a potential mechanism for large, rapid, sea-level change, independent verification of the record for the Oligocene has been hampered not only by poor continental margin records, but also by undersampled deep-sea ␦ 18 O records. Deep-sea benthic foraminiferal ␦ 18 O can be used to correlate and to evaluate temperature and ice-volume changes. noted four intervals of high Oligocene-earliest Miocene benthic foraminiferal ␦ 18 O values and used the ␦ 18 O values to define global zones (Oi1, Oi2, Oi2b, and Mi1 at 33.5 Ma, 30.3 Ma, 27.1 Ma, and 23.7 Ma, respectively; Fig. 1). Although high benthic foraminiferal ␦ 18 O values indicate the presence of ice sheets (e.g., Ͼ1.8‰ in Cibicidoides; Miller et al., 1991), they do not necessarily indicate the timing of ice growth, because benthic ␦ 18 O variations reflect both bottom-water temperature and ice-volume

Geology, 2003

We provide a record of global sea-level (eustatic) variations of the Late Cretaceous (99-65 Ma) g... more We provide a record of global sea-level (eustatic) variations of the Late Cretaceous (99-65 Ma) greenhouse world. Ocean Drilling Program Leg 174AX provided a record of 11-14 Upper Cretaceous sequences in the New Jersey Coastal Plain that were dated by integrating Sr isotopic stratigraphy and biostratigraphy. Backstripping yielded a Late Cretaceous eustatic estimate for these sequences, taking into account sediment loading, compaction, paleowater depth, and basin subsidence. We show that Late Cretaceous sea-level changes were large (Ͼ25 m) and rapid (K1 m.y.), suggesting a glacioeustatic control. Three large ␦ 18 O increases are linked to sequence boundaries (others lack sufficient ␦ 18 O data), consistent with a glacioeustatic cause and with the development of small (Ͻ10 6 km 3 ) ephemeral ice sheets in Antarctica. Our sequence boundaries correlate with sea-level falls recorded by Exxon Production Research and sections from northwest Europe and Russia, indicating a global cause, although the Exxon record differs from backstripped estimates in amplitude and shape.