The Atlantic Deep Western Boundary Current During the Early Eocene Warm Period

该奖项是为确定J异常海脊和纽芬兰东南部海脊沉积序列的年龄、形态和古海洋学意义而进行的地震地层制图和活塞取心项目。这些海脊的位置非常理想，可以记录任何可以追溯到古近纪早期的强边界流证据。现有资料表明，海脊体系被记录了渐新世和新近纪边界流发育的沉积序列所覆盖，这表明古新世-始新世序列的沉积可能也受到了洋流的影响。如果在渐新世早期南极大冰期开始之前，北大西洋出现了强烈的深西边界流或相关的北向流，可能会影响J异常脊和纽芬兰东南脊的沉积。地震地层填图和活塞取心将检验这样一种假设，即在南极冰川开始之前，这些海脊上沉积的沉积物序列记录了北大西洋强烈的倾覆环流。

Award is for a seismic stratigraphic mapping and piston coring project to determine the age, configuration and paleoceanographic significance of the sedimentary sequences on J Anomaly Ridge and Southeast Newfoundland Ridge. These ridges are ideally located to record any evidence for strong boundary currents dating to the early Paleogene. Existing data show that the ridge system is draped by sedimentary sequences that record development of the boundary current during the Oligocene and Neogene, and suggest that deposition of Paleocene-Eocene sequences may have also been influenced by currents. If strong Deep Western Boundary Current or related northward flow occurred in the North Atlantic prior to the onset of extensive Antarctic glaciation in the early Oligocene, it likely affected deposition of sediment on the J Anomaly Ridge and Southeast Newfoundland Ridge. The seismic stratigraphic mapping and piston coring will test the hypothesis that the sediment sequences deposited on these ridges record strong overturning circulation in the North Atlantic prior to the onset of Antarctic glaciation.