Title

Surficial geology of the northern Gulf of Mexico continental slope: Impacts of fluid and gas expulsion

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

12-1-2009

Abstract

Our understanding of the geology of the northern and northwestern Gulf of Mexico continental slope has taken a quantum leap forward since Fishery Bulletin volume 89 ("Bulletin 89") was published in 1954. Single-trace echosounder profiling, single-point soundings, and data from coring, trawls, and grab samples formed the database from which most interpretations of continental slope geology were made. Less than a decade after World War II, seismic data were starting to be routinely acquired from marine settings, and attention was focused on the Gulf of Mexico because it was a proven hydrocarbon-producing province. Salvador (1991) indicated that the first offshore seismic-reffection survey was in 1944. Since then, the petroleum industry, government (U.S. Geological Survey), and academic groups (particularly the Institute for Geophysics, University of Texas) have acquired seismic-reffection data from throughout the Gulf. These surveys have been instrumental in establishing the geologic framework for the Gulf basin since little direct geological data were available for most of the deep Gulf. It was not until the 1960s to 1970s that adequate seismicreffection and refraction data became available to define the geology of the deep Gulf as a thick sedimentary unit overlying an acoustic basement consisting of oceanic crust or transitional crust (Buffler 1991). Copyright © 2011 by Texas A&M University Press. All rights reserved.

Publication Source (Journal or Book title)

Gulf of Mexico Origin, Waters, and Biota: Volume III, Geology

First Page

209

Last Page

228

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