Master's Theses

Department

Geosciences

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Abstract

The Death Canyon Limestone Member is largely fine-grained micrite with relatively few allochems. The most common are non-skeletal allochems and include ooids, peloids, intraclasts, and oncolites. Skeletal allochems are dominated by trilobite fragments but include brachiopods and unidentified fragments. Deposition of the Death Canyon was far offshore but still in shallow waters of restricted circulation. Initially, Death Canyon deposition was a subtidal, blanket-carbonate represented by biomicrites and peoloidal micrites. As carabonate accumulated a shallowing of the sea occurred and ooid and algal shoals (Tetonophycus blackwelderii) subsequently developed near the shelf edge and acted as partial barriers that roughly paralleled the paleoshoreline. Diagenesis of the Death Canyon was relatively extensive. Neomorphic spar is common throughout the unit and dolomite is locally common. Also occurring is glauconite, stylolites, and fractures. The sequence of diagenetic events in the Death Canyon may be divided into three phases: 1) syn-depostional, 2) eogenetic, and 3) mesogenetic.

Keywords

Geology

Advisor

Dr. Michael E. Nelson

Date of Award

Summer 1981

Document Type

Thesis - campus only access

Rights

© The Author(s)

Comments

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