Degree Year
2016
Document Type
Thesis - Open Access
Degree Name
Bachelor of Arts
Department
Geology
Advisor(s)
Karla Parsons-Hubbard
Committee Member(s)
Dennis Hubbard
F. Zeb Page
Keywords
North Slope, Alaska, Brooks Range, Torok Formation, Environment, Albian-Cenomanian, Cretaceous
Abstract
This project uses field samples, microfacies analysis, and carbon stable isotopes of mudstones to determine past environmental conditions of North Slope, Alaska during the Albian-Cenomanian (Cretaceous). Samples were taken at Slope Mountain, Alaska located north of the Brooks Range. Slope Mountain includes the Torok Formation and the upper and lower Nanushuk Formations that consist of alluvial, deltaic, and shallow marine facies that were deposited into the North Slope foreland basin on the Arctic Alaska micro plate. An exhaustive search for identifiable microfossils, such as pollen, diatoms, and foraminifera in the samples yielded nothing but charcoal and carbon residue. No other fossilized material was identified. Carbon stable isotope values are consistent with a mix of algae and terrestrial plants, suggesting deposition in a shallow marine setting close to shore.
Repository Citation
Ratigan, Ashley, "Paleoenvironmental analysis of Cretaceous mudstones at Slope Mountain, Alaska using carbon stable isotopes" (2016). Honors Papers. 242.
https://digitalcommons.oberlin.edu/honors/242
