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Main facies
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Subfacies
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Facies code
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Description
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Common marine microfossils |
Sites of occurrence
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Tentative depositional environment/diagenesis
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Mud
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Massive mud with lonestones
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F1a
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(Very) dark gray to (very) dark greenish gray;
Varying amounts of lonestones from dispersed to abundant;
Bioturbation mostly absent, but occasionally from slight to heavy;
Occasional color banding and lamination;
Occasional occurrence of silt/sand/granule pods;
Occasional occurrence of black mottles and shell fragments;
Rarely trace amounts of ash;
May show signs of deformation and compaction at shelf-proximal sites
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Diatoms, radiolarians, sponge spicules, foraminifers
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U1417, U1418, U1419, U1420, U1421
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Suspension fallout, ice rafting, or sediment gravity flows
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Massive mud without lonestones
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F1b
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(Dark) gray to (dark) greenish gray;
Mostly massive, but occasional color banding and silt laminae;
Bioturbation mostly absent; rarely slight to heavy;
Occasional occurrence of black mottles, silt/sand pods, shell fragments, traces of ash, microorganisms and inclination;
Often diatom bearing at Site U1421.
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Rare diatoms and foraminifers
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U1417, U1418, U1419, U1420, U1421
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Suspension fallout or sediment gravity flows
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Laminated mud
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F1c
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(Dark) gray to (dark) greenish gray;
Mostly none to slight bioturbation;
Lamination resulting from slight color variations, presumably related to minor changes in grain size;
Lamination mostly from sub-millimeter to 0.5 cm; occasional very thin bedding (<2.5 cm) possible
Mostly gradational contacts; very rarely sharp;
Rare lonestones;
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Not documented
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U1418
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Suspension fallout, ice rafting, or sediment gravity flows
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Silt
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Silt
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F2a
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(Very) dark gray to greenish gray;
Occasionally with lonestones and volcaniclastic bearing;
Bioturbation mostly absent;
Sharp to gradational upper and lower contacts;
Plant debris and organic matter may occur;
Massive or normally graded.
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Occasional diatoms and foraminifers
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U1417, U1418, U1419
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Sediment gravity flows and possible ice rafting
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Interbedded/Interlaminated silt and mud
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F2b
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(Very) dark gray to dark greenish gray;
Mostly graded silt laminae (occasionally beds) with sharp lower and sharp to gradational upper contacts;
Few to absent lonestones;
Bioturbation mostly absent, but occasionally slight to moderate;
Occasionally calcareous, diatom and volcaniclastic bearing.
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Occasional diatoms
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U1417, U1418, U1419
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Mud: suspension fall-out from surface-water plumes and from sediment gravity flows
Silt: sediment gravity flows
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Sand
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Very fine to coarse sand
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F3a
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(Very) dark gray to (very) dark greenish gray;
Massive to normally graded;
Mostly erosive lower contacts;
Sharp and gradational upper contacts;
Absent bioturbation
Occasionally with diatoms and volcanic ash.
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Occasionally diatoms and foraminifers
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U1417, U1418, U1419
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Sediment gravity flows
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Medium to coarse sand
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F3b
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Dark gray and to gray;
With mud;
Rip-up clasts common;
Sharp bases and sharp to gradational upper contacts.
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Barren
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U1417
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Sediment gravity flows
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Interbedded sand and mud
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F3c
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Dark gray;
Interbedded (very) fine sand and mud occasionally with silt;
Sand laminae and beds up to ~3.5 cm thick;
Sandy beds typically graded and with erosive lower and sharp upper boundaries;
Lonestones (<1 cm) occasionally present;
Mostly no bioturbation; occasionally rare bioturbation.
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Partly diatom bearing
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U1417, U1419
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Suspension fallout from surface-water plumes (mud), ice rafting (mud, sand, lonestones), and sediment gravity flows (sand, mud)
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Diamict
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Muddy diamict
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F4a
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(Very) dark gray to very dark greenish gray;
Muddy matrix;
Clast poor to clast rich;
Mostly massive, but occasionally some centimeter-thick intervals with (<5 mm) thick laminae;
Gradational lower contacts either sharp or defined by gradual increase in clast numbers;
Sharp upper contacts due to marked drop in clast abundance;
Bioturbation mostly absent; rarely moderate bioturbation;
Rare color banding and volcanic ash.
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Barren
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U1417, U1418
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Suspension settling and ice rafting (icebergs and/or sea ice)
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Muddy and sandy diamict with lithic and mud clasts and/or terrigenous organic components
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F4b
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Dark gray;
Mud to sand matrix;
Sharp upper and lower contacts;
Lithic and mud clasts up to 12 cm;
Occasional plant debris and terrestrial organic components (coal?).
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Diatoms
(partly freshwater)
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U1417
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Sediment gravity flows
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Breccia
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F4c
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Dark gray matrix of sandy mud;
Sharp erosive lower contacts;
Gradational upper contacts;
Clasts of indurated diatom ooze.
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Barren
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U1417
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Sediment gravity flows (e.g., slump)
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Interbedded mud and diamict
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F4d
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Dark gray to very dark gray;
Diamict typically with sandy/gravelly mud matrix and up to 5 cm large clasts;
Bioturbation mostly absent; occasionally slight or moderate bioturbation;
Rare shell fragments and diatoms;
Often gradational contacts between muddy and diamict intervals.
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Rare diatoms
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U1417, U1418, U1419, U1421
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Suspension settling and ice rafting (icebergs and/or sea ice)
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Clast-poor diamict
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F4e
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(Very) dark gray;
Often silty or sandy mud matrix;
Occasional lamination/bedding due to (1) clayey laminae and (2) sand/granule laminae (<4 mm thick);
Bioturbation absent; occasional shell fragments;
Rare mud and clast pods of coarse sand;
Very rare traces of volcanic ash;
Subrounded to subangular granule and pebble clasts including argillite, basalt, shale, chert, conglomerate, diorite, feldspar, gneiss, granite, greenstone, greywacke, metasediment with quartz veins, mudstone, quartz, rhyolite, sandstone (massive and laminated), siltstone.
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Not documented
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U1419, U1420, U1421
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Suspension settling and ice rafting (mainly by icebergs)
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Clast-rich diamict
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F4f
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(Very) dark gray;
Mostly muddy or sandy mud matrix;
Bioturbation absent;
Very rarely trace amounts of volcanic ash and shell fragments;
Interstratification with mud laminae/beds possible (mud laminae may contain diatoms);
Subrounded to subangular granule and pebble clasts including argillite, basalt, shale, chert, conglomerate, diorite, feldspar, gneiss, quartzite, gabbro, vesicular basalt, granite, greenstone, greywacke, metasandstone, metasiltstone, metasediment with quartz veins, mudstone, quartz, rhyolite, sandstone, siltstone, quartz-mica schist, metasedimentary breccia.
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Rare diatoms and foraminifers
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U1419, U1420, U1421
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Suspension settling and ice rafting (mainly by icebergs)
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Diatom ooze
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F5a
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(Very) dark greenish gray, very dark grayish brown, and olive-gray;
Sharp to gradational lower and upper contacts;
Absent to heavy bioturbation;
Occasional lamination or very thin bedding;
Lonestones mostly absent, but occasionally present;
Occasional black mottles and shell fragments;
Occasionally trace amounts of volcanic ash.
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Diatoms and occasional radiolarian and sponge spicules; occasional carbonate (foraminifers and coccolithophores
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U1417, U1418, U1419, U1421
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High-productivity environment and/or low terrigenous input and/or better preservation
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Biosiliceous ooze; biosiliceous-rich/bearing mud and/or sand; mud with diatoms/biosilica
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F5b
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(Very) dark gray to (very) dark greenish gray;
Mostly in mud with absent to abundant clasts;
Bioturbation mostly absent, but very rarely slight to heavy;
Rare shell fragments, traces of volcanic ash, black mottles, and lamination.
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Diatoms, sponge spicules, foraminifers, nannofossils
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U1417, U1418, U1419, U1420, U1421
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Temporarily increased productivity and/or reduced suspension settling and/or better preservation
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Calcareous/ Carbonate- bearing/rich mud, silt, sand, diamict, and/or diatom ooze
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F5c
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Gray, dark gray, very dark gray, dark greenish gray and very dark greenish gray, grayish green;
Bioturbation from absent to heavy;
Lonestones and black mottles occasionally present;
Very rarely laminated or traces of volcanic ash.
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Foraminifers, nannofossils; occasionally diatoms
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U1417, U1418, U1419, U1420, U1421
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Temporarily increased productivity and/or reduced suspension settling and/or better preservation
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Ash
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Volcanic ash
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F6
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Gray to brown;
Sharp lower contacts;
Sharp to gradational upper contacts;
Primarily vitric shards (glass);
Some intervals affected by moderate to heavy bioturbation so that distinct ash layers are occasionally no longer visible, but the material is included in burrow fill;
Occasionally also without bioturbation.
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Not documented
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U1417, U1418, U1419
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Suspension settling after subaerial eruptions
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Volcaniclastic mud, sand, diamict, and/or ooze
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F7
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Gray, dark gray, very dark gray, dark greenish gray, and brown;
Includes volcaniclastic rich/bearing or trace amounts of volcanic ash;
Bioturbation mostly absent, but occasionally slight to heavy;
Primarily vitric shards (glass);
Gradational and sharp contacts;
Often in association with mud with higher amounts of biosiliceous and calcareous components.
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Biosiliceous and calcareous microfossils
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U1417, U1418, U1419, U1420, U1421
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Volcanic detritus either bioturbated or reworked/redeposited by sediment gravity flows
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Rock
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F8
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Light to very dark gray siltstone and sandstone, most often with carbonate cement;
Size: 1–6 cm thick, generally covering the entire core width; may include “flame structures” intruding into surrounding mud.
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Not documented
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U1417, U1418
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In situ carbonate cementation
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Intrastratal contorted mud and diamict
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F9
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Very dark greenish gray mud mixed with very dark greenish gray clast-rich muddy diamict;
Intrastratal contortion and normal faults occur;
Absent bioturbation.
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Not documented
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U1418
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Sediment gravity flow
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