HR: 0800h
AN: H41C-0312    [Abstracts]
TI: Internal structures and developing mechanisms of tidal sand ridges in the East China Sea
AU: * Liu, Z
EM: liuzhenxia@fio.org.cn
AF: Liu Zhenxia, No.6 Xianxialing Road, Hi-Tech industry Park, Qingdao, 266060 China
AB: *Abstract:* The internal structures of the tidal sand ridges in the East China Sea are characterized by the southwest-dipping beddings and several erosion surfaces, which resulted in young sand ridges overlying old ones and forming a unique multi-layer complex structure. These characteristics reveal the multi-phase development of the tidal sand ridges, and their multi-repetitive forming history of accumulation, erosion and accumulation. There are two mechanisms interpreting the migration and evolution of these sand ridges. One mechanism concerns the evolution tidal sand ridge itself. The tidal current difference along two flanks of a ridge makes the sediments migrate toward the side with lower current speed. This is so-called auto-cyclic process of sand ridge developing. For the tidal sand ridges in the East China Sea, one side is dominated by flood currents in a NW direction, the other side is dominated by ebb current in a SE direction. Due to the influences of topography gradient of the continental shelf and the runoff from Chinese main land, the velocity of the ebb currents is larger than that of the flood currents, so the sediment is transported to southwest continuously, and it is a certainty for the sand ridges migrate toward SW and form the beddings inclining toward SW. The other mechanism is allo-cyclic process, which relates to global or regional hydrodynamic changes, such as sea-level fluctuations or storm waves. The post-glacial sea level rose rapidly in a stepwise pattern caused by the four postglacial melting water pulses (MWP-1A, 1B, 1C, 1D) (Liu et al., 2004) and it should play an important role in this mechanism. Both mechanisms exist in the development of the tidal sand ridges in the East China Sea, so there is some difficulties to distinguish them clearly. It is obvious that the tidal sand ridges of the East China Sea have evolved continuously since the postglacial period; four stages of sand ridges have formed in sequence: younger ridges overlaid the old ones and finally formed the multi-layer complex structure. *Key words:* East China Sea, tidal sand ridge, internal structure, auto-cyclic processes, allo-cyclic process
DE: 1815 Erosion and sedimentation
SC: Hydrology [H]
MN: 2004 AGU Fall Meeting