Northern Espirito Santo basin canyon models ancient sand transport

摘要

Two modern canyon systems used as analogs to model deepwater sediment fairways in the Cretaceous can predict which fairways in the Rio Doce deep-water canyon system of the Northern Espirito Santo basin off Brazil are sand-rich and which ones are sand-poor. The ideal methodology involves the combined use of sequence stratigraphy, seismic attribute analysis, and depth imaging. The Rio Doce is one of two modern deep-water canyon systems found in the Northern Espirito Santo basin. It was mapped using 3D seismic data covering approximately 10,600 sq km. The system is northwest-southeast trending and extends over 150 km south of the shelf margin canyon incision through which a modern river feeds sediment into the system. Seismic interpretation suggests that the Rio Doce system has been active throughout the Cenozoic, and seismic amplitudes suggest that it is a sand-rich system. It is possible that the Rio Doce system can be tracked back into the Cretaceous section and linked to the ancient Regencia Canyon system.