Age of Eocene/Oligocene boundary based on extrapolation from North American microtektite layer
Microtektites believed to belong to the North American tektite strewn field have been found in upper Eocene sediments in cores from nine Deep Sea Drilling Project sites in the Caribbean Sea, Gulf of Mexico, equatorial Pacific, and eastern equatorial Indian Ocean. The microtektite layer has an age of 34.2 +- 0.6 m.y. based on fission-track dating of the microtektites and K-Ar and fission-track dating of the North American tektites. Extrapolation from the microtektite layer to the overlying Eocene/Oligocene boundary indicates an age of 32.3 +- 0.9 m.y. for the Eocene/Oligocene boundary as defined at each site in the Initial Reports of the Deep Sea Drilling Project. This age is approximately 5 m.y. younger than the age of 37.5 m.y. that is generally assigned to the boundary based on recently published Cenozoic time scales. 3 figures, 5 tables.
- Research Organization:
- Univ. of Delaware, Newark
- OSTI ID:
- 5520754
- Journal Information:
- Am. Assoc. Pet. Geol., Bull.; (United States), Journal Name: Am. Assoc. Pet. Geol., Bull.; (United States) Vol. 66:4; ISSN AAPGB
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
020200* -- Petroleum-- Reserves
Geology
& Exploration
58 GEOSCIENCES
580100 -- Geology & Hydrology-- (-1989)
AGE ESTIMATION
ATLANTIC OCEAN
BOUNDARY LAYERS
CARIBBEAN SEA
CENOZOIC ERA
DRILL CORES
GEOLOGIC AGES
GEOLOGIC DEPOSITS
GEOLOGY
GULF OF MEXICO
INDIAN OCEAN
ISOTOPE DATING
LAYERS
MINERAL RESOURCES
PACIFIC OCEAN
PETROLEUM DEPOSITS
RESOURCES
SEAS
SEDIMENTS
STRATIGRAPHY
SURFACE WATERS
TEKTITES
TERTIARY PERIOD