Glacial morphology and depositional sequences of the Antarctic continental shelf

Abstract

We propose a simple model for the unusual depositional sequences and morphology of the Antarctic continental shelf. Our model considers the regional stratal geometry and the reversed morphology of the Antarctic continental shelf to be principally the results of time-integrated effects of glacial erosion and sedimentation related to the location of the ice grounding line. The model offers several guidelines for stratigraphic interpretation of the Antarctic shelf and a Northern Hemisphere shelf, both of which were subject to many glacial advances and retreats.