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Distinguishing the roles of autogenic versus allogenic processes in cyclic sedimentation, Cisco Group (Virgilian and Wolfcampian), north-central Texas

Wan Yang, Michelle A. Kominz and R. P. Major
Distinguishing the roles of autogenic versus allogenic processes in cyclic sedimentation, Cisco Group (Virgilian and Wolfcampian), north-central Texas
Geological Society of America Bulletin (October 1998) 110 (10): 1333-1353

Abstract

Meter-scale transgressive-regressive cycles of the subsurface Cisco Group are composed of marine and nonmarine carbonate and siliciclastic rocks deposited on the Eastern shelf of the Midland basin during Late Pennsylvanian and Early Permian time. Five cycle types are characterized by thickness, magnitude, order, and principal lithofacies. Cycle magnitude is defined as the maximum facies shift in a cycle, indicating extent of shoreline migration. Cisco cycles belong to three orders--minor, intermediate, and major--and they are superimposed and form a stratigraphic hierarchy. Each order of cycles has a distinct range of thickness and possibly duration. A cycle is also divided into a lower sand-poor interval, during which coarse siliciclastic supply at the depositional site was diminishing, and an upper sand-rich interval, during which coarse siliciclastic supply was high. Regional thickness and lithofacies variations of sand-rich intervals indicate that progradational infilling at a depositional site lagged marine regression, suggesting a delay in sediment supply from the upland source relative to the time of base-level fall. Regional systematic variations in cycle abundance, continuity, and characteristics along depositional dip and strike record the interplay among regional topography, pattern of siliciclastic supply, and shelf subsidence, which controlled distribution of depocenters and bypass zones and, thus, stratigraphic completeness and resolution. Regional persistence of cycles suggests a eustatic control on regional, ordered transgressive-regressive events. In contrast, local variations of cycle characters suggest controls by local topography and depositional dynamics, which determined depositional loci, differential compaction, and erosion. A predominantly autocyclic Cisco record in the upper platform does not imply the absence of allogenic processes. An allocyclic Cisco record in the lower platform contains abundant autocyclic imprints, because allogenic controls on cyclic sedimentation were accomplished through local autogenic processes. Distinguishing the roles of autogenic versus allogenic processes in cyclic sedimentation is an important step in establishing a high-resolution (meter-scale) chronostratigraphy of any sedimentary record.


ISSN: 0016-7606
EISSN: 1943-2674
Coden: BUGMAF
Serial Title: Geological Society of America Bulletin
Serial Volume: 110
Serial Issue: 10
Title: Distinguishing the roles of autogenic versus allogenic processes in cyclic sedimentation, Cisco Group (Virgilian and Wolfcampian), north-central Texas
Affiliation: University of Texas, Bureau of Economic Geology, Austin, TX, United States
Pages: 1333-1353
Published: 199810
Text Language: English
Publisher: Geological Society of America (GSA), Boulder, CO, United States
References: 33
Accession Number: 1998-070315
Categories: StratigraphySedimentary petrology
Document Type: Serial
Bibliographic Level: Analytic
Illustration Description: illus. incl. sects., 1 table, sketch maps
N33°19'60" - N33°49'60", W100°00'00" - W98°40'00"
Secondary Affiliation: Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI, USA, United StatesUniversity of Mississippi, USA, United States
Country of Publication: United States
Secondary Affiliation: GeoRef, Copyright 2019, American Geosciences Institute. Reference includes data supplied by the Geological Society of America, Boulder, CO, United States
Update Code: 199824
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