Objective
Submarine canyons are deep, steep-sided valleys incised in the seafloor. They are major geomorphological features that dissect most of the world's ocean margins. Submarine canyons serve as temporary sinks and conduits for sediment, nutrients, organic carbon and associated pollutants, and they host a large quantity and diversity of habitats and biological communities. In spite of their relevance and widespread distribution, submarine canyons are still poorly known environments, and their formation is still subject to considerable debate. Most research has focused on basic mapping of canyon systems, and recent studies have mainly comprised qualitative descriptions of canyon morphology. We propose a geomorphometric analysis of bathymetric data from submarine canyons in the Catalan and Patagonian margins to improve our understanding of the geological processes responsible for canyon formation. This approach will allow us to characterise the large and small scale morphology of canyon systems in unprecedented detail, and to systematically investigate the link between morphology and individual sedimentary processes. The results will also be integrated with side-scan sonar imagery, seismic reflection data, and geotechnical and sedimentological data from sediment cores to isolate the fundamental processes responsible for canyon initiation and development, understand the nature and role of these processes, and reconstruct the evolution of canyon morphology. The objectives of CAGE are: (1)To establish a comparison between the morphometry of known canyon networks and identify the principal geomorphological processes and geological controls on their development; (2)To determine the nature of submarine mass movements on canyon walls and heads, and their influence on the morphological evolution of submarine canyons; (3)To develop a numerical model based on the results from Objectives (1) and (2) for the reconstruction of canyon morphological initiation and evolution.
Topic(s)
Call for proposal
FP7-PEOPLE-2009-IEF
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Funding Scheme
MC-IEF - Intra-European Fellowships (IEF)Coordinator
08007 Barcelona
Spain