Abstract
We report a quantitative examination of stacking patterns of sheet-like turbidite beds in a submarine-fan succession using the Straub method. The Straub method is a quantitative metric for the detection of compensational stacking of sedimentary successions in which the standard deviation of the sedimentation rate of the deposits is described by a power-law function within a given measurement time window. The method can be applied to successions in which it is possible to trace both the spatial distribution of sediment and datum levels. Bed-by-bed correlation was used to reveal the spatial distribution of sheet-like turbidite beds within a submarine-fan succession in the middle Kiyosumi Formation of the Boso Peninsula, central Japan. The compensation index of the studied interval represents the exponent of the power-law trend in the decay of the standard deviation and can serve as a quantitative indicator of the degree of compensational stacking. The values of compensation index are consistent with sheet-like turbidite stacking patterns determined from stratigraphic cross-sections of the studied succession. The Straub method is useful for exploring sediment stacking patterns in sedimentary environments characterized by feedback from basin morphology.
