Abyssal channel

Abyssal channels (also, deep-dea channels, underwater channels) are channels in Earth's sea floor. They are formed by fast-flowing floods of turbid water caused by avalanches near the channel's head, with the sediment carried by the water causing a build-up of the surrounding abyssal plains. Submarine channels and the turbidite systems which form them are responsible for the accumulation of most sandstone deposits found on continental slopes and have proven to be one of the most common types of hydrocarbon reservoirs found in these regions (Weimer et al., 2000).

Submarine channels and their flanking levees are commonly referred to as channel levee systems (Flood and Damuth, 1987). They are significant geomorphological features that may run for thousands of kilometres across the ocean floor. Often, they coalesce and overlap to form channel levee complexes which are the building blocks of many major submarine fans. (Kane, 2010) This makes them one of several geological processes responsible for the transport of coarse grained sediment into deep water as well as being a chief conduit for the transfer of carbon from continental shelf to the deeper parts of the continental margins. (Bull et al., 2009; Frey- Martinez et al., 2005; Gee et al., 2006; Masson et al., 2006; Shipp et al., 2004).

They do however remain one of the least understood sedimentary processes. (Kane, 2010)

The effect of Earth's rotation causes more sediment to build up on one side of the channel than on the other.

What constitutes a channel is not straight forward. Different terms are used on a per study basis all of which have similar but not quite interchangeable definitions. There have been efforts by both Wynn et al. (2007) and Mayall et al. (2006) to produce an up-to-date, holistic view but even since then there has been a significant number of papers which take concepts, models and ideas even further.

There are numerous terms that are used to describe the features contained in this study including geo-body, channel complex, channel storey, channel complex set, and confined channel complex system (Kane, 2011). These cover single channels, a single channel and associated sediments or multiple channels grouped. Flood (2001) defines a channel-levee system as a single channel with a levee at each side. These levees are formed by the overspilling and flow stripping of turbidity currents. These are most likely to occur during sea level lowstands. A collection of these channels and levees along with overbank sediments form a channel-levee complex.

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