Late Quaternary sedimentation on the Gulf of Lions continental shelf and slope (north-western Mediterranean).Part 2: Order of cyclicity and isotope chronostratigraphy

This study tries to establish the chronostratigraphy of the Late Quaternary high-resolution seismic units off the present Rhône Delta. Previous works have associated the deposition of these seismic units with 5th order glacio-eustatic cycles. We have compared (7) the thickness of ¿he studied series with a multichannel seismic profile, tied with o¡¡-exploration wells drilled near the study area and (2), the stacking pattern of the Rhône shelf seismic units with other Plio-Quaternary deltaic margins in the Mediterranean. Available 14C dates concerning the youngest seismic units have been also used and plotted on the Late Quaternary high-resolution eustatic curve. Each seismic unit (B-F) has been associated with a 4th order instead 5th order glacio-eustatic cycle. This hypothesis is used to built up the absolute chronostratigraphy of the series, using the SPECMAP record