Formation of the crater suevite sequence from the Chicxulub peak ring: a petrographic, geochemical, and sedimentological characterization

Pim Kaskes, Sietze J. de Graaff, Jean-Guillaume Feignon, Thomas Déhais, Steven Goderis, Ludovic Ferrière, Christian Koeberl, Jan Smit, Axel Wittmann, Sean P.S. Gulick, Vinciane Debaille, Nadine Matielli, Philippe Claeys

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Abstract

This study presents a new classification of a similar to 100-m-thick crater suevite sequence in the recent International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP)-International Continental Scientific Drilling Program (ICDP) Expedition 364 Hole M0077A drill core to better understand the formation of suevite on top of the Chicxulub peak ring. We provide an extensive data set for this succession that consists of whole-rock major and trace element compositional data (n = 212) and petrographic data supported by digital image analysis. The suevite sequence is subdivided into three units that are distinct in their petrography, geochemistry, and sedimentology, from base to top: the similar to 5.6-m-thick non-graded suevite unit, the similar to 89-m-thick graded suevite unit, and the similar to 3.5-m-thick bedded suevite unit. All of these suevite units have isolated Cretaceous planktic foraminifera within their clastic groundmass, which suggests that marine processes were responsible for the deposition of the entire M0077A suevite sequence. The most likely scenario describes that the first ocean water that reached the northern peak ring region entered through a N-NE gap in the Chicxulub outer rim. We estimate that this ocean water arrived at Site M0077 within 30 minutes after the impact and was relatively poor in rock debris. This water caused intense quench fragmentation when it interacted with the underlying hot impact melt rock, and this resulted in the emplacement of the similar to 5.6-m-thick hyaloclastite-like, non-graded suevite unit. In the following hours, the impact structure was flooded by an ocean resurge rich in rock debris, which caused the phreatomagmatic processes to stop and the similar to 89-m-thick graded suevite unit to be deposited. We interpret that after the energy of the resurge slowly dissipated, oscillating seiche waves took over the sedimentary regime and formed the similar to 3.5-m-thick bedded suevite unit. The final stages of the formation of the impactite sequence (estimated to be

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)895-927
Number of pages33
JournalGeological Society of America. Bulletin
Volume134
Issue number3-4
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2022

Austrian Fields of Science 2012

  • 105106 Geodynamics
  • 105105 Geochemistry
  • 105120 Petrology

Keywords

  • Chicxulub impact crater
  • Impact melt rock
  • Impact melt emplacement
  • Geochemistry
  • YUCATAN
  • SCIENTIFIC DRILLING PROJECT
  • ONAPING FORMATION
  • YAXCOPOIL-1
  • RIES CRATER
  • MEXICO
  • CONSTRAINTS
  • BOUNDARY
  • IMPACT CRATER
  • REVISITED-OBSERVATIONS

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