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An analysis of cross-stratification of Gargaresh Calcarenite (Tripoli, Libya) and Pleistocene palaeowinds

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 May 2009

Mominul Hoque*
Affiliation:
Department of Geology, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Nigeria

Summary

The Pleistocene Gargaresh Calcarenite is a series of fossil dunes parallel to the Mediterranean coast of Tripoli; it is composed of medium-grained skeletal carbonate sand with abundant cross-stratification. Analyses of 321 azimuthal readings show that the distribution is bimodal with modes in the NE and the SE sectors. The distribution of modes indicates that the morphology and the orientation of eolian dunes were largely controlled by the then prevailing winds, and that the overall palaeowind pattern, although generally similar to the present-day system, might have undergone periodic changes due to Pleistocene climatic ups and downs.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1975

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