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Foraminiferal Assemblages of Inferred Onshore Paleotsunami Deposits in Southwestern Andaman Islands, India

Journal of the Geological Society of India volume 97, pages 579–595 (2021)Cite this article

Abstract

Quantitative and qualitative characteristics of foraminiferal species within the inferred paleotsunami deposits of southwestern Andaman Island were examined using sediment samples from six geoslice sections up to a depth of ∼2.5m. In this study, it is considered that the foraminiferal assemblages of the 2004 tsunami deposit (Unit b) as a modern analogue to trace similar events in the geological past. Paleontological and quantitative data analysis suggests 2 biofacies in the stratigraphy. Biofacies I is indicative of a subtidal sediment provenance and its mixing with intertidal sediments due to the tsunami, whereas, Biofacies II is an intertidal/marshy sediment provenance/environment. Foraminiferal tests >180µm in dimension in the tsunami facies (Biofacies I) show abrasion marks, which otherwise show high preservation potential than the pre-tsunami (Biofacies II) that indicates high dissolution activity and low preservation potential. Based on these inferences, 4 tsunami zones, 4 marsh zones, and 1 basin filling zone was elucidated in the stratigraphical column. In order to refine the chronostratigraphy of this area, the contemporaneous foraminifera recovered from a 15cm thick paleotsunami deposit (Unit g) were dated using 14C accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS). The AMS age suggests that AD 1005–1190 was the predecessor of 2004 Sumatra-Andaman earthquake (Mw 9.3) and associated Indian Ocean tsunami.

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Acknowledgements

Financial supported provided by the Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS), Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES), and the Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur (IITK) is duly acknowledged. We thank Devarajan Balaji, (SE) APWD, Port Blair, for assistance and logistic support during the geological fieldwork. The authors thank Head, Department of Applied Geology, Dr. Harisingh Gour Vishwavidyalaya, Sagar for the access to facilities to the separation and identification of foraminiferal tests. Help provided by Drs. Santiswarup Sahoo, Sravanthi Sataluri and Asmita Mohanty in the lab is duly acknowledged. The authors are grateful to Dr. Vanessa Andrade, Niigata University, Japan, Dr. Parminder Sing Ranhotra, Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeosciences (BSIP), Lucknow, and Dr. Sonal Khanolkar, IIT Kanpur for constructive suggestions. Finally, we acknowledge the reviewers for valuable suggestions.

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  1. Department of Earth Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, Kanpur, 208 016, India

    Frango C. Johnson, Javed N. Malik & Afzal Khan

  2. Department of Applied Geology, Dr. Harisingh Gour Vishwavidyalaya, Sagar, 470 003, India

    Pradeep K. Kathal

  3. School of Civil Engineering and Architecture, Adama Science and Technology University, Adama, Ethiopia, 1888

    Afzal Khan

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Johnson, F.C., Malik, J.N., Kathal, P.K. et al. Foraminiferal Assemblages of Inferred Onshore Paleotsunami Deposits in Southwestern Andaman Islands, India. J Geol Soc India 97, 579–595 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12594-021-1733-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12594-021-1733-z