Funds will be provided to investigate sedimentation processes in the mixed siliciclastic carbonate slope and basin environment in the Gulf of Papua as a part of the integrated source-to-sink experiment at the Fly River-Gulf of Papua focus site of MARGINS. Through the use of detailed acoustic surveys and seabed and water column sampling the proposers will estimate sediment fluxes and transport pathways from the shelf edge and carbonate reef margins to the ultimate sinks of the Ashmore and Pandora troughs over the last interglacial cycle. The work will lead to an understanding of the history of sediment accumulation on the continental slope and the deep ocean for the mixed system as well as sediment fluxes and transport mechanisms by identifying timing and geometry of deposition in the Gulf. The ultimate objective is to develop a model for mixed carbonate-siliciclastic deposition.
