1986/12/01 by GARY KOCUREK, Jamie Nielson · 1 citation
Earth and Planetary Sciences · #Aeolian processes and effects #Geological formations and processes #Geology and Paleoclimatology Research #Geology #Aeolian processes #Pennsylvanian #Sand dune stabilization #Sedimentary structures #Stratification (seeds) #Paleontology #Geomorphology #Sedimentary depositional environment #Structural basin
paper · doi:10.1111/j.1365-3091.1986.tb00983.x
openalex publication_date 1986/12/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/07
ABSTRACT Aeolian sand sheets are areas of aeolian sand where dunes with slipfaces are generally absent. Sand sheets are ubiquitous to modern, warm‐climate sand seas, generally occurring marginal to dune fields, although they may exist within the interior of a sand sea or independent of a dune field. Sand‐sheet deposits are recognized in ancient aeolian sequences, where they may account for significant accumulations of low‐angle aeolian stratification. We suggest that the occurrence of sand sheets instead of dunes indicates that conditions are outside the range within which dunes form or that one or more factors interfere with dune development while also favouring the accumulation of sand sheets. A study of six modern sand sheets in North America (located at Great Sand Dunes, Gran Desierto, Dumont, Algodones, Padre Island, and Colorado River delta) indicates that the factors favourable for sand‐sheet development are: (1) a high water table, (2) surface cementation or binding, (3) periodic flooding, (4) a significant coarse‐grained sediment population, and (5) vegetation. These factors are reflected in the nature of stratification and the accessory features of sand‐sheet accumulations within the areas of modern sand sheets as well as in their ancient counterparts in the Triassic Dolores and Pennsylvanian‐Permian Rico formations.