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Table 1 Configurations of density plumes on satellite images in modern marine and lacustrine environments. See Shanmugam (2018b) for a comprehensive study of 45 case studies

From: The hyperpycnite problem

Serial number in Fig. 1

Case study and location

Configuration of density plumes on satellite images

Environment

External control

Comments

1

1A − Yellow River, Bohai Bay

1A − Simple lobate, associated with a single river mouth (old river mouth, 1995; Fig. 2e)

River-dominated delta

Tidal shear front (Wang et al. 2010)

Interpretation of a specific type of plume in the ancient record is impractical at present.

1B − Yellow River, Bohai Bay

1B − Horse’s tail (Modern river mouth, 1999; Fig. 2f)

River-dominated delta

Tidal shear front (Wang et al. 2010)

Interpretation of a specific type of plume in the ancient record is impractical at present.

2

Yangtze River, East China Sea

Deflecting (Fig. 11a)

Tide-dominated estuary

Shelf currents (Liu et al. 2006) Vertical mixing by tides in winter months (Luo et al. 2017)

Interpretation of a specific type of plume in the ancient record is impractical at present.

3

Río de la Plata Estuary, Argentina and Uruguay, South Atlantic Ocean

Dissipating (Fig. 20c)

Marine

Ocean currents (Gonzalez-Silvera et al. 2006; Matano et al. 2010)

Interpretation of a specific type of plume in the ancient record is impractical at present.

4

Guadalquivir River, Southern Spain, Gulf of Cádiz

U-Turn (Fig. 22c)

River-dominated delta

Surace and slope currents (Peliz et al. 2009)

Interpretation of a specific type of plume in the ancient record is impractical at present.

5

Strait of Gibraltar

Swirly (NASA 2017)

Strait mouth

Ocean water moving through the strait and internal waves (Shanmugam 2013)

Interpretation of a specific type of plume in the ancient record is impractical at present.

6

Chignik Lake, Alaska, Pacific Ocean

Linear (Fig. 6)

Braided delta in a lagoon, Pacific Ocean

Coarse-grained braided delta (McPherson et al. 1987)

Interpretation of a specific type of plume in the ancient record is impractical at present.

7

7A − Copper River, Gulf of Alaska

7A − Coalescing irregular, associated with multiple river mouths (Fig. 24a)

Braided delta, marine

Coarse-grained braided delta

Interpretation of a specific type of plume in the ancient record is impractical at present.

7B − Copper River, Gulf of Alaska

7B − Blanketing eolian dust plume (Fig. 24b)

Braided delta, marine

Eolian

Interpretation of a specific type of plume in the ancient record is impractical at present.

8

Hugli River (a distributary of the Ganges River), India, Bay of Bengal

Anastomosing (Fig. 25b)

Tide-dominated estuary (Balasubramanian and Ajmal Khan 2002)

Tidal currents

The Bay of Bengal is known not only for severe monsoonal floods, but also for frequent cyclonic activity (Shanmugam 2008a)

Interpretation of a specific type of plume in the ancient record is impractical at present.

9

Zambezi River, Central Mozambique, Indian Ocean

Coalescing lobate, associated with multiple river mouths (Fig. 23)

Wave-dominated delta

Longshore currents (Mikhailov et al. 2015)

Interpretation of a specific type of plume in the ancient record is impractical at present.

10

Off Namibia, South Atlantic

Cloudy (NASA 2017)

Marine

Upwelling (Plankton) (Shillington et al. 1992)

Interpretation of a specific type of plume in the ancient record is impractical at present.

11

Off Namibia, South Atlantic

Swirly (NASA 2017)

Marine

Upwelling (Hydrogen sulfide)

Interpretation of a specific type of plume in the ancient record is impractical at present.

12

Gulf of Mannar, India and Sri Lanka, Indian Ocean

Massive and swirly (NASA 2017)

Marine

Monsoonal currents (Jagadeesan et al. 2013); wave actions (Sridhar et al. 2008)

Interpretation of a specific type of plume in the ancient record is impractical at present.

13

Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco Bay, Pacific Ocean

Tidal lobate (Fig. 26c)

Bay mouth

Tidal currents (Barnard et al. 2006)

Interpretation of a specific type of plume in the ancient record is impractical at present.

14

U.S. Atlantic shelf

Cascading (Shanmugam 2008a)

Shelf (Marine)

1999 Hurricane Floyda

Interpretation of a specific type of plume in the ancient record is impractical at present.

15

Northern Gulf of Mexico

Swirly (Fig. 27b)

Shelf (Marine)

2009 Tropical Storm Idaa

Interpretation of a specific type of plume in the ancient record is impractical at present.

16

Kalutara Beach, Sri Lanka, Arabian Sea

Bakwash (Shanmugam 2006b)

Marine

2004 Indian Ocean Tsunamia

Interpretation of a specific type of plume in the ancient record is impractical at present.

17

Greenland, Labrador Sea

Meltwater (NASA 2017)

Marine

Sublacial, meltwater (Chu 2014; see also Cuffey and Paterson 2010)

Interpretation of a specific type of plume in the ancient record is impractical at present.

18

The Great Bahama Bank, Atlantic Ocean

Whitings (NASA 2017)

Marine

Fish activities (Broecker et al. 2000); wind (Dierssen et al. 2009); florida current (Purkis et al. 2017)

Interpretation of a specific type of plume in the ancient record is impractical at present.

19

Tagula Island, South Pacific Ocean

Ring (NASA 2017)

Marine

Coral reef (Khanna and Yadav 2008)

Interpretation of a specific type of plume in the ancient record is impractical at present.

20

Egypt, Red Sea

Dust (NASA 2017)

Marine

Eolian

Interpretation of a specific type of plume in the ancient record is impractical at present.

21

Yucatan Peninsula, Southern Gulf of Mexico

Feathery (NASA 2017)

Marine

Complex mix of sediment and plankton

Interpretation of a specific type of plume in the ancient record is impractical at present.

22

Paluweh Volcano, Indonesia, Indian Ocean

Volcanic ash (NASA 2017)

Marine

Volcanic

Interpretation of volcanic ash plume is possible.

23

Bogoslof Island, Bering Sea

Volcanic ash (NASA 2017)

Marine

Volcanic (Shipley and Sarna-Wojcicki 1982)

Interpretation of volcanic ash plume is possible.

24

Lake Michigan, USA

Tendril (Fig. 28b)

Lacustrine

Eolian

Interpretation of a specific type of plume in the ancient record is impractical at present.

25

Lake Erie, USA

Swirly (Fig. 28c)

Lacustrine

Seiche (de Jong and Battjes 2004)

Interpretation of a specific type of plume in the ancient record is impractical at present.

26

Carolina Continental Rise, North Atlantic

Gas hydrate (Paull et al. 1995; see also Ruppel and Kessler 2017)

Marine

Pockmarked sea floor associated with active chemosynthetic biological communities

Interpretation of gas hydrate plume is possible.

  1. aTransport of gravel, sand, and mud to deep-water environments by cyclone- and tsunami-related flows is possible