Facies Structure and Quantitative Parameters of Pleistocene Sedimentation on the Deep-Sea Floor of the Southern Pacific Ocean and in the Scotia Sea

Based on the data from long sediment cores retrieved by R/V Eltanin (United States) during the 1950s–1960s, Neo- and Eopleistocene lithofacies maps of the southern Pacific Ocean (scale 1 : 20 000 000) and Scotia Sea (scale 1 : 10 000 000) were compiled for the first time. For the Scotia Sea, schemes of isopachites are shown on the respective lithofacies maps. All maps are processed with the volumetric method proposed by A.B. Ronov. The results revealed that accumulation rates of the terrigenous and siliceous sediments increased during the Pleistocene in both sedimentation basins due to neotectonic activity in the Antarctic Peninsula, which enhanced fluxes of not only terrigenous matter but also nutrients delivered by melted waters to the photosynthesis zone via vertical circulation.