Coastal and Marine Geology Program Internet Map Server:
Louisiana Continental Slope

Internet Map Server Description

USGS Louisiana Continental Slope Internet Map Server default map view. Click here for a larger image. Image will open in new browser window.

The USGS Louisiana Continental Slope Internet Map Server contains published data layers and information from the Coastal and Marine Geology Program (CMGP), Tectonics and Sedimentary Processes of the Salt Deformed Texas-Louisiana Continental Slope project.  An example of the default map view is shown at the right.  This map view shows a portion of the Gulf of Mexico Geologic LOng-Range Inclined Asdic (GLORIA) sidescan data, bathymetric contours and location of gas hydrates.

The USGS Louisiana Continental Slope project has mapped the surficial geology of a large part of the Texas-Louisiana continental slope using advanced processing techniques and existing GLORIA and multibeam bathymetric data to identify recent turbidite pathways in this area. It has collected high-resolution seismic profiles to better understand the subsurface structure and stratigraphy of these features, has collected piston cores to identify the facies and facies distributions within one of these turbidite pathways. Turbidites are a form of underwater flow and transportation of sediments; they form underwater features very much like subaerial river systems. However, sedimentary configurations in this study area have been modified by movement of underlying salt deposits. Process models of these late Quaternary turbidite systems which we can observe and understand better because they are at the bottom surface, rather than buried, serve as analogs for older Pleistocene and Pliocene turbidite systems which are presently being explored for and developed by petroleum companies; they determine the location of sands, which may be the sites of oil accumulation.

Additional basemap data layers relative to the specific mapsite have been compiled from a variety of public domain sites and are also available for viewing and download.

Within the Internet Map Server, data layers have been grouped within category headings.  Clicking the appropriate data folder will expand or collapse the folder allowing the individual data layers to be displayed. Data layers may be "turned-off or on" by selecting the visible button beside the layer name.  The map view will automatically update. A complete description of the available data layers and links to download the data may be found in the GIS Data Catalog.