Depositional Environments and Stratigraphy
| Title | ΣΤΡΩΜΑΤΟΓΡΑΦΙΑ ΚΑΙ ΑΠΟΘΕΤΙΚΑ ΠΕΡΙΒΑΛΛΟΝΤΑ / Depositional Environments and Stratigraphy |
| Code | NGGG 502Y |
| Faculty | Sciences |
| School | Geology |
| Cycle / Level | 1st / Undergraduate |
| Teaching Period | Spring |
| Coordinator | Angelos Maravelis |
| Common | No |
| Status | Active |
| Course ID | 600019036 |
Programme of Study: PPS-Tmīma Geōlogías (2020-sīmera)
Registered students: 119
| Orientation | Attendance Type | Semester | Year | ECTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| KORMOS | Compulsory Course | 4 | 2 | 6 |
| Academic Year | 2024 – 2025 |
| Class Period | Spring |
| Faculty Instructors |
|
| Instructors from Other Categories |
|
| Weekly Hours | 4 |
| Total Hours | 52 |
| Class ID | 600257537
|
Course Type 2011-2015
Specific Foundation / Core
Mode of Delivery
- Face to face
Digital Course Content
- e-Study Guide https://qa.auth.gr/en/class/1/600257537
- eLearning (Moodle): https://elearning.auth.gr/course/view.php?id=10252
Language of Instruction
- Greek (Instruction, Examination)
- English (Instruction, Examination)
Prerequisites
General Prerequisites
Sediments and Sedimentary Rocks, Introduction to Palaeontology
Learning Outcomes
By the end of the course, the student will be able to:
1) identify, describe, and explain the mechanisms of sediment transport and deposition within a sedimentary basin, in terrestrial, coastal, and marine environments, under different climatic conditions (glacial, temperate, tropical, and arid)
2) interpret how these processes organize sediments at various scales (from grains to layers, groups, facies, and ultimately at the basin scale)
3) analyze the architectural structure of this sedimentary arrangement in three dimensions and its temporal evolution in relation to the tectonic development of the basin (Stratigraphy)
4) develop skills in the stratigraphic identification, description, and documentation of sedimentary rocks and sequences (both in the laboratory and in the field), as well as in the correlation, synthesis, and application of stratigraphic and palaeo-depositional data for solving geological, palaeoenvironmental, and palaeoclimatic problems, either individually or as part of a team
5) recognize sedimentary processes by studying their depositional products, whether these processes took place in the past or are expected to occur in the future in surface deposits
6) connect the outcomes of this course with other sub-disciplines of the Geosciences or related scientific fields (such as Archaeology), and with other environmental issues of concern to modern society in a sustainable manner
7) identify, distinguish, and classify sedimentary layers in the field through relevant exercises, apply methods and techniques for their documentation, construct stratigraphic profiles and columns and map the distribution of different formations.
General Competences
- Apply knowledge in practice
- Retrieve, analyse and synthesise data and information, with the use of necessary technologies
- Work autonomously
- Work in teams
- Respect natural environment
- Advance free, creative and causative thinking
Course Content (Syllabus)
• The concept of Accommodation Space. Base Level changes as driving force to the transport and deposition of sediments. Causes of Accommodation Space and Base Level change (Geotectonic, Isostatic, Climatic – Milankovich Cysles).
• Sediment transport and depositional processes in siliciclastic and carbonate depositional environments (continental, marginal marine, shallow and deep marine).
• Facies Analysis (Lithofacies, Biofacies). Paleo-environmental indicators, interpretation of past depositional environments.
• Laws - Principles of Stratigraphy (Superposition, Original Horizontality, Lateral Continuity, Cross-Cutting Relationship, Fossil Faunas Succession, Actualism).
• Criteria for Identifying original place of Layered rocks (Upper-lower surface of a bed, Organic markers-Inorganic Structures, Indicators of original Horizontality).
• Lithostratigraphy (Lithostratigraphic profiles, Description and recording of a field section and a borehole core, Lithostratigraphic Correlation, Lithostratigraphic Column, Examples).
• Biostratigraphy (Stratigraphy and Fossils - Index Fossils, Biostratigraphic Units - Biozone Types, Biostratigraphic Correlation, Examples).
• Other stratigraphic methods (Magnetic stratigraphy, Seismic stratigraphy, Isotopic and chemical stratigraphy, Wire loggings, examples).
• Filling of Accommodation Space (spatial and temporal, dimension geometry of depositional structures, General Concepts of Sequence Stratigraphy and Basin Analysis.
Keywords
Stratigraphy, Accommodation Space, Depositional Environments, Facies, Stratigraphic Units, Stratigraphic Correlation
Educational Material Types
- Notes
- Multimedia
Use of Information and Communication Technologies
Use of ICT
- Use of ICT in Course Teaching
- Use of ICT in Laboratory Teaching
- Use of ICT in Communication with Students
- Use of ICT in Student Assessment
Description
1) All class material is available in electronic form to all students through the course web page
2) The teacher communicates with students through email and Facebook
3) The class evaluation is performed through the Quality Assurance Unit (MO.DI.P.)
Course Organization
| Activities | Workload | ECTS | Individual | Teamwork | Erasmus |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lectures | 65 | ✓ | ✓ | ||
| Laboratory Work | 55 | ✓ | ✓ | ||
| Fieldwork | 15 | ✓ | ✓ | ||
| Reading Assigment | 8 | ✓ | ✓ | ||
| Written assigments | 4 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| Exams | 3 | ✓ | ✓ | ||
| Total | 150 |
Student Assessment
Description
1. Written Exam with short-answer questions on topics taught at both theory and laboratories.
2. Mandatory laboratory assignments submitted to e-learning based on the requirements of each laboratory course.
3. Submission of a report concerning the mandatory fieldwork.
Student Assessment methods
- Written Exam with Multiple Choice Questions (Summative)
- Written Exam with Short Answer Questions (Summative)
- Written Exam with Extended Answer Questions (Summative)
- Oral Exams (Summative)
- Report (Formative)
Bibliography
Course Bibliography (Eudoxus)
• Κουφός Γ. (1985) Μαθήματα Στρωματογραφίας (μέρος 1ο . σελίδες 1- 103, κεφάλαια: A. Εισαγωγή. B. Νόμοι στρωματογραφίας, Στρώση - Στρώματα. C. Στρωματογραφικές μέθοδοι. D. Φάσεις. E. Στρωματογραφική έρευνα)
• Ψιλοβίκος Αντ. και Ψιλοβίκος Αρ. (2019) Ιζηματολογία (Τα Κεφάλια: Μηχανισμοί Μεταφοράς και Απόθεσης των Ιζημάτων, Δομή των Ιζημάτων, Ιζηματογενή Αποθετικά Περιβάλλοντα και Μοντέλα Ιζηματογένεσης). Εκδόσεις Τζιόλα.
• E-learning: Σημειώσεις - παρουσιάσεις - Διευκρινιστικά έντυπα και βιβλιογραφία για περαιτέρω εμβάθυνση στο: https://elearning.auth.gr/course/view.php?id=9807
Additional bibliography for study
• Gary Nichols (2009) Sedimentology and Stratigraphy [Chapters: 19 (STRATIGRAPHY: CONCEPTS AND LITHOSTRATIGRAPHY), 20 (BIOSTRATIGRAPHY), 21 (DATING AND CORRELATION TECHNIQUES), 22 (SUBSURFACE STRATIGRAPHY AND SEDIMENTOLOGY)].
• NORTH AMERICAN STRATIGRAPHIC CODE 2005 (AAPG Bulletin, v. 89, no. 11 November 2005)
• Allen P. and Allen J. (2013) Basin Analysis: Principles and Application to Petroleum Play Assessment [PART 3: The sedimentary basin-fill: CHAPTER 7: The sediment routing system, CHAPTER 7: Basin Stratigraphy, CHAPTER 8: Subsidence history]. Willey- Blackwell.
Last Update
04-07-2025
