The interval between the Carboniferous and Jurassic is marked by major changes in the structure and character of the Earth, associated with massive earthquakes, volcanic activity, and large scale changes of life at the Permian-Triassic and the Triassic-Jurassic boundaries. In this volume, an international assemblage of geologists reveals a wide range of information about these events in the circum-Pacific, as a conclusion to International Geological Correlation Programme Project 272. They explore the nature of the changes in the Late Palaeozoic and Early Mesozoic, and suggest issues for future investigation through the study of palaeontology, biostratigraphy, tectonics, magmatic and volcanic development, ore deposition, palaeography and climate. As the circum-Pacific region becomes increasingly important for hydrocarbon and mineral exploration, this book will be an invaluable resource for researchers and students.

The Pleistocene Boundary and the Beginning of the Quaternary presents the results of a forty-year international program to establish a precise definition for the most important boundary in geologic time – the beginning of the modern age of glacial climates. This book, the final report of International Geological Correlation Project 41, describes the selection of a fixed reference point in the sequence of deep-water marine strata exposed at Vrica, Italy. This point, dated to 1.81 million years before the present, coincides with the onset of the first of four major glacial phases. The opening chapters of the book document the geology and palaeontology of the agreed physical reference point, and the successful proposal of this point as the boundary-stratotype of the Pleistocene Epoch. The book then describes the correlation of the boundary throughout the ocean basins and continents of the world in terms of detailed stratigraphic criteria such as planktonic biostratigraphy, magnetostratigraphy and radiometric age determinations.

This is the first book to deal comprehensively with Spain's tectonic and sedimentary history over the past sixty or so million years. During Tertiary times, Spain had suffered compressional collision between France and Africa, and its Atlantic and Mediterranean coasts had been further modified by extensional rifting. This study will therefore be of interest to earth scientists generally because of the insights it provides into continental crustal deformation. Spain contains some of the best exposed outcrop geology in Europe. Because it includes sectors of two separate foreland basins, and an intervening craton with basins that have been influenced by extensional and strike-slip deformation, it provides excellent material for the development and testing of theories on the study of sedimentary basin formation and filling.

Glacial deposits provide a long-term record of climate and sea level changes on Earth. Detailed study of sedimentary rocks deposited during and immediately after glacial episodes is paramount to accurate palaeoclimatic reconstructions and for our understanding of global climatic and eustatic changes. This book presents new information and interpretations of the ancient glacial record, looking in particular at the Late Proterozoic and Late Paleozoic eras. The influence of global tectonics on the origins and distribution of ice masses and the character of glacial deposits through geologic time is emphasised. Sequence stratigraphic techniques are applied to glaciogenic successions, and explanations for possible low-latitude glaciation during the Late Proterozoic era and the association of carbonate deposits with glaciogenic rocks are put forward. Early interglacial conditions, represented by dark grey mudrocks and ice keel scour features are discussed. These studies, from key workers in International Geological Correlation Program Project 260, will aid the understanding of the Earth's climatic history.

In this work, 60 specialists come together to discuss the regional occurrences of Jurassic rocks. The tectonic setting, stratigraphical sequences, and fossil assemblages of Jurassic rocks are covered in detail; regional biozones based on palynonorphs, protistans, plants and invertebrates are defined, and super-regional standard zones based on ammonites are established. Numerous tables are used to document and illustrate intra- and inter-continental circum-Pacific correlations, and a large atlas illustrates more than 1,000 circum-Pacific index and guide fossils. Resulting from International Geological Correlation Programme Project 171, not only is this the first comprehensive synthesis of Jurassic geology and palaeontology, but it is in fact the only one of its kind for any geological system. This book will prove indispensable to academic geologists, palaeontologists and stratigraphers interested in the Jurassic period.

Permian and Triassic rocks in the eastern Tethyan region form continuous marine sequences that record the waning phases of the Paleozoic and the early stages of the Mesozoic eras. This book describes and interprets these rocks, summarizing the distribution of major fossil groups in a way that will allow detailed comparison with strata of comparable age in the western Tethys and other parts of the world. The sixteen contributions by forty authors are the culmination of the five-year long International Geological Correlation Programme Project 203. The detailed information presented here is gathered from many areas in the eastern Tethyan region - from France to Australia - and will be of use in the evaluation of the major changes in the global marine biosphere known to have taken place at the end of the Paleozoic era. The stratigraphic record for this fascinating segment of Earth history is not widespread elsewhere in the world and is most continuous in the region covered by this book.