North of the Ascension-Monterey Canyon system, the Ascension continental slope is incised with many gullies but does not contain sizable submarine canyons. The multibeam data show the presence of features that appear to be rills, rotational slumps, thin sediment flows, and possible carbonate mounds scattered about the upper slope and flat outer shelf floor (Greene et al., 1999).
Many of the gullies are similar to groundwater morphology described on land (Jones, 1990). These features converge at the distal edge of the continental shelf and upper slope (100-300 meters deep) to form incipient canyons which may be associated with fluid sapping (Greene et al., 1999). Landslides are prominent along this slope. Underlying the landslides and Quaternary sediment cover are rocks of Pliocene age (Purisima Formation equivalent), Miocene age (Monterey Formation) and Jurassic Cretaceous age.
| Index Map | Ascension Slope |
Monterey Canyon |
Sur Ridge/ Sur Canyon |
Upper
Lucia Canyon |
Lower
Lucia Canyon |