Correlation of tertiary formations of Alaska

Abstract

Recent stratigraphic and paleontologic studies have resulted in substantial revision of the age assignments and inter-basin correlations of the Tertiary formations of Alaska as given in both an earlier compilation by P. S. Smith (1939) and a tentative chart prepared for distribution at the First International Symposium on Arctic Geology at Calgary, Alberta (Miller, MacNeil, and Wahrhaftig, 1960). Current work in Alaska by the U. S. Geological Survey and several oil companies is furnishing new information at a rapid rate and further revisions may be expected. The correlation chart (Fig. 1), the first published chart to deal exclusively with the Tertiary of Alaska, had the benefit of a considerable amount of stratigraphic data and fossil collections from some oil companies, but recent surface mapping and drilling by other oil companies in several Tertiary basins undoubtedly must have produced much more information. Nevertheless, the extent of available data justifies the publication of a revised correlation chart at this time.