@article{SayagoDiLuciaMuttietal.2018,
  author    = {Sayago, Jhosnella and Di Lucia, Matteo and Mutti, Maria and Sitta, Andrea and Cotti, Axum and Frijia, Gianluca},
  title     = {Late Paleozoic seismic sequence stratigraphy and paleogeography of the paleo-Loppa High in the Norwegian Barents Sea},
  series = {Marine and petroleum geology},
  volume    = {97},
  journal   = {Marine and petroleum geology},
  publisher = {Elsevier},
  address   = {Oxford},
  issn      = {0264-8172},
  doi       = {10.1016/j.marpetgeo.2018.05.038},
  pages     = {192 -- 208},
  year      = {2018},
  abstract  = {The paleo-Loppa High in the SW Barents Sea is a ridge structure, which developed during the late Paleozoic when the earliest phase of the Atlantic rifting between Greenland and Norway occurred. The southwest of the Barents Sea, located at the northern margin of Pangaea during the Carboniferous and Permian, was characterized by a structural style of half-graben geometries. The northward drift of the northern Pangaea triggered changes in regional climatic conditions that are reflected in the preserved sedimentary deposits. 2D/3D seismic combined with well and core data were used to define depositional seismic sequences and to understand the stratigraphic evolution of the paleo-Loppa High during the late Paleozoic. Based on the geometry of the defined seismic sequences and the character of observed sedimentary facies, a paleogeographic reconstruction of the key stages in the paleo-Loppa High evolution is also proposed and discussed in relation to local tectonic, global sea-level oscillations, and climatic changes. A total of seven seismic sequences, ranging from clastic-dominated to transitional elastic-carbonate sedimentation followed by an evaporitic drawdown phase, then shifting to carbonate-dominated sequences and finally capped by silica- and chert-dominated deposits, have been defined and represent the infill evolution of the paleo-Loppa High. Tectonics processes associated with the rifting are the principal controls in the 3-D morphology of the defined sequences. Sea-level fluctuations and climate changes have modified the biotic evolution and were responsible of the small-scale features inside each sequence. A renewed interest, in the study of the late Paleozoic sedimentary deposits of the paleo-Loppa High, has been manifested due to the recent discoveries of hydrocarbons in the Gohta and Alta prospects.},
  language  = {en}
}
@article{SayagoDiLuciaMuttietal.2012,
  author    = {Sayago, Jhosnella and Di Lucia, Matte and Mutti, Maria and Cotti, Axum and Sitta, Andrea and Broberg, Kjetil and Przybylo, Artur and Buonaguro, Raffaele and Zimina, Olesya},
  title     = {Characterization of a deeply buried paleokarst terrain in the Loppa High using core data and multiattribute seismic facies classification},
  series = {AAPG BULLETIN},
  volume    = {96},
  journal   = {AAPG BULLETIN},
  number    = {10},
  publisher = {AMER ASSOC PETROLEUM GEOLOGIST},
  address   = {TULSA},
  issn      = {0149-1423},
  doi       = {10.1306/02271211137},
  pages     = {1843 -- 1866},
  year      = {2012},
  abstract  = {The recognition of paleokarst in subsurface carbonate reservoirs is not straightforward because conventional seismic interpretation alone is generally not sufficient to discriminate karstified areas from their surroundings. In the Loppa High (Norwegian Barents Sea), a protracted episode of subaerial exposure occurring between the late Paleozoic and mid-Triassic-Late Permian to Anisian-resulted in a significant overprinting of the previously deposited carbonate units. Here, we map the extension of the karstified areas using an integrated approach consisting of (1) a core study of critical paleokarst intervals, (2) a three-dimensional (3-D) seismic stratigraphic analysis, and (3) a 3-D multiattribute seismic facies (SF) classification. A core retrieved in the flat-topped Loppa High revealed breccia deposits at least 50 m (164 ft) thick, which probably resulted from cave collapses following the burial of the karst terrain. The SF classification was tested on a 3-D cube to (1) discriminate the respective SF related to the breccia deposits compared with other SF and (2) to estimate their spatial extent. Seismic-facies analysis suggests that breccias occupied the topmost area of the structural high, extending up to 12 km (7 mi) in width, 46 km (29 mi) in length, and tens of meters in thickness. The inference of such a large amount of breccia suggests that a significant part of this terrain was derived from the amalgamation of successive cave-development events-including periods of subaerial exposure and subsequent burial and collapse-resulting in a coalesced collapsed paleocave system. Previous observations from the Loppa High revealed the presence of karst plains associated with sinkholes, caves, and other dissolution phenomena associated with the breccia facies, further suggesting that a large volume of carbonate rocks in this area was affected by subaerial exposure and karstification. Our integrated approach and proposed karstification model could be applied to similar sedimentary basins that accommodate deeply buried carbonate successions affected by protracted episodes of subaerial exposure, where only few wells as well as 3-D seismic data are available.},
  language  = {en}
}