Geological and historical records of tsunami in Australia

104 D. Dominey-Howes / Marine Geology 239 (2007) 99–123
descriptions exists towards the palaeotsunami record.
Here again, a distinction is made between the geological
and geomorphological effects of palaeo and historic
tsunami in Australia.
3.2.1. Geology and geomorphology of Australian
palaeotsunami
The sedimentological description of Australian
palaeotsunami deposits may be divided in to two
classes. The first relates to sediments laid down by
asteroid generated tsunami and these deposits are
extremely old. The second class relates to Holocene
palaeotsunami. Consequently, a very substantial hiatus
exists in the palaeotsunami record.
Recent work by Hassler et al., (2000), Glikson and
Allen (2004), Glikson (2006) and Glikson et al., (2004)
has focused on the impacts, effects and records of
asteroid impacts in to the proto-Australian continent.
Based upon detailed field reconnaissance and mapping,
rock sampling and laboratory analyses, these researchers
have come to recognise what they describe as the signatures
of tsunami deposited sediments associated with
these asteroid impacts in sedimentary sequences.
Interested readers are referred to their work for more
detail but broadly, their descriptions of these deposits
include:
“microkrystite spherule-bearing diamictite, interpreted
as tsunami deposit”, and “a 0.6–0.8 m thick unit of
silicified chert-intraclast conglomerate….. The unit
includes