SEISMIC STRATIGRAPHIC FEATURES OF THE LATE PLEISTOCENE DELTA OF THE YINGGEHAI BASIN, NORTHWEST OF SOUTH CHINA SEA

A late Pleistocene paleo-delta, which is named the Southwest Hainan Delta by the authors, has been found in the offshore region southwest to the Hainan Island by the interpretation of single channel seismic data. The delta was developed in the period from 45.9 ka to 33.2 ka according to AMS¹⁴C and OSL dating of the Core HDQ2. A preliminary estimation suggests that the delta covers an area of around 25 000 km². Analysis of geological background and interpretation of seismic profiles indicate that the Island of Hainan was the main provenance of the deltaic sediments.