<?xml version='1.0' encoding='utf-8'?>
<oai_dc:dc xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/" xmlns:oai_dc="http://www.openarchives.org/OAI/2.0/oai_dc/" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" xsi:schemaLocation="http://www.openarchives.org/OAI/2.0/oai_dc/ http://www.openarchives.org/OAI/2.0/oai_dc.xsd">
  <dc:contributor>Keith A. Kvenvolden</dc:contributor>
  <dc:creator>Michael E. Field</dc:creator>
  <dc:date>1985</dc:date>
  <dc:description>&lt;p&gt;The inner continental margin of northern California is underlain by a well-defined and extensive acoustic reflector that crosses other reflectors and mimics the surface of the sea floor. This bottom-simulating reflector (BSR) lies at a typical subsurface depth of about 250 m and has been mapped continuously beneath the Klamath Plateau and upper slope (water depths of 800 to 1200 m) for a distance of more than 130 km; it covers an area of at least 3000 km&lt;sup&gt;2&lt;/sup&gt;. Limited data show that the BSR extends northward into Oregon and seaward at least to the base of the slope (3000 m).&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The water depths, subsurface depths, and pervasive nature of the BSR all suggest that it represents the base of a natural-gas hydrate. Using standard phase boundary diagrams for hydrate stability, we estimate the local geothermal gradient within the gas hydrate to be about 55 °C/km. This value is higher than that of most subduction margins and may be a result of the youthfulness of the subducting oceanic crust. This acoustically inferred gas hydrate is the first to be mapped on the western conterminous United States continental margin.&lt;/p&gt;</dc:description>
  <dc:format>application/pdf</dc:format>
  <dc:identifier>10.1130/0091-7613(1985)13&lt;517:GHOTNC&gt;2.0.CO;2</dc:identifier>
  <dc:language>en</dc:language>
  <dc:publisher>GSA</dc:publisher>
  <dc:title>Gas hydrates on the northern California continental margin</dc:title>
  <dc:type>article</dc:type>
</oai_dc:dc>