DEFLECTION VERSUS REFLECTION OF SEDIMENT GRAVITY FLOWS IN THE LATE LLANDOVERY RHUDDNANT GRITS TURBIDITE SYSTEM, WELSH BASIN

The Rhuddnant Grits turbidite system was deposited in an elongate, fau lt-bounded trough, an apparently ideal locality for the reflection of sediment gravity flows as solitons. However, 280 palaeocurrent reading s from turbidite sandstones do not show the expected high angle discre pancies between palaeocurrent directions from sole structures and thos e from cross-lamination. Palaeocurrents orthogonal to the bounding lin eament are not generally observed. Instead there is a gradual, progres sive, anticlockwise deflection of the currents with distance from sour ce. This may be explained by banking of the currents against an intrab asinal slope, by the Coriolis effect, or by a combination of the two p rocesses.