The distortion of the ancient shoreline and flooding surface
of the U.S. Atlantic Coastal Plain are the direct result of fluctuations in
topography in the region and could have implications on understanding long-term
climate change, according to a new study.
Sedimentary rocks from Virginia through Florida show marine
flooding during the mid-Pliocene Epoch, which correlates to approximately 4
million years ago. Several wave-cut scarps (rock exposures), which originally
would have been horizontal, are now draped over a warped surface with up to 60
meters variation.