Late Cretaceous and Cenozoic sediments deposited on the eastern and western sides of the Shatsky Rise show similar clay assemblages of chlorite, illite, mixed layers, smectite, kaolinite, and palygorskite, and a similar vertical differentiation into three units. The deep-sea pelagic red clay is dominated by terrigenous components, which suggests that diagenesis is minor in this part of the western North Pacific and that eolian supply is very important. The role of the Shatsky Rise as a submarine barrier is of minor importance. The volcanic contribution to the clay component appears very small, as in some other parts of the Pacific Ocean. Stratigraphic correlations between Sites 576 and 578, which can be made from mineralogical data, partly offset the rareness of biostratigraphic markers.

Supplement to: Lenôtre, Nicole; Chamley, Hervè; Hoffert, Michel (1985): Clay stratigraphy at Deep Sea Drilling Project Sites 576 and 578, Leg 86 (Western North Pacific). In: Heath GR; Burckle LH; et al. (eds.), Initial Reports of the Deep Sea Drilling Project, Washington (U.S. Govt. Printing Office), 86, 571-579