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Hydrocarbon migration detected by regional temperature field variations, Beaufort-Mackenzie Basin, Canada
Zhuoheng Chen, Kirk G. Osadetz, Dale R. Issler, and Stephen E. Grasby

AUTHORS Zhuoheng Chen $ Geological Survey of Canada, Natural Resources Canada, 3303-33rd Street, NW Calgary, Alberta T2L 2A7, Canada; zchen@nrcan.gc.ca Zhuoheng Chen obtained his Ph.D. from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology in 1993 and held a position as an associate professor at China University of Petroleum (Beijing) before joining the Geological Survey of Canada in 1998. He has developed methods for resource assessment and exploration risk evaluation. His research interests include petroleum resource assessment (methods and applications), petroleum systems, and basin analysis. Kirk G. Osadetz $ Geological Survey of Canada, Natural Resources Canada, 3303-33rd Street, NW Calgary, Alberta T2L 2A7, Canada; kosadetz@nrcan.gc.ca Kirk Osadetz graduated from the University of Toronto (B.S. degree, 1978; M.S. degree, 1983). He manages the ESS Gas Hydrates Fuel of the Future Program and is the head of Energy & Environment Subdivision at the Geological Survey of Canada, Calgary. He is active in petroleum resource evaluation and has research interests in gas hydrates, tectonics, and thermochronology. He worked previously at Gulf Canada Resources Inc. and PetroCanada Resources Inc. in Calgary. Dale R. Issler $ Geological Survey of Canada, Natural Resources Canada, 3303-33rd Street, NW Calgary, Alberta T2L 2A7, Canada; dissler@nrcan.gc.ca Dale Issler has an honors (co-op) B.S. degree in earth sciences (University of Waterloo) and a Ph.D. in oceanography (Dalhousie University). He is a Geological Survey of Canada research scientist involved in quantitative basin analysis (apatite fission track thermochronology, shale compaction, petrophysics, well-log analysis, thermal modeling). Presently, he is leading an industry-government project on petroleum systems in the Beaufort-Mackenzie area.

ABSTRACT The regional Beaufort-Mackenzie Basin temperature field is characterized using data collected from drill-stem tests and bottom-hole temperature logs. We recognize two thermal anomalies, each of which is associated with a specific geological setting. Elevated temperatures are observed in (1) the western Beaufort Sea, where post-Eocene erosion removed Cenozoic strata and folding is common in a contractional tectonic regime, and (2) along fault zones where upward flow transports heat by advection. Depressed temperatures are observed in Eocene and post-Eocene rapidly subsiding depocenters, with overpressure developed below 3000 m (9843 ft). Older strata along the southeast rifted margin are characterized by a more normal thermal regime. Evidence from anomalously high temperatures in both map and cross-sectional views suggests that fault zones and major regional aquifers accommodate the upward expulsion of fluids from deep overpressured zones. Many significant petroleum discoveries occur in areas where anomalously high temperatures are observed, suggesting that petroleum migration occurs along the same flow networks. Identifying anomalies in the temperature field may therefore be a useful exploration technique.

INTRODUCTION The Upper CretaceousCenozoic Beaufort-Mackenzie Basin (BMB) succession of northern Canada represents a postrift basin containing more than 14 km (46,000 ft) of deltaic and

Copyright #2008. The American Association of Petroleum Geologists. All rights reserved. Manuscript received January 18, 2008; provisional acceptance April 8, 2008; revised manuscript received July 22, 2008; final acceptance July 30, 2008. DOI:10.1306/07300808011

AAPG Bulletin, v. 92, no. 12 (December 2008), pp. 1639 1653

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Stephen E. Grasby $ Geological Survey of Canada, Natural Resources Canada, 330333rd Street, NW Calgary, Alberta T2L 2A7, Canada; sgrasby@nrcan.gc.ca Stephen Grasby obtained his Ph.D. in aqueous geochemistry from the University of Calgary in 1997. Since then he has worked at the Geological Survey of Canada, Calgary. He has been active in the Groundwater Program and currently leads the project on assessment of regional aquifers. He has worked extensively on the biogeochemistry of thermal and mineral springs in Canada.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS IHS Energy Ltd. generously provided all the digital logs for this study. Z. Chen thanks J. Dixon, M. Li, and J. Dietrich of Geological Survey of Canada (GSC), Calgary, for numerous discussions that helped with a better understanding of the basin geology and petroleum geochemistry. A. Jessop provided a digital data set of the Canadian Geothermal Data Collection Project. The temperature and pressure data are from an industry consortium project for the Beaufort-Mackenzie Basin, which were compiled by Z. Hu. The authors are grateful for the comments and suggestions made by internal critical reviewer Glen Stockmal of the Geological Survey of Canada; AAPG reviewers David A. Pivnik, John D. Bredehoeft, and Jeffrey A. Nunn; and AAPG editor, Gretchen M. Gillis, which have significantly improved this article. ESS contribution #20080239.

marine sediments (Dixon et al., 1992). Recent increased demands for natural gas and crude oil in North America and around the world have sparked renewed interest in the search for petroleum resources in the BMB region (Figure 1) (Bergquist et al., 2003). This has motivated a reassessment of the regional petroleum potential. As part of that work, we examine the temperature field within the basin. Basin thermal history and geothermal structure are essential elements of basin analysis as well as being important factors in petroleum exploration (e.g., Barker, 1996; Makhous and Galushkin, 2005). Thermal structure is controlled primarily by deep heat flux, thermal conductivity of the basin, and relevant shallow boundary conditions (i.e., surface temperature or base of permafrost). However, transient geological events and processes, such as denudation and fluid flow, can significantly alter the thermal structure. Previous studies of the thermal history and temperature regime in the BMB include thermal modeling of several offshore wells (Issler and Snowdon, 1990; White and Issler, 1995), thermal gradient and heat flow studies (Majorowicz and Dietrich, 1989; Majorowicz et al., 1996), and organic thermal maturity studies (Goodarzi, 1996; Stasiuk et al., 2005). The near-surface temperature field and paleosurface temperature history were examined as part of a permafrost study (Allen et al., 1988). Isomaturity contours were shown to crosscut lithostratigraphic boundaries (Goodarzi, 1996), the likely result of variations of heat flow and the history of burial and exhumation. Thermal modeling of potential source rocks in the offshore region shows low organic maturity in the upper 5000 m (16,400 ft) of rapidly buried Cenozoic sediments and suggests that the oil window may occur above the 100140jC temperature threshold typical of most sedimentary basins because of lack of time (Issler and Snowdon, 1990). A comparison of measured temperature and vitrinite reflectance data suggests that erosion could have had a larger effect on observed maturity patterns than do heat-flow variations (Majorowicz and Dietrich, 1989). An analysis of the spatial distribution of significant discoveries in the BMB indicates the alignment of the discoveries with certain geological features, particularly the regional fault zones. For example, exploration drilling in the Tarsiut-Amauligak fault zone (TAFZ) had more than 50% success, much greater than other areas (Dixon et al., 1994). The geological conditions close to the fault zone are apparently more favorable than other areas in this basin. To improve our understanding of geological controls on petroleum occurrence for a better assessment of petroleum potential, a basin-scale hydrodynamic study was

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Figure 1. (a) Study area location map showing the general structural features (fault pattern is based on Lane and Dietrich, 1996). ELFZ = Eskimo Lakes fault zone; TFZ = Taglu fault zone; TAFZ = Tarsiut-Amauligak fault zone; WBTF = west Beaufort thrust front; BMTL = Beaufort-Mackenzie tectonic lineament. The black dashed line indicates the location of panel b. Panel b is a geological cross section (modified from Dixon et al., 1985). Fish R. = Fish River; Mackenzie B. = Mackenzie Bay; Pz = Paleozoic; uK = Upper Cretaceous; lK-J = Lower Cretaceous Jurassic undifferentiated; SL = sea level. See panel a for the section location. The BMB is shown by the red box in the index map. Chen et al. 1641

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conducted with an emphasis on basin fluid-flow patterns and their association with petroleum accumulations. This article focuses on the effects of hydrodynamics on basin thermal structure and presents our interpretations of the spatial variation of the temperature field and discusses primary controls on the temperature profile and the associated implications for petroleum occurrence. We recognize that the present temperature regime may not represent paleothermal conditions associated with prior petroleum generation. However, temperature fingerprints may provide indications for basin tectonics and regional flow systems, which are key to understanding the links between petroleum sources and accumulations.

GEOLOGICAL SETTING The BMB region (Figure 1) exhibits a complex evolution starting with an open-marine setting through most of the Paleozoic, followed by a rift-drift system in the Jurassic to Early Cretaceous (Dixon et al., 1994). The Upper CretaceousCenozoic upper rift successions of the BMB (Figure 2) comprise folded and faulted deltaic complexes that exceed 14 km (8.6 mi) in thickness (Lane and Dietrich, 1995). The regional geological setting and petroleum play types are well documented by Young et al. (1976), Dixon et al. (1985, 1994), Lane and Dietrich (1995), and Dixon (1996). Many aspects of the petroleum geology have been discussed previously (e.g., Snowdon, 1988; Enachescu, 1990; Issler and Snowdon, 1990; Issler, 1992; Dixon et al., 1994; Bloch and Issler, 1996; Dixon, 1996; Snowdon et al., 2004; Chen et al., 2007). Basin tectonics is well studied at the regional scale (e.g., Lane and Dietrich, 1995; Embry, 1998; Lane, 1998, 2002). Lane and Dietrich (1995) mapped several fault zones in the BMB, four of which are particularly important to this study (Figure 1). The Eskimo Lakes fault zone (ELFZ), striking northeastsouthwest, marks the southeast margin of the JurassicEarly Cretaceous rift system. The Taglu fault zone (TFZ), parallel to the ELFZ, controls the Late Cretaceous to middle Tertiary depocenters in the Mackenzie delta. The TAFZ, running nearly
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Figure 2. A simplified BMB stratigraphic column indicating the major regional aquifers and zones with significant petroleum discoveries (modified from Lane and Dietrich, 1995). Where the Taglu and Aklak sequences are undifferentiated, the name Reindeer supersequence is applied. CK. = creek; SEQ. = sequence.

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Figure 3. The domain divisions of the BMB. D-I = basin margin domain; D-II = listric fault domain; D-III = shale-cored anticline domain; D-IV = west Beaufort contractional complex domain. Locations of the temperature profiles in Figure 7 are indicated. The dots indicate the location of wells, and the dashed lines are the various faults.

eastwest, defines the southern boundary of the post-Miocene depositional center. The west Beaufort thrust front (WBTF) in the western Beaufort Sea, parallel to the southwestern coast line, defines the contractional deformation front of the thrust faults in the basin. We recognize a composite tectonic element, or zone, defined by a variety of geological and geophysical anomalies and marked by the transitional zone from the predominantly contractional tectonic regime in the west to the extension regime in the listric fault zone in the central delta. This zone is parallel to the front of the thrust belt in the southwest offshore area and perhaps represents a southern extension of the Beaufort fault zone in the Canada Basin defined by Lane (2002). We refer to this zone as the Beaufort-Mackenzie tectonic lineament (BMTL). The offshore extension of the BMTL

can be traced by seismically mapped fault segments and folds. The four major fault zones and the BMTL define four tectonic domains in the basin (Figure 3). Domain I (D-I) is the basin margin, where sediments were deposited in the JurassicCretaceous rift or older systems in the southern part of the basin and where postdepositional erosion has been substantial. Domain II (D-II) is the core of the Mackenzie delta, where listric faults and rollover folds prevail. Domain III (D-III) is in the northern part of the study area, where basin fill is predominantly super-Miocene and shale-cored anticlines or diapirs are common. Domain IV (D-IV) covers the southwestern Beaufort Sea, where the structural architecture of the Upper Cretaceousearly Tertiary successions was a passive margin complicated by the
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overprint of an Eocene foreland basin, including thrusting and folding with significant erosion.

DATA ANALYSIS AND RESULTS Data Source

temperature trends. Well information (from the National Energy Board well history reports) and formation boundaries (constrained by log and seismic interpretation and biostratigraphy) were derived from the in-house well database at the Geological Survey of Canada, Calgary. Vertical Temperature Profiles

Up to 2006, 268 wells were drilled in the study area, and data from 251 wells are publicly available. This study is based on a comprehensive data set consisting of drill-stem test (DST) and repeat formation test (RFT) results (176 wells), bottom-hole temperature (BHT) data (238 wells), vitrinite reflectance measurements (92 wells), and digital well logs (251 wells). Of the 1243 temperature data points used for this study, 589 are DST/RFT temperature measurements and 654 are estimates of the true temperature from BHT measurements using a Horner plot correction (Dowdle and Cobb, 1975). Issler et al. (in press) provide a discussion of temperature data corrections and quality assessments. All the temperature data are used for determining the regional average temperature-depth trend (Figure 4a) because the exclusion of the poorer quality data only increases the correlation coefficient of the linear regression by 1%. Shallow temperature measurements were obtained from the Canadian Geothermal Data Collection project conducted from 1955 to 1980 (Judge et al., 1981). Because an ice-saturated porous medium has a much higher acoustic travel velocity and formation resistivity than a water-saturated porous interval, the base of permafrost is a well-defined boundary on geophysical logs. The inferred base of the ice-bearing permafrost zone, assumed to be 0jC, was used as an additional temperature constraint (Issler et al., in press). The climate records from the last 75 yr at the Inuvik station (from Environment Canada, 2003) show an annual mean temperature of 9jC, suggesting that the temperature between the inferred base of permafrost and ground surface should not be greater than 0jC. The temperature data, as well as the inferred base of ice-bearing permafrost, were plotted against depth in each well prior to temperature mapping to ensure data quality; obviously poor-quality data were removed to avoid distorting
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Temperature data show a general linear trend with depth but with a large variation (Figure 4a). A linear fit gives a geothermal gradient of 25.7jC/km (7.8jC/1000 ft), used here as the normal gradient for the basin. Although a high correlation coefficient of 0.94 is observed, this generalized linear model does not help us understand the spatial variation of the temperature field or the observed temperature variation as a function of depth. Across the study area, three typical temperature profiles were recognized, each of which is associated with a specific geological domain. For example, an elevated temperature profile characterized by higher than average temperatures at a given depth ($20jC; red squares in Figure 4b) in D-IV may reflect the impact of contractional tectonics and post-Eocene uplift. In contrast, in D-II, the lower than normal temperatures (green circles in Figure 4b) may reflect the postrift high deposition rate. A geothermal profile closer to average is found in most of D-I, and the geothermal profile in D-III is similar to the one in D-II. Temperature Field at Depth 1000 m (3300 ft) At shallow depths (1000 m, 3300 ft), two areas show anomalously high temperatures (T > 25jC). One is in the western Beaufort Sea (D-IV) and the adjacent onshore area, and the other along the rifted margin (D-I) southeast of the ELFZ (Figure 5a). These elevated temperature zones are associated with thin permafrost (Figures 6a, 7). Low-temperature anomalies (<15jC, in Figure 5a) are located in the EoceneOligocene depocenters in D-II as well as in the super-Miocene depocenter of D-III, north to the TAFZ. The remainder of the area shows moderate temperatures ranging from 15 to 25jC, restricted to belts between zones of high and low temperature (Figure 5a).

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Figure 4. (a) Temperature profile from the complete data set, showing the fit to a linear model. (b) Comparison of the temperature profiles from D-II and D-IV. The average temperature in D-IV is elevated about 20jC relative to that in D-II. See panel c for the location of the wells used in panels b (marked by green circles and red squares) and a (all wells marked by different symbols). DST = drill-stem test; BHT = bottom-hole temperature.

Temperature Field at Depth 2000 m (6600 ft) At 2000 m (6600 ft), the size of the high-temperature area in D-IV shrinks, and it is mostly restricted to the region between the WBTF and BMTL (Figure 5b). This temperature anomaly coincides approximately with the subcrop belt of the Reindeer Formation (Dixon et al., 1994, their figures 65, 66). The anomalous area of high temperature in D-I remains about the same as observed in the shallower depth interval, as described above. Within D-I, the high-

temperature zone in the northern Tuktoyaktuk Peninsula (Figure 1) is coincident with an earthquake swarm that includes events of magnitude up to 4.3 6.5 on the Richter scale (NRCan Earth Sciences Sector, Canadian Hazards Information Service, 2006). Temperature Field at Depth 3000 m (9843 ft) At 3000 m (9843 ft), the high-temperature zones become more restricted to regions near major fault zones, for example, the ELFZ, the southern part of
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the TFZ (where east-weststriking faults prevail), and the TAFZ. The linear nature of the anomalously high temperatures is also indicated by numerous high-temperature anomalies on temperature cross sections (Figure 7af) near faults. These linear hightemperature anomalies are not apparent at shallower depths because most of the listric normal faults are overlain by Pliocene sediments. High-temperature anomalies are also observed associated with shalecored diapirs and similarly interpreted structural highs. This is particularly the case in D-IV between the WBTF and the BMTL, and in the west of D-III, where contractional tectonics are also significant. The areas of anomalously low temperatures show little change in character or extent compared to shallow depth maps. Isotemperature Maps An alternative way to examine the temperaturedepth relationship is to map the depth to a constant temperature. These isotemperature maps also show important geographical variations (Figure 6). Areas with thick permafrost occur in D-II and D-III and are bounded by the BMTL in the southwest and by the ELFZ in the southeast (Figure 6a), and are coincident with the region of low-temperature anomalies. The depth to 30jC ranges from less than 500 m (1640 ft) in the southwest BMB to greater than 2200 m (7220 ft) in the north. The shallowest depths to 30jC are in D-IV and the adjacent coastal area, as well as in the D-I rifted margin, south to the ELFZ (Figure 6b). The depth to 50jC (Figure 6c) shows a similar pattern to the temperature variation at 3000 m (9843 ft) (Figure 5c). The shallowest depths appear in D-IV and are restricted between the BMTL and WBTF, and along the ELFZ in the southeast, the southern part of the Taglu fault, and most of the Tarsiut-Amauligak fault (Figure 6c).
Figure 5. Temperature contour maps at different depths: (a) 1000 m (3280 ft), (b) 2000 m (6561 ft), and (c) 3000 m (9843 ft). The outlines of petroleum discoveries are overlain on the temperature map (c) to illustrate the spatial relationship between anomalous temperatures and petroleum accumulations. ELFZ = Eskimo Lakes fault zone; TFZ = Taglu fault zone; TAFZ = Tarsiut-Amauligak fault zone; WBTF = west Beaufort thrust front; BMTL = Beaufort-Mackenzie tectonic lineament. 1646

Temperature Cross Sections Six cross sections showing vertical temperature profiles along with stratigraphic boundaries were constructed to illustrate the relationship of temperature to major geological features (Figure 7). In general,

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isotemperature lines cross formation boundaries, but temperature lows occur where thick Tertiary successions are well preserved (Figure 7ae). Near the BMTL toward the west, temperatures are elevated (Figure 7ac). Numerous high-temperature plumes are present on the temperature sections, most of which are associated with fault zones. Temperatures can vary significantly over a very short distance, for example, between wells Toapolok H-24 and Ya Ya P-53 (wells 87 and 46 in Figure 7f). High-temperature plumes are also observed in isolated highs and in high-amplitude anticlines in domain II (e.g., well 70 of Figure 7b), on top of which small faults and fracture systems are commonly seen from seismic data (e.g., Elsley and Graham, 2006). Interestingly, deep anomalously high temperatures are also coincident with surface lakes (for example, Parsons D-20; well 127 of Figure 7c), suggesting that some lakes may be in contact with subsurface faults or fracture zones that could serve as an outlet for upwelling deeper and warmer basinal fluids. Although the temperature data in this study cannot prove the relationship between these two, the model from a recent study of pingolike structures in the offshore Beaufort Sea area supports our interpretation (Paull et al., 2007). This is also supported by the presence of natural gas seeps, or kushkas, into some of these lakes, which are more obvious in the autumn and spring when the agitation of the water by the rising gas results in the anomalous freezing and thawing of the ice cover on the lake. Whether the thermal karst underlying some of these lakes (e.g., Parsons Lake) is caused by thermal boundary conditions related to unfrozen lake water or caused by a warm water flux ascending along the faults or fracture zones should be investigated further.

DISCUSSION
Figure 6. Isotemperature maps: (a) 0jC, equivalent to the base of permafrost zone; (b) 30jC; and (c) 60jC. All depths are in meters from ground level, in a region of low relief, much of which is near sea level. ELFZ = Eskimo Lakes fault zone; TFZ = Taglu fault zone; TAFZ = Tarsiut-Amauligak fault zone; WBTF = west Beaufort thrust front; BMTL = Beaufort-Mackenzie tectonic lineament.

The description above provides a general picture of the current BMB temperature field. Low-temperature anomalies are associated with Tertiary depocenters, particularly the EoceneOligocene and superMiocene depocenters in D-II and D-III where a
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Figure 7. Temperature cross sections. See Figure 3 for the locations of the cross sections. The numbers on top of individual cross sections are well index numbers. Stratigraphic contacts are shown by colored lines. Contours are generated using the Matlab1 linear extrapolation algorithm. WBTF = west Beaufort thrust front; BMTL = Beaufort-Mackenzie tectonic lineament; M. Bay = Mackenzie Bay; U. Cret. = Upper Cretaceous; L. Cret. = Lower Cretaceous; L. Cret.-J = Lower Cretaceous Jurassic undifferentiated; uK = Upper Cretaceous; L. K = Lower Cretaceous; Mz = Mesozoic. 1648 Regional Temperature Field and Its Geologic Significance

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Figure 7. Continued. Chen et al. 1649

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record of rapid subsidence and thick super-Paleocene sedimentary successions is well preserved. The shape and size of these low-temperature anomalies appear to remain about the same at least in the first 3000 m (9843 ft) from the surface, indicating the persistent geological setting in a passive margin during the past few million years. The anomalously high temperatures are approximately coincident in plan view with both fault zones and the areas in the western Beaufort Sea where post-Miocene exhumation and denudation are significant because of contractional tectonics in a foreland basin. The shape and size of the high-temperature anomalies vary with depth. These anomalies show the largest areal extent at shallower depths. With increasing depth, they become more restricted and more closely associated with active fault zones, regional structural highs, and anticlines. This suggests that tectonics is a significant factor in controlling the BMB thermal structure. The most obvious indicators are elevated formation temperatures in the western Beaufort Sea that are related to post-Miocene contractional tectonics, which involved thrusting or folding and subsequent denudation. This was accompanied by the northward and eastward migration of super-Miocene depocenters. Although linear fits to the data give similar temperature gradients in the Tertiary successions of D-II and D-IV, nonlinear fits reveal different characteristics of variation of temperature with depth (fitted lines in Figure 4b). The temperature profile displays a convex shape in the D-IV area and a concave shape in D-II. Convex-shaped temperature profiles occur in regions commonly associated with advective heat flow (Allen and Allen, 2005). The absolute temperatures could be 20jC higher in D-IV compared to those in D-II (Figure 4b). The effects of contractional tectonics have led to a basinscale uplift in the western and southern parts of the study area and created a general eastward dip. As a result, the tilted thick regional deltaic aquifers of the Taglu and Aklak sequences became the conduits for the discharge of warmer fluids, which originated in the deep overpressured D-II depocenter and migrated into the western Beaufort Sea. Second, contractional tectonics inverted normal faults in the paleopassive margin of the west Beaufort Sea,
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resulting in the formation of shale-cored anticlines or diapirs. Vertical movement of deep fluids along the associated fracture systems increased formation temperatures locally. This temperature increase, caused by advective heat transport, is restricted to the area to the east of the WBTF. To the west, thrust faults of the WBTF, and older more compacted sediments, form a barrier against lateral fluid migration (Figure 7a, b, d). This explains the differences in the areal extent of heat anomalies at different depths in D-IV. Another type of high-temperature anomaly appears as linear temperature trends in map view; these trends are spatially associated with major fault zones (Figures 5c, 6c). Whereas faults can be effective barriers to fluid movement across the fault plane, associated fracture zones commonly form high-permeability conduits parallel to the fault (Caine et al., 1996). Cenozoic sedimentary rocks can be connected with Mesozoic and Paleozoic strata via high-angle normal faults along the southeast coast of the rifted margin in D-I (Figure 7d, e). The linear high-temperature anomalies within the ELFZ are likely evidence of deep, warm fluids moving from overpressured lower Tertiary and older successions in the Kugmallit Trough (Figure 1). Because of the stratigraphic seals provided by the Mackenzie Bay and Akpak sequences, the Kugmallit overpressure system is developed in D-III whereas the overpressure developed in D-II occurs in the Taglu sequence, which is sealed by the Richards sequence (Chen et al., in press). The TAFZ and TFZ form the south and southeast boundaries of the two overpressured depocenters, respectively. These faults have direct connection with the overpressured centers (Chen et al., in press). The linear hightemperature anomalies along the TAFZ and TFZ suggest that they have been the locus of vertically migrating warm fluids (Figures 5c; 6c; 7b, d, c). This is also consistent with evidence from formation water geochemistry (Grasby et al., in press). Temperature depressions are geographically coincident with EoceneOligocene and super-Miocene depocenters, which are themselves bounded by regional faults and tectonic lineaments (Figures 5, 6). Although variable in age, the Eocene and superEocene depocenters in D-II and D-III exhibit

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overpressure below 3000 m (9843 ft) (Chen et al., in press). The fine-grained sedimentary rocks of the Richards sequence in D-II and of the Akpak and Mackenzie Bay sequences in D-III serve as top seals for the overpressured fluids confined in the Taglu and Kugmallit aquifers, preventing direct vertical migration of the deep warm fluids (Chen et al., in press; Grasby et al., in press). The fine-grained shales and mudstones in the depocenter have relatively low thermal conductivity (Blackwell and Steele, 1988). In addition, the aquifers below the aquitards are more porous because of overpressure, thus reducing the thermal conductivity compared to the normal pressured sediments at the same depth. All these factors affect heat flow and result in lower temperatures in these depocenters. The observed temperature variations have significant implications for source rock maturity in the BMB region. Petroleum system modeling suggests multiple phases of petroleum generation and migration from potential source rocks of different ages, at various burial depths, in different parts of the basin (Chen et al., 2007). In the western Beaufort Sea, because of the higher formation temperatures, Paleocene strata appear to be the effective source rocks for oils because they are in the oil generation window, whereas Cretaceous and older source rocks passed through the oil window, and their oil was expelled before the major phase of trap formation in the late Eocene, but could be sources for gas. In contrast, Cretaceous source rocks appear to be the major petroleum contributors in the eastern deep-water part of the basin because of the low thermal maturity of Tertiary source rocks, as a result of temperature suppression in the Tertiary depocenters. Given that thermal anomalies in the basin are related to fluid migration, one would expect that petroleum generated from these successions would migrate along the same routes. This in turn suggests that petroleum accumulations should be preferentially associated with the temperature anomalies that indicate the migration fairways. Many significant discoveries are, in fact, found in the major fault zones and associated with local high-temperature anomalies (Figures 5c, 6c), supporting the link between temperature anomalies and petroleum mi-

gration. Discoveries are also made on tops of shalecored anticlines in areas of low background temperature in D-II and D-III. Detailed examinations of temperature variation show that many discoveries are associated with local temperature highs on temperature residual cross sections (e.g., Kopanoar M-13, well 131, Figure 7a; Koakoak O-22, well 163, Figure 7b; and Nerlerk M-98 well 151, Figure 7b), indicating the relation between deep fluid migration and high-temperature anomalies.

CONCLUSIONS The observed BMB temperature anomalies at a regional scale are the result of both tectonics and a stratigraphic framework that controls the major basin aquifer architecture. The discharge of fluids originating in the basin center follows patterns of tectonic uplift resulting in anomalously high temperatures in the western Beaufort Sea. There, the dipping regional aquifers serve as the conduits for flow out of the basin center. Where fault zones can be effective barriers to lateral fluid movement across the fault plane, the major BMB fault zones (ELFZ, TFZ, and TAFZ) appear to serve as the preferred pathways for the vertical migration of formation water originating at depth, causing linear high-temperature anomalies associated with the fault zones. Many significant BMB petroleum discoveries are located in the areas of local anomalously high temperature, indicating that both formation waters and petroleum followed similar migration pathways from primary petroleum source kitchens located in the adjacent depocenters to structurally higher positions, either along regional aquifers or faults. This may provide additional constraints on relative petroleum prospectivity and petroleum occurrence in the BMB.

REFERENCES CITED
Allen, D. M., F. A. Michel, and A. S. Judge, 1988, The permafrost regime in the Mackenzie delta, Beaufort Sea region, NWT and its significance to the reconstruction of paleoclimatic history: Journal of Quaternary Science, v. 3, p. 3 13.

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Regional Temperature Field and Its Geologic Significance

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