Concave and Convex Features Analysis of Bouguer Gravity Field with Following Qualitative Interpretation

Abstract

Interpretation of anomalous potential fields (gravity, magnetic) by means of various “edge detectors” gives valuable and important information in the process of detection of lithological contacts and tectonic structures in lateral dimensions. In this contribution, we present results obtained by means of a new approach of anomalous field geometrical properties analysis (concave/convex features determination, based on the numerical evaluation of the Dupin’s indicatrix). As it is shown on a synthetic model and a real world anomalous gravity field processing, comparison with the standardly used edge detectors shows that the proposed new method shows larger sensitivity to the recognition of small amplitude parts of the interpreted anomalous field. In the selected part of the Bouguer anomalies from the Danube Basin region the structure of a buried stratovolcano (Kraľova) was well detected by means of slopeline concavities boundaries determination. This geologic structure, characterized by a low amplitude manifestationin the Bouguer anomaly field, was “hidden” for the standardly used edge detectors. Presented new algorithm is fully automated and objective and outputs are vector objects  this is a great advantage in processing of large datasets.