Depth Estimation from the Scaling Power Spectral Density of Nonstationary Gravity Profile

Abstract

— A technique to estimate the depth to anomalous sources from the scaling power spectra of long nonstationary gravity profiles is presented. The nonstationary profile is divided into piecewise stationary segments based on the criterion of optimum gate length in which the time-varying and time-invariant autocorrelation functions are similar. The division of a nonstationary into piecewise stationary allows identification of the portion of the crust with different geological histories, and using the stationary portion of the gravity profiles, more consistent depths to the anomalous sources have been obtained. The technique is tested with the synthetic gravity profile and applied along the Jaipur-Raipur geotransect in western and central India. The geotransect has been divided into four stationary parts: Vindhyan low, Bundelkhand low, Narmada rift and Chhattisgarh basin; each section corresponding to a different geological formation. Forward modeling of gravity data using results of each stationary section is carried out to propose the subsurface structure along the Jaipur-Raipur transect.