The new gravimetric network of the north-eastern part of Algeria

Abstract

The north of Algeria is situated between the limit of the African and Eurasian plates. It considers as one of the best areas to study neotectonics structures and their geodynamical effects. On offshore, recent geophysical studies have allowed to imaging the deep structure of the Algerian basin. However, these images need to be improved and adjusted on onshore, especially in the easternmost part where, the process of geodynamic evolution is particular, with slow but hot accretion processes. This paper presents all stages of the gravimetric network of the north-eastern part of Algeria, including its development and data processing. The established gravimetric network is located between coordinates 07°00′ –08°00′ east and 36°00′–36°45′ north. It consists of thirty-nine stations connected to the zero-order gravimetric network by means of relative gravimetric measurements. This gravimetric network contains 61 triangular geometry loops and 99 links. The description of the design, the gravity survey network and the gravimetric stations coordinates are given. The accuracy of the determination of gravity values at each station is about 11 μGal, using a terrestrial Scintrex CG3 gravimeter. The gravimetric network is compensated using ginning and the least squares methods. The main objective of the establishment of this gravimetric network is to ensure a quality basis for all future works with respect to the gravimetric studies in the north-eastern part of Algeria.