Depth Estimation of the Magnetic Sources in Muglad Rift Basin Using 3D Analysis of High-Resolution Aeromagnetic Data

Abstract

Abstract The integrated approach, using multi-source geophysical data in order to constrain the 3D geometry and the structure of the Muglad Basin in Sudan. Muglad Basin has a huge potential for oil exploration. In the Garaad area, very near-surface basic igneous sills/flows lies within the sedimentary sections. The presences of these sub-surfaces volcanics avert exploration by usual geophysical surveys and might have degraded potential hydrocarbons. Aircraft “high-resolution magnetic gradient” surveyed to provides a good indication of the distribution and relative depths of near-surface volcanics in the study area. One of the main objectives of the interpretation was to map the distribution of the volcanics, with particular emphasis on identifying areas of very near surface and relatively thick units. Interpretation of the magnetic data in the Garaad area has produced a thematic map of the distribution of volcanics useful for the planning of future drilling. Local wavenumber, horizontal and vertical derivatives, analytic signal, 3D Euler deconvolutions and convolution filtering provide a characterization of structural domains and allow us to estimate the depths of the magnetic sources. Using Convolution filtering out the lineament analyses two main structural directions is mapped in the study area with combined these results from gravimetric anomalies analysis, Landsat data processing and quantitative DEM analysis in order to generate precise structural maps of the basin. The structural content of surface data (DEM and remote sensing data) combined with 3D geophysical modelling allowed us to produce a very precise model of the geometry and structure of the basin, prerequisite for the exploitation of potential oil reservoirs.