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Master of Science / Department of Geology / Abdelmoneam Raef / Matthew W. Totten / This study examines an ovoid drainage feature southwest of Topeka, Kansas, whose discovery sparked a flurry of activity. Geomicrobial and surface gamma ray surveys indicated possible vertical migration of hydrocarbons, and a ground magnetic survey produced anomalies that resemble the profile of a crater. The area was dubbed the Echo Cliff structure and considered analogous to the Ames structure in Oklahoma, an Ordovician impact structure remarkable for significant hydrocarbon recovery. However, four wells drilled in the area were dry and abandoned. The Echo Cliff structure did yield further indications of its origins by the discovery of possible shocked quartz in drill cuttings from the Ordovician Simpson Group. Our study integrated well log analysis, geophysical modeling, and petrographic analysis to verify or refute the proposed identity of the Echo Cliff structure. Well logs from the area were used to create a structural and stratigraphic cross-section in Petrel® 2016. A gravity survey was conducted in the study area and combined with an aeromagnetic survey, donated by Applied Geophyics, Inc., to use as the basis for geophysical modeling within GM-SYS®. Finally, drill cuttings from the Simpson Group of two wells in the study area were mounted for thin sectioning. These thin sections were examined for planar deformation features, which are indicative of an impact event. The structural and stratigraphic cross sections indicated minimal variation in the subsurface, which is uncharacteristic of an impact event. The GM-SYS® geophysical models seem to indicate that variations in the topography of the Precambrian basement and faulting from the Bolivar-Mansfield Tectonic Zone are responsible for the geophysical anomalies and possibly the current drainage pattern of the study area. Finally, no planar deformation features were observed in any of the examined thin sections. Therefore, there is currently no evidence in support of the claim that the Echo Cliff structure is an impact structure.

The Maneadero Basin is identified as a transtensional sedimentary basin along the Agua Blanca Fault (ABF) in the southern limit to the "Big Bend" Domain of the North American-Pacific plate boundary zone. The ABF exhibits both the dextral and normal components of slip. This creates an interesting setting for the formation of the Maneadero Basin because structures with orientations similar to the ABF are typically contractional (e.g.: Puente Hills Fault, Whittier Fault, and Rancho Cucamonga Fault). The question if this basin is evidence of plate-scale transtension or local extension associated with bends/stopovers along the ABF is addressed by this study with three working hypotheses. The hypotheses presented by this study are: 1) the basins formed by a dip-slip component on the ABF and truly are an expression of regional transtension, 2) the basins formed at right steps along the dextral ABF, or 3) the basins formed as a result of juxtaposing basement blocks with disparate topographies. Each of these hypotheses would produce unique basin geometries and structures within and around the Maneadero Basin. To test these aforementioned hypotheses, a multi-disciplined study was conducted in the basin. A structural dataset was collected to identify kinematics and offsets of faults both within and bounding the basin. A gravity survey was also conducted to image the basin geometry. The results of the study show an asymmetrical gravity anomaly that closely follows the trace of the ABF. The amplitude of the anomaly is 54 mGal, the gradient of which is steepest around the ABF and shallows away from the fault to the north and east. Forward models of this anomaly indicate the ABF is a steeply north dipping fault. The gravity anomaly also indicates that the deepest part of the basin is located close to, but not coincident with the ABF and the basin gradually shallows to the northeast. This geometry is consistent with the hypothesis that the basin results from dip-slip on the ABF. This idea is also supported by the structural data, which includes fluvial terraces that have been uplifted and offset by faulting on the ABF, and by the presence of a normal fault on the ABF in the center of the basin. The third hypothesis is also supported by models of the gravity data, which suggest a deep (~900m) bowl shaped erosional feature in the bedrock. Dextral slip on the ABF juxtaposes the topographically high Punta Banda Ridge with this topographically low feature. Overall, the data presented in this study suggest the formation of the Maneadero Basin results from is a combination of the dip-slip component on the ABF and juxtaposition of the topographically elevated Punta Banda Ridge with a topographically lower basin of Bahia Todo Santos and Valle Maneadero. Geodetic data strongly suggest that the difference in motion of the Baja Microplate (south of the ABF) to the disrupted southern California Block (north of the ABF), and the orientation of the ABF relative to that motion, is causing transtension in the Maneadero Basin. This combined with strike-slip juxtaposition of different topographies allowed for the formation and evolution of the Maneadero Basin.

The main purpose of this diploma thesis was to determine whether the deformation zone, which arises above intact mining workings in soils, has a measurable gravity effect and influences the interpretation of gravity measurements. The railway tunnel in Březno u Chomutova has been chosen as a test site. We have progressed so that the geotechnical model of the geological environment above the tunnel was calculated first. The model was constructed on the base of two core wells, which were drilled near the tunnel especially for this purpose. The geotechnical model of deformation zone was converted into a density model and its gravity response was calculated. This model was compared with the gravity effect of the tunnel in rock environment without any deformation zone. The difference between effects of these two models gives the gravity response of the deformation zone. We found out that the gravity effect of the deformation zone is insignificant and does not affect the gravity interpretation in the environment of stiff tertiary clays, where the Březno tunnel is excavated. We compared the results of our modeling with the field gravimetric measurements results above the tunnel in Březno. The measurement was realized on three parallel profiles, which reach the tunnel in various depths. The results of...

The Větrníky national nature reserve, located in the South Moravian region north of the village of Letonice, is one of the largest steppe reserves in Southern Moravia. This whole area is characterized by the presence of both stable and active landslides, and the occurrence of suffosion sinkholes has been monitored there in the long-term. The aim of the thesis was to investigate whether it was possible to observe subsurface phenomena, caused by the washing out of fine rock particles by ground water, by means of geophysical methods. This phenomenon is known as suffosion. The measurements took place in the areas where the suffosion manifestation was very distinctive, that is around two sinkholes that were visible on the surface. In order to identify the suffosion structural-geological causes and their manifestations at a given location, the gravimetric and electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) methods were used in the first stage of the research. Measured data was further processed and geologically interpreted. The gravimetric method has proved suitable when identifying rocks affected by suffosion, in which case we assume that their density is lower than the density of the surrounding rocks. Using the ERT method, it was possible, in the vertical profile, to distinguish the sandy-gravelly sediments...

Lukavice village is located in Eastern Bohemia and it is known for its historical pyrite mining. The first mention of mining comes from the beginning of 17th century. The mines were abandoned in 1892 due to a significant depletion of the upper parts of the deposit and also because of the competition of cheaper pyrite from abroad. Old mine workings were often backfilled incompletely and their exact location is unknown. The occurrence of empty mine workings under the roads in the village centre could cause a collapse of the ground under the weight of heavy trucks which carry through Lukavice village aggregate from the nearby quarry. The aim of geophysics was to determine the thickness of dump material (seismics), subsidence monitoring in the village centre (repeated levelling) and the principal aim was to locate old mine galleries and shafts (gravity survey). Gravity measurements did not prove the presence of empty mine workings under the main road at the village centre. Most pronounced negative Bouguer anomaly, which occurs in the vicinity of Bartolomějská jáma schaft, may be caused by higher degree of alteration of underlying porphyroids. According to historical maps and photos we determined approximate location of the former water pit Vilemina. For the determination of the exact position of the...