Gravity Studies

During each field season in Canyonlands, seismic data were augmented by gravity data to help mitigate ambiguities inherent to the use of a single geophysical technique alone. In Devils Lane, fifteen stations were established along the graben's axis, covering the same length as the seismic spreads. Reduction of the data reveals that, for plausible sediment density contrasts, the gravity and seismic data are fully self-consistent, giving us confidence that the geophysical interpretation of the subsurface sediment thickness is correct. Subsequent gravity studies in Cyclone graben, however, do not appear to be fully self-consistent with the seismic data for that graben, suggesting instead that part of the gravity anomaly for this graben is derived from salt diapirism along the graben axis. This hypothesis is currently undergoing further testing.