Detection and characterization of lineaments using gravity data in the south-west Cameroon zone: Hydrogeological implications

In Cameroon, the drying up of wells and boreholes during the dry season is characterized by a lack of knowledge about the surface structures of the subsoil and the spatial distribution of groundwater. In this study, we propose to use gravity data to detect and characterize the surface structures of...

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Main Authors: Ndongmo Ghislain Nkamgan, Koumetio Fidèle, Ngapgue François, Lemoubou Ernest Léontin
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: De Gruyter 2023-11-01
Series:Open Geosciences
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1515/geo-2022-0578
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author Ndongmo Ghislain Nkamgan
Koumetio Fidèle
Ngapgue François
Lemoubou Ernest Léontin
author_facet Ndongmo Ghislain Nkamgan
Koumetio Fidèle
Ngapgue François
Lemoubou Ernest Léontin
author_sort Ndongmo Ghislain Nkamgan
collection DOAJ
description In Cameroon, the drying up of wells and boreholes during the dry season is characterized by a lack of knowledge about the surface structures of the subsoil and the spatial distribution of groundwater. In this study, we propose to use gravity data to detect and characterize the surface structures of the south-west (SW) Cameroon and to analyze their hydrogeological implications. The application of the normalized standard deviation method on the data obtained from the stable downward continuation of the Bouguer anomalies led to the detection of 71 lineaments that characterize the tectonic events of the study area. The statistical analysis of the lineament directions shows that the near-surface structures were mainly affected by a tectonic of direction east–west followed by that oriented SW-north-west. These two directions are consistent with the megastructures in the region like the Ngoro-Belabo Shear Zone and the Sanaga Fault stretching from the Gulf of Guinea to the Central African Republic. In addition, the application of the Euler deconvolution method permits us to evaluate the interval in which lies the depth of each lineament hosting Euler solutions. The analyses showed that 12 lineaments, whose roof depths are between zero and 250 m, are very favorable for hydrogeological prospecting.
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spelling doaj.art-4893603a2a354235b35625daf560d0a92023-12-04T07:59:34ZengDe GruyterOpen Geosciences2391-54472023-11-011512071410.1515/geo-2022-0578Detection and characterization of lineaments using gravity data in the south-west Cameroon zone: Hydrogeological implicationsNdongmo Ghislain Nkamgan0Koumetio Fidèle1Ngapgue François2Lemoubou Ernest Léontin3Laboratory of Environmental Physics, Faculty of Sciences, University of Dschang, Dschang, PO Box 67Dschang, CameroonLaboratory of Environmental Physics, Faculty of Sciences, University of Dschang, Dschang, PO Box 67Dschang, CameroonResearch Unit of Mechanics and Physical Systems Modeling (UR-2MSP), Department of Physics/Faculty of Sciences, University of Dschang, Dschang, CameroonResearch Unit of Mechanics and Physical Systems Modeling (UR-2MSP), Department of Physics/Faculty of Sciences, University of Dschang, Dschang, CameroonIn Cameroon, the drying up of wells and boreholes during the dry season is characterized by a lack of knowledge about the surface structures of the subsoil and the spatial distribution of groundwater. In this study, we propose to use gravity data to detect and characterize the surface structures of the south-west (SW) Cameroon and to analyze their hydrogeological implications. The application of the normalized standard deviation method on the data obtained from the stable downward continuation of the Bouguer anomalies led to the detection of 71 lineaments that characterize the tectonic events of the study area. The statistical analysis of the lineament directions shows that the near-surface structures were mainly affected by a tectonic of direction east–west followed by that oriented SW-north-west. These two directions are consistent with the megastructures in the region like the Ngoro-Belabo Shear Zone and the Sanaga Fault stretching from the Gulf of Guinea to the Central African Republic. In addition, the application of the Euler deconvolution method permits us to evaluate the interval in which lies the depth of each lineament hosting Euler solutions. The analyses showed that 12 lineaments, whose roof depths are between zero and 250 m, are very favorable for hydrogeological prospecting.https://doi.org/10.1515/geo-2022-0578bouguer’s anomalystable downward continuationnormalized standard deviationeuler’s deconvolutionstructural featuresgroundwater
spellingShingle Ndongmo Ghislain Nkamgan
Koumetio Fidèle
Ngapgue François
Lemoubou Ernest Léontin
Detection and characterization of lineaments using gravity data in the south-west Cameroon zone: Hydrogeological implications
Open Geosciences
bouguer’s anomaly
stable downward continuation
normalized standard deviation
euler’s deconvolution
structural features
groundwater
title Detection and characterization of lineaments using gravity data in the south-west Cameroon zone: Hydrogeological implications
title_full Detection and characterization of lineaments using gravity data in the south-west Cameroon zone: Hydrogeological implications
title_fullStr Detection and characterization of lineaments using gravity data in the south-west Cameroon zone: Hydrogeological implications
title_full_unstemmed Detection and characterization of lineaments using gravity data in the south-west Cameroon zone: Hydrogeological implications
title_short Detection and characterization of lineaments using gravity data in the south-west Cameroon zone: Hydrogeological implications
title_sort detection and characterization of lineaments using gravity data in the south west cameroon zone hydrogeological implications
topic bouguer’s anomaly
stable downward continuation
normalized standard deviation
euler’s deconvolution
structural features
groundwater
url https://doi.org/10.1515/geo-2022-0578
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AT ngapguefrancois detectionandcharacterizationoflineamentsusinggravitydatainthesouthwestcameroonzonehydrogeologicalimplications
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