Gravity

The gravity method has traditionally been used in the oil and gas industry as a reconnaissance tool for basin identification and delineation in frontier areas. The utilization of this method has increased in recent times and will continue to do so in the future as advances in acquisition techniques and technology provide cost-effective higher resolution surveys over much larger regions than previously possible. Airborne gravity systems are now capable of achieving measurements at an accuracy suitable for detection of small anomalies at exploitation/target identification levels. High-resolution gravity survey can be utilized to map basement structures, lithologies, and subtle intra-sedimentary density variations. Gravity data has proved invaluable in imaging complex geologic structures that are difficult to image with conventional seismic techniques, such as buried reefs and salt structures.

Example 1–  Application of gravity and magnetic data in fold and thrust belts
Example 2 – Mapping salt domes