THREE DIMENSIONAL MAPPING OF PERMIAN MUD-MOUNDS, LAST CHANCE CANYON, NEW MEXICO

The Permian mud-mounds exposed in Last Chance Canyon in the central Guadalupe Mountains of New Mexico provide an excellent opportunity to utilize new mapping techniques to produce three dimensional visualizations which bridge all scales of outcrop observation, from satellite imagery to photomicrographs. As part of an ongoing study, the three dimensional exposures of these mud-mounds have been mapped using a Real Time Kinematic GPS system, which provides spatial context for various observations made at the outcrop.

All collected data have been merged into a single database, which currently includes outcrop geometries, outcrop photos, photomicrographs, and facies descriptions. This database can be used to produce 3D visualizations of the data, which use newly developed techniques to allow for seamless browsing of all scales of observation. Such visualizations have great potential as a tool for interpretation, presentation, and teaching of the complex facies relationships and concepts of carbonate stratigraphy. Furthermore, they present data in a format that can be directly incorporated into 3D geological models.

Three dimensional visualization of these carbonate mud-mounds has been used to strengthen and improve our understanding of their stratal architecture and facies distribution patterns. These data are currently being used to re-evaluate previous interpretations of the mud-mounds, and will provide the basis for modeling studies which will further our understanding of the processes which form them.