FRACTURE CHARACTERIZATION BY THE CORRESPONDENCE BETWEEN GEOLOGIC MAPPING AND GROUND PENETRATING RADAR IMAGING

A comparison has being made to determine a relationship between fractures seen on a quarry wall of Arbuckle-age limestone and ground penetrating radar (GPR) reflections acquired immediately behind the quarry wall. Characterization of these fractures consists of strike and dip determination, intensity of fracturing, fracture aperture, and whether the fracture is open or filled. These results come from features mapped on photography of the quarry wall, and from GPR data processing using seismic reflection methods developed for hydrocarbon exploration. The application of this work is a non-invasive determination of pathways by which surface runoff could percolate into a network of interconnected fractures.