Hammer-impact SH-wave seismic reflection methods in neotectonic investigations: General observations and case histories from the Mississippi Embayment, U.S.A.

Abstract

Shallow shear-wave seismic reflection imaging, using a sledgehammer and mass energy source and standard processing, has become increasingly common in mapping near-surface geologic features, especially in water-saturated, unconsolidated sediments. Tests of the method in the Mississippi Embayment region of the central United States show interpretable reflection arrivals in the depth range of <10 m to >100 m with the potential for increased resolution when compared with compressional-wave data. Shear-wave reflection profiles were used to help interpret the significance of neotectonic surface deformation at five sites in the Mississippi Embayment. The interpreted profiles show a range of shallow structural styles that include reverse faulting, fault propagation folding, and reactivated normal faulting, and provide crucial subsurface evidence in support of paleoseismologic trenching and shallow drilling.

Keywords

shear wave / seismic reflection / neotectonics

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