Using LIDAR Imaging to Analyze Fluvial Stacking Patterns in the Lower Castlegate Sandstone, Helper, UT

Elizabeth Hajek
University of Wyoming Department of Geology and Geophysics
Laramie, Wyoming
[email protected]

Analysis of fluvial stacking patterns, or alluvial architecture, is a useful tool in sequence stratigraphy, basin analysis, paleoclimate reconstructions, and reservoir characterization. While alluvial architecture models have been developed for meandering river systems, few models exist for braided river systems. The Castlegate Sandstone (Campanian) is a well-exposed sandy braided stream deposit in the Book Cliffs, central Utah. LIght Detection And Ranging (LIDAR) technology was used to image the Castlegate Sandstone near Helper, UT. These high-resolution images are being analyzed in order quantify the geometry and distribution of stacking elements such as scour surfaces, bar accretion sets, and overbank deposits. LIDAR analysis will be combined with field observations and laboratory analyses (including grain-size analysis, clay mineralogy, and sandstone petrography) to identify factors controlling alluvial architecture within the Castlegate Sandstone. Understanding controls on alluvial architecture within the Castlegate Sandstone will help constrain interpretive and predictive models of stacking patterns in other high net-to-gross fluvial deposits.

AAPG Search and Discovery Article #90033©2004 AAPG Foundation Grants-in-Aid