Hyperspectral Imaging of a Paleohydrocarbon Seep System in the Panoche Hills, California

Erica Schneider 
Department of Earth Sciences, University of California Santa Cruz
Santa Cruz, California
[email protected]

This project will spectrally identify a paleohydrocarbon seep system in the Panoche Hills, located in the Great Valley of central California. The units exposed are the submarine fan deposits of the Panoche Group and the fine-grained Moreno Formation. The Panoche Group is the likely source for sandstone intrusions, which feed the paleoseep system, in the overlying Moreno Formation. The seep system was recognized through the presence of sandstone intrusions and methane-derived chemosynthetic carbonates.

This project utilizes a HyMap hyperspectral dataset. HyMap, an airborne sensor, has 126 bands across the wavelength interval 0.45 – 2.5 µm. The unique spectral signature of the sandstone intrusions and carbonate structures in the Panoche Hills will allow the seep system to be more fully mapped throughout the hyperspectral data. Using ENVI (Remote Sensing Software), spectra collected in the field and x-ray diffraction analysis, the spectral signature of previously mapped seeps will be identified. This signature will be used to extrapolate the locations of unmapped extensions of the seep system ,which will be field checked.

The identification of ancient hydrocarbon seeps enhances understanding of active seeps and their feasibility for petroleum exploration. Additionally, through study of the seep system, we can develop insights on reservoir conductivity and leakage from sequestration systems. Finally, chemosynthetic paleoseep systems on Earth can be a model for spectral evidence of traces of life on other planetary surfaces (e.g. Mars).

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