Illustrating the active faults using integrated geophysical data along the Suez Canal-district, Eastern Desert, Egypt

Abstract

Geophysical (magnetic and seismological) data were used to illustrate the subsurface geologically active structures that could be earthquake sources along the Suez Canal-district. The magnetic data required for constructing the magnetic maps was achieved through a land magnetic survey using Gem’s Overhauser magnetometer and the Misallat observatory as a base station for data diurnal correction. The magnetic data was then reduced using data from the International Geomagnetic Reference Field. Magnetic analytical techniques were used in a variety of approaches (e.g., reduction to the magnetic pole and the horizontal gradient, 3D analytical signal, 2D and 3D Euler, 3D magnetic modeling, and Curie depth analysis). The findings of the applied magnetics techniques were promising for further magnetic depth estimation models and interpretation of the structural trends. The obtained magnetic anomaly trends follow E–W, NW–SE, and NE–SW directions. The seismological data of the Egyptian National Seismic Networks was processed to show the active faults from the clustering and distribution of earthquake epicenters and to detect their types using the focal mechanism solutions. Eventually, the comparison between the resulted fault structures that prevailed and the earthquake's epicenters shows that the area was identified as having moderate activity for earthquakes in the southern part. The activities of these faults were confirmed by the curie magnetic depth, which reaches 8 km.