Microgravity monitoring of recharge in a karst aquifer in southwestern Oklahoma

Conference · Mon Feb 01 04:00:00 EST 1993 · Geological Society of America, Abstracts with Programs; (United States)

OSTI ID:6001606

Young, R A; Ahern, J L ^[1]

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1. Univ. of Oklahoma, Norman, OK (United States). School of Geology and Geophysics

Natural and artificial recharge of a shallow karst aquifer in Harmon County, Oklahoma, is being studied by the Oklahoma Water Resources Board and the US Bureau of Reclamation. The aquifer, the Permian Blaine Formation, consists of interbedded gypsum, shale, and dolomite. It is the only significant fresh water aquifer developed in evaporite rocks in the USA. The Blaine Formation forms major cave systems locally and generally consists of an intricate network of caves, cavities, sinks, and dissolution-collapse structures affecting the five gypsum bed subunits. At the recharge-demonstration sites, the Blaine is roughly 200 feet thick. At each site, observations wells cluster about a central recharge well which injects rainfall runoff at the depth of maximum void space (approximately 100 to 200 feet) determining from drilling. Annual variation in water level is up to 50 feet. Local storms can cause a rise of several tens of feet in a few days and a gradual decrease over several weeks. This may lead to a regional increase in water table elevation near the recharge well ( mounding'), and localized filling of voids in the gypsum. Both of these effects are expected to cause changes in the local gravity field following a heavy rainfall. For example, the filling of a 5 meter radius cylindrical void at a depth of 25 meters would produce a 46 microgal anomaly, easily detectable by a microgravity meter after instrumental and tidal drift corrections are made. To look for these changes, microgravity profiles will be conducted across the recharge zones. If correlation of gravity with measured water levels and recharge volume is demonstrated, microgravity surveys may prove useful in siting recharge wells from surface measurements alone.

• OSTI ID: 6001606
• Report Number(s): CONF-9303212--
• Conference Information: Journal Name: Geological Society of America, Abstracts with Programs; (United States) Journal Volume: 25:1
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

58 GEOSCIENCES
580000* -- Geosciences
AQUIFERS
CARBONATE ROCKS
CAVES
CAVITIES
DATA ANALYSIS
DEVELOPED COUNTRIES
GEOLOGIC AGES
GEOLOGIC FORMATIONS
GEOPHYSICAL SURVEYS
GRAVITY SURVEYS
GROUND SUBSIDENCE
GROUND WATER
GYPSUM
HYDROGEN COMPOUNDS
HYDROLOGY
MINERALS
NORTH AMERICA
OKLAHOMA
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
PALEOZOIC ERA
PERMIAN PERIOD
RECHARGE
ROCKS
SEDIMENTARY ROCKS
SHALES
SULFATE MINERALS
SURVEYS
USA
VARIATIONS
WATER
WATER TABLES
WATER WELLS
WELLS