MS4 Seismic Stratigraphy Along Three Multichannel Seismic Reflection Profiles off Delaware's Coast (Front and Back Pages)
Three multichannel, common-depth-point (CDP), seismic reflection profiles were run off Delaware's coast for the Delaware Geological Survey. Their purposes were (1) to determine the depth to the unconformity (post-rift unconformity) at the base of the nearshore submerged Coastal Plain sedimentary rocks and (2) to relate onshore with offshore
geology as interpreted from the U. S. Geological Survey's network of regional seismic profiles. In addition, the nearshore profiles reveal considerable detail about the nature of the Neogene lithostratigraphic units and aquifers within them that supply water to the coastal communities of Delaware and Maryland (Miller, 1971; Weigle and Achmad, 1982).
The occurrences of earthquakes in northern Delaware and adjacent areas of Pennsylvania, Maryland, and New Jersey are well documented by both historical and instrumental records. Over 550 earthquakes have been documented within 150 miles of Delaware since 1677. One of the earliest known events occurred in 1737 and was felt in Philadelphia and surrounding areas. The largest known event in Delaware occurred in the Wilmington area in 1871 with an intensity of VII (Modified Mercalli Scale). The second largest event occurred in the Delaware area in 1973 (magnitude 3.8 and maximum Modified Mercalli Intensity of V-VI). The epicenter for this event was placed in or near the Delaware River. Sixty-nine earthquakes have been documented or suspected in Delaware since 1871.
Map and data listing of all earthquakes with an epicenter within the State of Delaware.
Subsurface temperatures were measured in instrumented boreholes for about one and one-half years at depths down to 10 feet below land surface at four locations in the State. In New Castle County, temperatures were measured periodically in the field about twice a month at three sites, and, in Sussex County, they were automatically recorded every 15 minutes at one site. The depths of interest are generally in the unsaturated zone and are subject to both daily temperature fluctuations and longer seasonal changes.
Onshore and offshore geological and geophysical data were used to investigate the lithostratigraphy, seismic stratigraphy, and depositional history of the late Tertiary age post-Choptank Chesapeake Group rocks in Sussex County, Delaware and adjacent counties in Maryland. The results of this investigation suggest that the St. Marys (?) Formation and the sandy interval of which the Manokin aquifer is a part, are distinct lithostratigraphic units. The Manokin formation is proposed as an informal lithostratigraphic unit that refers to the sandy interval of which the Manokin aquifer is a part. On a regional scale, the section containing the Ocean City and Pocomoke aquifers and adjacent and intervening confining beds is best treated as a single undifferentiated lithostratigraphic unit. The Bethany formation is proposed as an informal lithostratigraphic unit that refers to this section.
The nature and occurrence of subsurface resources, whether ground water, minerals, or petroleum, are controlled by the geologic history and framework of any particular area. Several years ago the staff of the Delaware Geological Survey began an informal assessment of the potential resources of southern Delaware and demonstrated the lack of basic data on the deep subsurface in this area. This assessment was later summarized by Benson (1976) with particular emphasis on the possibilities for petroleum occurrence.
OFR43 Results of Trenching Investigations Along the New Castle Railroad Survey-1 Seismic Line, New Castle, Delaware
Five trenches were excavated to a depth of 5 to 8 ft along the path of an abandoned railroad grade near the city of New Castle to investigate potential near-surface faults that may be related to earthquake activity in northern Delaware. Seismic reflection profiles along this line suggested the existence of significant faulting in the area, which lies along a postulated fault trend in eastern New Castle County. Subsequent drilling, however, failed to substantiate displacement interpreted for faults in the sedimentary section. Detailed examination of exposures in the trenches also failed to reveal the existence of near surface faults. Together these findings suggest that there has been minimal or no modern near-surface fault activity in this area of New Castle County.
This report has been prepared to fill an immediate need for information on the earthquake that affected northern Delaware on February 28, 1973. Public interest in seismic events has grown in the past two years because of a series of small, local events (Jordan et al., 1972) and has been heightened considerably by the event described in this report. Various stresses on and within the earth lead to periodic adjustments or changes by the rocks making up the earth's crust. Many changes are too slow or small to be measured within a human lifetime, but earthquakes can be a very perceptible phenomenon, expressing more rapid adjustment. Indeed, earthquakes in many areas of the world are a serious geologic hazard and a threat to life and property. Thus, it must be recognized that the earth is a dynamic body and its processes are not bound to the convenience of man.
Earthquakes are an unfamiliar phenomenon in Delaware. Because of the great public and scientific interest in the seismic events that have recently affected northern Delaware, this Open File Report has been prepared to present currently available information concerning the earthquakes and the investigation pursued by the Delaware Geological Survey. This is not a final scientific explanation of the events. To many persons it is shocking to realize that the earth that they regard as stable is, in fact, an active body. The present earth is a product of 4.5 billion years of history, during which time most geologic forces have acted so slowly as to be almost imperceptible. Therefore, sudden movements are disturbing. Earthquakes are the vibrations caused by relatively sudden slippage of deeply buried rocks. Earthquakes occur in a vast range of sizes; many are too small to be felt and others cause great damage. The events in Delaware that are described on these pages were relatively small and, although they warrant further study, which may lead to some precautionary measures, they do not represent cause for alarm.
Earthquakes in Delaware and surrounding areas have been well documented historically since about the early 1700’s and since 1972 by instrumental records. Most of the Delaware events have occurred in the Wilmington area immediately adjacent to or within rocks of the Wilmington Complex. Since the compilation of earthquakes by Jordan and others (1974) which lists events through May 1974, six felt earthquakes have occurred in northern Delaware and about 20 additional events in Delaware have been recorded on seismographs of the Delaware Geological Survey. Four of the felt events took place from November 1983 through February 1984 and ranged from a magnitude 1.5 to 2.9. The highest intensity for this series of earthquakes was a possible V (Modified Mercalli). Epicenters were generally in the north Wilmington area as determined both instrumentally and by felt reports.
OFR30 Evaluation of Remote Sensing and Surface Geophysical Methods for Locating Underground Storage Tanks
Delaware Code, Title 7, Chapter 74, Section 7415 states in part: "The Delaware Geological Survey shall investigate the feasibility of utilizing aerial photographs and other new advanced techniques for locating abandoned tanks." In response to this charge, the Delaware Geological Survey has completed a survey of currently available remote sensing and geophysical tools to determine which methods may be utilized to locate underground storage tanks. Limited preliminary field testing has been performed.
B13 Geology, Hydrology, and Geophysics of Columbia Sediments in the Middletown-Odessa Area, Delaware
Columbia sediments in the Middletown-Odessa area are composed of boulders, gravels, sands, silts and clays. These sediments are exposed in four gravel pits where their structures and textures were studied. Subsurface geology was interpreted on the basis of the well-log data from 40 holes drilled in the area of study. Columbia sediments were laid upon a surface made up of the greensands of the Rancocas Formation (Paleocene – Eocene age). The contact between the Rancocas and Columbia Formations is an erosional unconformity.
It is now possible to evaluate some of the earlier assessments and offer tentative conclusions about the hydrocarbon resource potential of the Baltimore Canyon trough, a major northeast-southwest trending sedimentary basin off the Mid-Atlantic coast of the United States. For this purpose the Delaware Geological Survey has examined more than 2,500 miles (4,022 km) of seismic reflection profiles, the results of some offshore magnetic and gravity surveys, the results of the COST B-2 well, and the nonproprietary results through 1978 of exploratory drilling by the petroleum industry on federal leases.
Geophysical logging techniques have been used in Delaware for many years as a means of identification and correlation of Coastal Plain formations. Criteria for the recognition of those formations having distinctive types of logs are presented. Formation factors have been calculated using multiple-point resistivity logs, temperature logs, and ground-water quality data and range from 1.2 to 6.8 for various formations underlying the State. Formation factors in turn are used to estimate water quality in later test holes.
This report provides a brief overview of the causes of earthquakes, how earthquakes are measured, and a glossary of earthquake terminology.
Additional sources of ground water have been located in the Piedmont Province as a result of a ground-water exploration program conducted by the Delaware Geological Survey at the University of Delaware in cooperation with the City of Newark. Drilling sites for relatively high-yielding wells were located through the use of geophysical investigations, air-photo interpretation, field mapping, and review of existing data.
The feasibility of using geophysical techniques in determining the amount of overburden and the nature of the subsurface along a proposed highway was tested in the Piedmont area of Delaware. The area is underlain by crystalline rocks capped by varying amounts of unconsolidated material or regolith. Seismic refraction and surface resistivity methods were used at selected stations and the interpretations were later compared to results from test holes and to the material exposed in road cuts. In general, interpretation of the seismic refraction results compared quite well with test borings and with field observations made after construction was started. Resistivity data were inconclusive in themselves but provided some additional control points when correlated with seismic refraction data. With proper control, it is concluded that such techniques could be useful in the Piedmont of Delaware for highway planning.