Examination of ERTS-1 data for selected areas of Missouri revealed not only many of the known geologic features but also a number of unknown linear, circular and arcuate ground patterns. The number of new geologic elements that have been brought to light as well as the sharp definition and probable extensions of several known geologic features point out the importance of multispectral imagery via satellite and the synoptic views which they provide. To date, analysis and interpretations have been a first-look visual examination of the unenhanced projected images

Allen, W. H.

Martin, J. A.

Rath, D. L.

English

NASA Technical Reports Server

Paper G 15 
FIRST-LOOK ANALYSIS OF GEOLOGIC GROUND PATTERNS ON ERTS-1 
IMAGERY OF MISSOURI" 
William H. Allen, James A. Martin, and David L. Rath, Missouri Geological Survey, 
Box 250, Rolla, Missouri 65401 
ABSTRACT 
Examination of ERTS-1 da t a  f o r  s e l ec t ed  a r e a s  of Missouri revealed 
not only many of the known geologic f ea tu re s  but  a l s o  a number of unknown 
l i n e a r ,  c i r c u l a r  and arcua te  ground pa t t e rns .  The number of new geologic 
elements t h a t  have been brought t o  l i g h t  a s  wel l  a s  the  sharp de f in i t i on  
and probable extensions of s eve ra l  known geologic f ea tu re s  point  out  the  
importance of mu l t i spec t r a l  imagery v i a  s a t e l l i t e  and the synoptic  views 
which they provide. To d a t e ,  ana lys i s  and i n t e r p r e t a t i o n s  have been a 
" f i r s t - look"  v i sua l  examination of the unenhanced projected images. 
1. INTRODUCTION 
The Missouri Geological Survey has received ERTS imagery through 
involvement i n  two ERTS-1 p ro j ec t s :  (1)  An Applicat ion and Evaluat ion 
of ERTS-1 Data i n  Environmental Geology and Land-Use Planning i n  the S t .  
Louis-Kansas City Corridor ,  Missouri (SR-168) and (2 )  An Evaluat ion of 
ERTS-1 f o r  Mapping Ple i s tocene  Deposits and Landforms i n  the Midwest and 
Great P la ins  (SR-238). This  paper is not a progress  r e p o r t  f o r  e i t h e r  
of these p ro j ec t s  but r a t h e r  an eva lua t ion  of the  imagery by the  Mineral 
Resources and St ra t igraphy Sec t ions  of the  Survey a s  t o  how it  may r e l a t e  
t o  present  and f u t u r e  pro jec ts .  Admittedly, we were son~twhat s k e p t i c a l  
a s  t o  the po t en t i a l  usefu lness  of ERTS imagery o t h e r  than providing a 
synoptic view of major waterways and gross  s t r u c t u r a l  f ea tu re s .  
However, examination of e a r l y  p i c tu re s  covering the  southeas t  and north-  
e a s t  pa r t  of the  s t a t e  g r e a t l y  changed t h i s  view and generated much 
enthusiasm. 
The ERTS coverage f o r  t h r ee  a r ea s  of Missouri is discussed -- 
southeas t ,  nor theas t  and c e n t r a l .  The frames analyzed a r e :  E-1071- 
16111 (SE), E-1036-16162 (NE) and E-1073-16221 (C). The p r inc ipa l  
re ferences  used f o r  comparison of imagery f e a t u r e s  t o  known geologic 
da t a  were the  Geologic Map of Missouri (McCracken, et.  e l . ,  1961) and 
S t r u c t u r a l  Fea tures  of Missouri,  map 6 r e p o r t  (McCracken, 1971). The 
geologic s e t t i n g  of t he  a r e a s  ranges from Ordovician through Ple i s tocene  
i n  t he  c e n t r a l  and no r theas t  a r e a s  and from Precambrian through Missis- 
s ippian ,  with a l a r g e  a r ea  of Cretaceous, T e r t i a r y  and Quaternary depos- 
i ts  i n  the  southeas t .  Mul t i spec t ra l  enhancement plus t h e  synopt ic  view 
ha; allowed i n  some cases  t he  t r a c i n g  of c e r t a i n  s t r u c t u r a l  l i n e a r  e l e -  
me'nts across  s eve ra l  of these geologic boundaries. 
- 
*Publication authorized by the  Direc tor ,  Missouri  Geological  Survey 
PRECEDING PAGE BLANK NOT 
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2.  SOUTHEAST MISSOURI (NASA-E-1071-16111) 
Evaluat ion of t h i s  imagery r e su l t ed  i n  the  i d e n t i f i c a t i o n  of many 
geologic f ea tu re s ,  some of which a r e  suspected t o  be p a r t  of the  basic  
s t r u c t u r a l  framework of the Midcontinent Platform. Three f a c t o r s  led t o  
the examination of t h i s  a r ea :  (1)  Southeast Missouri i s  a major North 
American lead-zinc-copper, i r o n  Metallogenic Province; ( 2 )  the S t .  Fran- 
co i s  Mountains a r e  the  p r inc ipa l  Precambrian outcrop i n  c e n t r a l  United 
S t a t e s ;  and (3) the  imagery received f o r  t h i s  a r ea  was very sharp and 
f r ee  of cloud cover. Features noted and described a r e  shown on Figure I .  
Ozark Escarpment: This prominent physiographic f ea tu re  forms the  
boundary between the  Ozark u p l i f t  (McCracken, 1971) and the  Miss i ss ippi  
embayment. I ts t r a c e  on the  imagery is pr imar i ly  defined by a change i n  
vegeta t ion  and topography and i s  not d i s t i n c t  everywhere along i t s  
ex t en t .  A s h o r t  d i s t ance  south of the escarpment and r i s i n g  above the  
l eve l  t e r r a i n  of the embayment a r e  two physiographic h ighs ,  Crowleys 
Ridge and Benton H i l l s .  The bedrock of Benton H i l l s  i s  Ordovician, Cre- 
tzceous and T e r t i a r y  and i t s  boundaries a r e  except iona l ly  wel l  defined.  
Crowleys Ridge i s  under la in  mainly by T e r t i a r y  and Quaternary depos i t s ,  
and i t s  o u t l i n e  i s  only weakly suggested. An abandoned channelway (K)  
i s  thcught t o  be an Ohio River drainageway ( s t age  B) shown by Fisk  (1944). 
Farminnton Ant ic l ine :  This northwest- t rending f o l d  is the  most 
prominent s t r u c t u r a l  f ea tu re  on t h i s  image. A d is turbed  a r ea  wi th  some 
75 diatremes present  a t  the  south end of the  fo ld  i s  not  r e a d i l y  appar- 
en t .  From the  imagery, an a n t i c l i n a l  s t r u c t u r e  plunging toward o r  wi th  
c losure  a t  the  south end would be suspected. 
S te .  Genevieve F a u l t  System: On#- of the major f a u l t  zones i n  
Missouri,  t h i s  complex s t r u c t u r e  i s  p a r t  of a major eas t -wes t  continen-  
t a l  f r a c t u r e  pa t t e rn ,  the  38th P a r a l l e l  Lineament (Brock & Heyl 1961; 
Snyder & Gerdemnn, 1965; and Heyl, 1972). The f a u l t  is most prominent 
on the  I l l i n o i s  s i d e  and f o r  a s h o r t  d i s t ance  a f t e r  i t  changes d i r e c t i o n  
from northwest t o  west i n  d i s s o u r i .  A second d i r e c t i o n a l  change back t o  
the northwest i s  not  apparent.  
Unknown Feature A-A: Among the  more prominent l i n e a r e  on the  image, 
t h i s  f ea tu re  extends about 50 miles  i n  a s l i g h t l y  eas t -nor theas t  d i r ec -  
t i o n  c ross ing  two mejor f a u l t  systems, t he  Palmer and Sinrme Mountain, 
p lus  t he  Farmington a n t i c l i n e  without any apparent  break i n  t he  t r ace .  
It appears t o  terminate j u s t  west of the  S te .  Genevieve f a u l t  system, 
but a f a i n t  suggest ion of i t s  cont inua t ion  i e  present  i n  I l l i n o i s .  The 
Dent Branch volcanic s t r u c t u r e  l i e s  on t h e  t race .  Extending the  t r a c e  
westward beyond the  frame, i t  l i e s  5 mi les  south of t he  Crooked Creek 
cryptoexplosive s t r u c t u r e .  The iFneament has not  been f i e l d  checked nor 
compared with a v a i l a b l e  subsurface d a t a ;  however, t h e  i n i t i a l  assumption 
is t o  r e l a t e  it t o  the 38th P a r a l l e l  l ineament and a t t r i b u t e  i t  t o  t he  
Precambrian expression of t h i s  con t inen ta l  f r ac tu re .  
S i m s  Mountain Fau l t  System: A major and complex f a u l t  zone i n  t he  
S t .  Francois  Mountains a r e a ,  it is poorly def ined  on t h e  isrrgery. A weak, 

. r e l a t i v e l y  s t r a i g h t  t r a c e  only roughly fol lows the major t rend of the  
system. From the  imagery, a l i n e a r  would be suspect  but not a major 
f a u l t  system. 
Precambrian Lineament: A weak but  recognizable l i n e a r ,  i t  extends 
fo r  30 a i l e s  on a northwest t rend and coincides with d poss ib le  Precam- 
b r i an  lineament proposed Ly Hayes (1962) which r ecen t  d r i l l i n g  tends t o  
confirm (Eva Kisvarsanyi ,  personal communication, 1973). X lineament 
would be pos tu la ted  from the imagery. 
Feature F: This l i n e a r  might be a cont inua t ion  cL ~ : l e  Simms Moun- 
--
t a i n  fau l ;  system o r  possibly an ex tens ion  of the  previously described 
Precambrian lineament. The t r a c e  i s  prominent but the  b i fu rca t ion  a t  
the  southern end i s  weak and suspect .  
Rosel le  Lineament: The f ea tu re  i s  c l e a r l y  shown on the  ERTS 
imagery and l i e s  along th ree  p a r a l l e l  f a u l t s  mapped by Amos & Desborough 
(1960). Gillerman (1968) recognized it on SLAR imagery and named i t  the 
Rosel le  lineament. The s h o r t  double t r a c e  and c i r c u l a r  p a t t e r n  (D) a t  
the south r e f l e c t s  a Precambrian igneous knob (Mudlick Mtn.) and drainage 
pa t te rn .  Extension nor th  of t he  Simms Mountain f a u l t  system was not  
ind ica ted  on the  ERTS imagery examined. The curved l i n e  (H) can be 
a t t r i b u t e d  t o  t he  course-of  t he  S t .  Franc is  River f o r  most of i t s  ex t en t .  
C i r cu l a r  Features C 6 E: A number of c i r c u l a r  p a t t e r n s ,  some super-  
imposed, a r e  d i s ce rn ib l e  on the  imagery f o r  t h i s  a rea .  Feature C i s  one 
of the  l a r g e s t  and coincides wi th  one described by Gillerman (1.968). 
Their  o r i g i n  i s  unknown but could range from volcanic ca lde ra s  t o  a s t r o -  
blemes. Many of these suggest  a r e f l e c t i o n  of a s t r u c t u r a l  a t t i t u d e  i n  
the Precambrian. 
Feature B: This l i n e a r  extends from t h e  Precambrian lineament t o  
the  l i n e a r  (A-A') and roughly fol lows the s t r i k e  of the  Big River f a u l t .  
It separa tes  the "Old" Lead ~ e l t  from the  Washington Cocnty Ba r i t e  D i s -  
t r i c t .  
I ronton  and Cedar Creek Fau l t s :  The imagery t r a c e s  of these s t ruc -  
t u r e s  show only a small po r t i on  of t h e i r  t o t a l  ex t en t .  The I ronton  par- 
t i o n  i e  a ques t ionable  f a u l t  a long t h e  southwest f lank  of  a Precambrian 
high (Buford Mtn.). ?:either t r a c e  is except iona l ly  s t rong .  
Brooks Dome-; This s t r u c t u r e ,  which has been v e r i f i e d  by d r i l l i n g ,  
i s  accentuated by drainage,  vege ta t ion  and r e l i e f .  From imagery a lone ,  
a dome vsuld be suspected.  
Greenvi l le  Fau l t :  This f a u l t ,  i n  an a r e a  of  t h i ck  residuum, has 
been pos tu la ted  from d r i l l  ho le  records  (McCracken, 1971). The l i n e a r  on 
the  imagery is  weak and l i e s  about 5 miles  southeas t  of t he  f a u l t  t race .  
That t he  o f f e e t  may e x i r t  has been suggested by seve ra l  Precambrian d r i l l  
ho ler  (Eva Kirvarsanyi ,  personal  communication, 1973). 
Feature G: A semi-arcuate l i n e  which exteilds a d i r t a n c e  of about 
25 miles ,  i t  l i e s  some 5 mi les  no r thea r t  o f  t he  Simms Mountain f a u l t  
ryrtem. There a r e  no known r t r u c t u r e r  f n  t h e  a rea .  
Feature 1: A rtrong arcuate t race  t h a t  r e f l e c t r  a portion of the 
drainage pat tern  of 'Reelve Mile Creek, t h i r  feature i r  i n  part  along the 
contact brtwrrn Precambrian igneour rockr and Cambrian redimrntr. 
I l l i n o i r n  T i l l  Boundary: On the imagery t h i r  boundary i r  weak but 
- 
could be placed tenta t ively  i n  the area shown by Weller (1945). n.3 
r ignificance of l i n e r  J i r  not known. 
3. CENTRAL (ERTS-E-1073-16221) 6 NORT-T (ERT8-E-1036-16162) 
Northern Mirrouri i r  coverrd by till, which would be expected t o  
hide evidence of the underlying r t r u c t r ~ r a l  tea turer .  However, ce r t a in  
l inea r  t r ace r  a r e  recognired and mapped i n  rp i t e  of the r u r f i c i a l  
cover. Information obtained on the Pleir tocene depor i t r  i r  not rpec i f i -  
ca l ly  ve r i f  ied; however, the ERTS-1 coverage doer provide r ra t iona l  
bare fo r  defining a rtudy of the r u r f i c i a l  depoaits north of the Mir- 
rour i  River. Figure 2 rhowr and i d e n t i f i e r  the fcs tu re r  dircurred for  
t h i r  &.tea. 
Lir:coln Fold: The r;rort prominent fea ture  on the northeartern 
irmrgeK it war i n i t i a l l y  thought t h a t  the t r ace  rc f i cc ted  the eteep 
routhweotern flank. Compariron with Precambrian t e e t  troler indicater  
tha t  the  imagery t r ace  18 on the  c r e r t  (Kievaroanyi, perronal communica- 
t ion ,  19'73). I n  the area of i t r  in te r rec t ion  with the Cap au Grer f a u l t ,  
the fold rwingr t o  tha ka r t .  It8 re la t ionrh ip  t o  the f a u l t  i r  hazy, a r  
the Cap au Grer i t r e l f  i r  poorly exprerred. 
Mexico Anticl ine:  Nonual t o  the a n j o r i t y  of r t r u c t u r a l  trendr i n  
north-central  Miarouri, the imagery indicater  the r t ruc tu re  extend8 
beyond the prerently recognired l i m i t  t o  the nor thear t  and appear8 to 
nurge with the Sangamon arch i n  I l l i n o i c  (Whiting 6 Stevrnnon, 1965), 
It i r  in ter rected by an cart-weat arcuate t race  (8-8') which i r  a proba- 
b le  recerr ional  moraine. 
w n e o l a  Structure:  Originally dercribed a8 a doma1 r t ruc tu re ,  i t  
i r  rhown on the imagery r e  a northwest-routheart t race  tha t  i n t e r r e c t r  
the Mexico a n t i c l i n e  a t  r i g h t  angler.  Further north it i n t e r r a c t r  the 
arcuate feature8 (8) a r e f l e c t i o n  of the Middlr S a l t  Fork drairage m d  
porribly a Nebrarlun T i l l  boundary. The routhrrn extenmion of t h i r  f a r -  
tu re  (D-D') ir indicated by a l i g h t  t r ace  on the imagery. It i r  paral-  
l e l ed  by the  l i n e  C-C' which c -?not be reen when the till c w e r  thickenr. 
Liae D-D' i r  approximtr ly  90 hllrr long and crorrer  Ordovician, 
Devonian, Mirrirr ippian,  Pennrylvanian, and Quatarnary depor i t r .  
r a t i n r a ~ h i c  Boundarier: Several r t r a t ig raph ic  boundarier a r e  
qu i t e  obviour. The m a t  prominent i r  between the lowor Ordovician Boubi- 
doux (Or) r a d r t o n e  and dolomitr and the  Jefferron City-Cotter (Ojc) 
dolomite, The t r ace  c lo re ly  approximrter the mapped boundary and i r  
eahmcrd by a topographic break m d  change i n  vegetat ion from t h b e r  t o  
par tu re  and cropland, The Ordovician (0jc)-Mrr  i r r  ippian (I&-o) bound- 
a ry  i r  1888 d i r t i n c t .  Enhancement of t h i r  contact  i r  caured by 8 c b ~ e  
i n  rock typrr  and r o i l r ,  
Poetulated P le i s tocene  f ea tu r ee :  Lines shown on Figure 2 a s  B ,  E ,  
F ,  and G a r e  thought t o  be r e l a t e d  t o  moraine f ea tu r e s  of e a r l y  P l t i s t o -  
cene age. West of the  Missouri  River ,  the  southernmost l i n e  of B-B' 
def ines  the  boundary between loess-covered t i l l  and Pennsylvanian s h a l e s .  
Fur ther  e a s t  t i l l  of suspccted Kansan age is  recognized south of t he  
l i n e .  Due t o  highly d i s s ec t ed  t e r r a i n  the  southern limit of the  t i l l  
shee t  has  not been r-cognized on t he  imagery. I n  t h i s  a r ea  the l i n e  
r ep re sen t s  a  suspected r ece s s iona l  moraine. At l e a s t  two t i l l  u n i t s  a r e  
recognized nor th  of the  l i n e ,  whereas t o  the  south t he r e  i s  only one t i l l  
u n i t  t h a t  has been presen t ly  v e r i f i e d .  Exteneion of l i n e  B-B '  e a s t  of  
t he  Lincoln fo ld  was not considered f e a s i b l e  because of a  dubioue i n t e r -  
p r e t a t i o n  of imagery d a t a ;  however, i t  Zerminatee d i r e c t l y  weet of t he  
Kansan till border i n  I l l i n o i r  (Willman & Frye,  1970). Along Line B - B ' ,  
i n  tiie c en t e r  of Figure 2 t he r e  a r e  two minor f lexure8  which r e f l e c t  t he  
Mexico a n t i c l i n e  t o  the e a s t .  Fenturee ind ica ted  by E l i e  j ue t  south of 
t he  Nebraekan T i l l  boundary (Helm 1963). The S a l t  Fork River ha6 an 
a r cua t e  p a t t e r n  t h a t  may be an expreesion of a  t e rmina l  moraine of 
Nebraskan age. No e ign i f i cance  can be a t t a ched  t o  t he  f a i n t  l i n e 8  
ind ica ted  by l e t t e r e  F and G. 
4.  CONCLUSIONS 
The ana lye ie  of t he  imagery is pre l iminary ;  however, the  fol lowing 
sunrmery i r  of fe red :  
(1)  ERTS-1 MSS coverage provider  a  va luable  recon t o o l  f o r  geologic  
i nvee t i ga t i ons ;  however, i t  demands a  r a t h e r  wide knowledge of f i e l d  
da t a  and exhaust ive image review. 
(2)  There a r e  i nd i ca t i one  t h a t  cer ta i r .  s t r u c t u r e 8  may be r e loca t ed  
o r  extended b,eyond t h e i r  p r e sen t ly  knovn l i m i t e .  Linears  may r e f l e c t  
deeply buried e t r u c t u r a l  elemente. 
(3) Review of t he  imagery provider  a n  e f f e c t i v e  method f o r  p l a r a ing  
and de f in ing  a r e a r  f o r  concentrated f i e l d  i n v e r t i g a t i o n r  . 
(4) Uti1:eation of r a t e l l i t e  imagery can play a  major p a r t  i n  
r t u d i e r  of m lne ru l i ea t i on  and mineral  re rource  p o t e n t i a l .  
(5) Repe t i t i ve  coverage i r  mandatory f o r  more couprehenrive evalua-  
t i o n  of r t r u c t u r a l ,  r t r a t i g r a p h i c ,  geomorphic, and c u l t u r a l  f e a t u r e r .  
(6) Geologis t r  a t  t he  Mir rour i  Geological  S u r ~ e y  an we l l  a r  chore 
from mining companier and t h e  U n i v r r r i t y  of Mir rour i  - Bol la  a r e  en thu r i -  
a r t i f :  about t he  geologic  d e t a t l r  t h a t  can be de l i nea t ed  on t he  imagery. 

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Heyl, Allen V., 1972, The 38th parallel lineament and its relationship 
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First look analysis of geologic ground patterns on ERTS-1 imagery of Missouri

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