Detection of karstic limestone bedrock by shallow seismic refraction in an area west of Assiut, Middle Egypt

Abstract

The main goal of this study was the detection of complex surface and internal structures of limestone bedrock over the entire area planned for urban development on the lower Eocene plateau, west of Assiut, Egypt. A 2.5D shallow seismic refraction survey provided sufficient resolution for mapping faults and karst at the scale required for civil engineering plans. The 3D P-wave seismic velocity map was developed from integration of a series of 2D spreads recorded along a 2D grid using only inline spreads.