| Title | Statistical, mathematical and geostatistical methods for dealing with glacial dispersal: application of GIS technology to till data from the Swayze greenstone belt and Cape Breton Island
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| Author | Harris, J R |
| Source | GIS for the earth sciences; by Harris, J R (ed.); Geological Association of Canada, Special Paper 44, 2006 p. 317-368 |
| Image |  |
| Year | 2006 |
| Alt Series | Geological Survey of Canada, Contribution Series 2002161 |
| Publisher | Geological Association of Canada (St. John's, NL, Canada) |
| Document | serial |
| Lang. | English |
| Media | paper; CD-ROM |
| Related | This publication is contained in GIS for the earth sciences
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| File format | pdf |
| Province | Nova Scotia |
| NTS | 11F/16; 11G/13; 11J/04; 11K/01 |
| Lat/Long WENS | -60.5000 -60.0000 46.0000 45.5000 |
| Subjects | geochemistry; sedimentology; surficial geology/geomorphology; sediment dispersal; glacial deposits; tills; till geochemistry; fans; trace element geochemistry; ice movement; ice flow |
| Illustrations | graphs; location maps; geological sketch maps; schematic diagrams; 3-D images; tables; graphs; geological sketch maps |
| Released | 2006 01 01 |
| Abstract | Different methods for identifying directional effects, due primarily to glacial dispersal, in geochemical data sampled from till, are reviewed. These methods include mathematical, geostatistical and
proximity (search) algorithms available in many Geographic Information Systems (GIS), or associated statistical and geostatistical software packages. New search methods for identifying directional effects in till data, identifying potential dispersal
trains and for generating a map of potential up-ice source zones of geochemical anomalies are also presented. These techniques are initially evaluated using simulated data characterized by varying background noise levels in which simulated ribbon and
fan-shaped dispersal trains are embedded. The techniques are then applied to Cu and Zn data, sampled from till over the Swayze greenstone belt in Ontario, and Pb and Zn data sampled from till over southeastern Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia. The
primary cause of directional biases in the till data is down-ice glacial dispersal. The effects of the orientation (strike) of stratigraphy also exerts an influence on the data, especially for Zn which commonly substitutes as a trace element in
rock-forming mafic minerals. The search methods were the most successful at identifying documented Pb and Cu dispersal trains in the Cape Breton till dataset. However, the geologist must still carefully screen the selected points (representing
candidate locations for the heads of dispersal trains) and areas (up-ice source zones of till anomalies) identified by the search algorithms. With respect to the Swayze till data, all the methods that were reviewed identified a southward directional
trend in the Cu and Zn data that parallels the major ice-flow direction, as recorded by the orientation of glacial striae. Minor variations in spatial trends are also noted between the different methods that can be attributed to differences in the
way the algorithms operate statistically and spatially. The Cu and Zn anomalies derived from the down-ice search algorithm (DISA) are generally better predictors of the known base-metal prospects than are the in-situ anomalies derived from the
interpolated data. |
| GEOSCAN ID | 213838 |
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