The inversions of gravity and magnetic data are, among other geophysical investigation techniques, a valuable source of information about the structure of the Earth’s subsurface at the local scale. This technique is used in the exploration of underground natural resources, either onshore or offshore (e.g. oil, gas, metal deposits).
GReD’s solutions consist of jointly inverting gravity and magnetic data to recover the mass density and magnetic susceptibility distributions of the subsurface constraining the solution with information coming from interpreted seismic observations and qualitative geological knowledge (properly weighed by their reliability). The result of this inversion is a quantitative 3D model of the subsurface which can be used to gain important knowledge on the studied area. Lineaments and structures of the main geological units, faults, and boundaries between different lithotypes can be easily detected by means of a proper analysis of the results.
High-accuracy gravity and magnetic data can be nowadays easily acquired by means of airborne, shipborne, or helicopter-borne surveys thus allowing investigations also in remote areas. Where good quality data are available (e.g. through ground gravity acquisitions) the algorithm can also give information about the presence of subsurface voids and cavities.
