Application of thorium-normalized airborne radio-spectrometric survey data of Wadi Araba area, North-eastern Desert, Egypt, as a guide to the recognition of probable subsurface petroleum accumulations

A new exploration method has been developed by Saunders et al. (Geophysics 58(10) (1993) 1417) using surface and aerial gamma-ray spectral measurements in prospecting for petroleum in stratigraphic and structural traps. Wadi Araba area, North-eastern Desert, Egypt, was selected to apply this method on its recorded aerial gamma-ray spectrometric survey data, due to its distinct stratigraphic and structural setting as well as its situation in close connection with the Gulf of Suez, which represents one of the important sites of oil production in Egypt. The three variables (eU, eTh, and K) registered for the whole study area, in the form of three contour maps, were digitized along the flight paths every 1.0 km. The DRAD arithmetic means plus three standard deviations for the data set were computed. Any single profile value greater than this quantity should have a probability of 99.87% that it represents a valid anomaly and is not caused by random variations in the background values. The use of these criteria has identified one flight line which has a valid anomaly that is not caused by random variations in the background values. This might indicate a prospective possibility for petroleum accumulation in the Wadi Araba area, North-eastern Desert, Egypt.