Remote sensing techniques to map geologic unit in arid environment: the example of southern flank of the Tindouf Basin (Western Sahara)

Remote sensing techniques allow an effective, time- and money-saving mapping of surface geological features and they proved to be particularly useful when working on isolated or hardly accessible areas. This work examines the possibility to map surface geology with a certain detail, applying specific enhancement techniques to Landsat 7 ETM+ imagery, resulting in false colour composites, which were interpreted and then validated during a field campaign carried out in April 2011. The study area is located along the southern flank of the Tindouf Basin (SADR territory, Western Sahara). A general lack of bibliographic data, due both to its remote location and to its difficult political and diplomatic situation, characterises this area. Through an accurate analysis of the enhanced Landsat 7 ETM+ images a number of photo-lithological units were recognized within the Proterozoic magmatic basement and the sedimentary succession of the Tindouf Basin, contributing to the knowledge of the geological setting of this area.