TECTONIC DEVELOPMENT OF THE SOUTHERN RED SEA HILLS OF SUDAN
Evidence from Landsat TM-Mosaic Interpretation
Harald Haenisch, Nasir Hasen Kened & Norbert Ott
FR Geoinformatik, Freie Universität Berlin
Malteserstr. 74-100, 12249 Berlin, Germany
Commision VII, Workgroup 4
KEY WORDS: Geology, Tectonic, Red Sea Hills, Landsat TM-Mosaic, LFC
ABSTRACT
An interpretation of the rather complex tectonic development of the southeastern part of the Red Sea Hills in
Sudan is presented. Under adobtion of Landsat TM-mosaicing in combination with LFC-images a tectonic
interpretation has been conducted and thus improved the understanding of the tectonic evolution of the region.
Fieldworks were carried out to verify the small scale remote sensing data interpretation and also incorporate
observations made at outcrop scale. The presentation is adopted on sample areas with features typical for the
whole region, and which are not always readable in this quality, to represent the Pan-African dynamometamor-
phic influences during the terrane accretion.
ZUSAMMENFASSUNG
In diesem Artikel wird eine Interpretation der komplizierten tektonischen Evolution eines Teils der südlichen Red
Sea Hills im Sudan vorgestellt. Durch Verwendung eines Landsat TM-Mosaiks in Verbindung mit LFC-Bildern
wurde eine tektonische Interpretation vorgenommen, die ein verbessertes Verständnis der tektonischen
Entwicklung dieser Region ermöglichen soll. Über mehrere Jahre verteilte Geländeaufenthalte lieferten
Ergebnisse, die die kleinmaßstäbigen Fernerkundungsdaten ergänzten. Um den Einfluß des Pan-African mit
seiner dynamo-metamorphen Entwicklung während der Terraneakkretion darzustellen, sollen einige Bildbei-
spiele typische Strkturen aufzeigen, in einer Qualität wie sie allerdings nicht immer auf Landsat TM-Szenen
erkennbar ist.
1. Introduction major faulting and folding patterns presented.
The Red Sea Hills of NE Sudan form a part of the 2. Data
Arabian-Nubian Shield. These hills constitute a semi-
desert plateau of mountains, in a narrow strip of rug- Data sources are principally the Landsat Thematic
ged terrain no more than 200 km wide and rising to ~~ Mapper Images 171/46, 171/47, 171/48, and 172/45,
2000 m above sea level. The Geology comprises 172/47 aquired in the period between 1985 and 1989.
strongly deformed and metamorphosed late Precam- In Addition two MSS images were used to cover
brian granite-greenstone terranes. The tectonic set- cloudy parts of the TM-imagery. The Data sets were
ting and evolution of this region in terms of the g- radiometrically adjusted and than mosaiced. This
eneral structural framework of the southern Red Sea gave some problems because of the scanne
Hills in the Arabian-Nubian Shield is still under deba- ^ sensitivity for atmospheric influences like humidity,
te. Despite the work conducted during the last two dust, variations in intensity and directions of wind and
decades there are numerous tectonic models under elevation differences ranging from sea level upto 2000
consideration (e.g. VAIL et al. 1983; KLEMENIC 1985; m, and the different scanner calibrations of Landsat
KRÓNER et al. 1987; REISCHMANN 1986; SCHANDELMEI- TM 4 and 5.
ER et al. 1994).
Additional valuable information were optained from?
This paper presents a model to establish the various series of stereoscopically overlapping Large Forma
deformations and also estimate major displacements Camera (LFC) frames (1321 - 1324, b/w, Roll 6, STS
in that region under inclusion of metamorphic events Mission 41-G (Spaceshuttle), scale 1:751.600, c:306
which took place during the Pan-African tectono-ther- mm, Hg:230 km). The LFC-images gave a good spaf-
mal event, and their reactivation in the Phanerozoic. ^ al impression of the terrain.
Two sample sites will be examined and the regional
262
International Archives of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing. Vol. XXXI, Part B7. Vienna 1996
