An Application of Softsign Function (SF) Filter to Low-Latitude Aeromagnetic Data of Tafawa-Balewa Area, Northern Nigeria for Geostructural Mapping and Tectonic Analysis

A recently proposed edge detection technique – Softsign Function (SF) filter was applied to a synthetic magnetic data to illustrate its application. It was then applied in combination with 3D Euler deconvolution and 2D magnetic modelling techniques to the low-latitude aeromagnetic data of Tafawa-Balewa Area, Northern Nigeria, aimed at subsurface geostructural mapping and tectonic analysis of the study area. This was corroborated with mapping and analysis of surface lineaments from Landsat-9 image of the study area. The SF filter depicted edges of magnetic sources from the synthetic magnetic and aeromagnetic data as distinct peaks. The 3D Euler deconvolution solutions and 2D magnetic model showed two dominant depth ranges ∼ 10 m to ∼ 400 m (D1) and ∼ 400 m to ∼ 1000 m (D2) of magnetic sources. The subsurface and surface lineaments from the aeromagnetic data and Landsat-9 image, respectively, fairly agreed in location, trends, even distribution, and density. The trends of mapped lineaments are majorly ENE – WSW direction, and the minor trends are WNW – ESE, NE – SW, NNW – SSE, NNE – SSW, and NW – SE directions. These linear structures, consistent with regional tectonics, are suspected to be strike-slip faults generated by the conjugate system of strike-slip NE – SW and NW – SE faults, including the Romanche and Chain fault systems, produced by the oceanic-continental transcurrent movements which affected the Nigerian basement complex. Explicitly, Softsign Function (SF) filter is a valuable edge detection technique in mapping geological structures from a real low-latitude aeromagnetic data reduced to the geomagnetic equator for tectonic analysis.