Abstract

Surface mapping, petrographic analysis, isotopic and gravity studies characterize the Professor Valley salt body, located within northeast Paradox Basin between the Salt Valley and Onion Creek salt walls. Gravity analysis identifies the Professor Valley salt body as an isolated diapir that is not connected to Onion Creek, and not likely connected with Salt Valley. Outcrops of the Paradox Formation at Professor Valley are non-caprock carbonates that have undergone meteoric diagenesis that surround unusual sandstone and conglomerate inclusions. We infer the inclusions are derived from Paradox Formation clastic depositional cycles, carried upward during diapirism, and concentrated with salt dissolution. Gravity data and surface bedding orientations on the northern edge of the diapir indicate the adjacent Permian Cutler Group strata represent composite halokinetic sequences extending <1 km from the diapir. The southern edge of the diapir is less constrained but appears consistent with the asymmetry observed in adjacent salt bodies. Smaller scale features are consistent with a burial wedge located near the eastern edge of the diapir. Results demonstrate how the integration of geological and geophysical methods can aid in determining the geometry and evolution of salt bodies.