USING REMOTE-SENSING DATA FOR HYDROCARBON EXPLORATION IN THE ANDEAN BASINS

Remote sensing data are illuminating some of the major Andean structural features and styles of deformation, and subsequently are a powerful tool in the analysis of regional tectonic events in the Cordilleras and adjacent basins. The relationship between surface lineaments and hydrocarbon occurrences is more subtle. However, a structural approach, albeit indirect, may lead to a better understanding of the entrapment process. The purpose of this paper is to illustrate by a few selected examples how useful the examination of Landsat imagery could be, and to demonstrate that remote sensing methods may prove to be a valuable complementary tool for exploration in Andean countries.