Subsurface Detection

The techniques described here are very often used together to improve our understanding of what exists below the surface. By adjusting the sensitivity of the instruments and the spacing of the measurements, the scale and the depth of interest may be varied. The same theory and principles used with magnetic techniques which delineate the rift running through the crust of North America, at a depth of 18 mi (30 km), can be used to locate buried pipes and cables at a depth of less than 10 ft (3 m).

Often, subsurface detection is the only way to study the area of interest, because it lies too deep to be reached directly. Other times it is used because it is less expensive than digging or drilling, or because it disrupts the environment less.