Integrated study of the basin structure, tectonic history, rock physics, physical stratigraphy, hydrogeology, geochemistry, natural resources, and geomorphology of the Palo Duro and Dalhart Basins in the Texas Panhandle is part of a national evaluation of ancient salt basins as potential sites fo

Red beds, evaporites, and carbonates of the upper Clear Fork and Glorieta Formations (Permian) of the Texas Panhandle form an association of facies deposited in nearshore and supratidal environments along an arid coastline.

The San Andres evaporitic sequence in the Palo Duro Basin comprises several thick carbonate units in its lower part and many thin units in its upperpart. To the south, across the Northern Shelf of the Midland Basin, evaporites pinch out and carbonates predominate.

The Palo Duro Basin seemingly has all the elements necessary for hydrocarbon generation and accumulation: reservoirs, traps, source rocks, and sufficient thermal maturity. Porous facies in pre-Pennsylvanian, Pennsylvanian, and Permian strata are potential hydrocarbon reservoirs.

Regional cross sections of Middle and Upper Permian rocks in the Texas Panhandle illustrate the lithology, depositional systems, and structure of these salt-bearing strata.

Geological investigations in the Texas Panhandle and eastern New Mexico indicate that regional subsurface dissolution of Permian evaporites has occurred and is an ongoing process.

The Texas Panhandle traditionally has been an important source of mineral resources, especially petroleum, and resources will continue to contribute heavily to the economy of the area. The seven cross sections of this report synthesize the subsurface geology of the region.

The climate of the Texas Panhandle is primarily semiarid continental, exhibiting a pronounced peak in precipitation during the months of May through July.

The Neogene Ogallala Formation is an alluvial apron that occurs east of the Rocky Mountains from South Dakota to the Southern High Plains of Texas. The Ogallala was deposited by coalescent, low-gradient, wet alluvial fans that headed in mountains to the west.

A broad zone of salt dissolution that affects parts of the Permian Salado, Seven Rivers, San Andres, Glorieta, and upper Clear Fork Formations occurs beneath the Canadian River Valley from New Mexico eastward toward Amarillo, Texas, and southeastward parallel to the eastern Caprock Escarpment.