Extraction of the Network of Fractures by the Technique of Remote Sensing Integrating the Methods of Multivariate Analysis and Evaluation of Its Impact on the Layout of the Hydrographic Network (Case of the Coastal Basin of Tarfaya, South-West of Morocco)

This study focuses on the recognition and analysis of fracturing in the coastal basin of Tarfaya located in southwestern Morocco, through the extraction of lineaments using the remote sensing method. This extraction was carried out by processing and interpretation of the Landsat-8 OLI satellite image. For a more in-depth analysis of the spatial distribution of the lineaments, we opted for a comparison of the average lengths and directions of the lineaments in the four zones of the basin using Kruskal–Wallis test. The Ascending Hierarchical Classification (AHC) was designed, in our study, to group individuals (lineament directions) that represent the same directions. The lineament analysis carried allowed to highlight a network of 1603 lineaments oriented in three directions: NNE-SSW, NE-SW and WNW-ESE. These directions suggest that the bedrock fracturing of the Tarfaya coastal basin results from several tectonic phases. The application of the tests (ANOVA) proved the absence of an interaction between the length and the orientation of the lineaments. The Ascending Hierarchical Classification (AHC) of the directions of the lineaments allowed the study of their spatial distribution in the basin and subsequently the identification of the fracturing which impacted the layout of the hydrographic network of the basin.