Born theory of wave‐equation dip moveout

Geophysics ◽  
1991 ◽  
Vol 56 (2) ◽  
pp. 182-189 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher L. Liner

Wave‐equation dip moveout (DMO) addresses the DMO amplitude problem of finding an algorithm which faithfully preserves angular reflectivity while processing data to zero offset. Only three fundamentally different theoretical approaches to the DMO amplitude problem have been proposed: (1) mathematical decomposition of a prestack migration operator; (2) intuitively accounting for specific amplitude factors; and (3) cascading operators for prestack migration (or inversion) and zero‐offset forward modeling. Pursuing the cascaded operator method, wave‐equation DMO for shot profiles has been developed. In this approach, a prestack common‐shot inversion operator is combined with a zero‐offset modeling operator. Both integral operators are theoretically based on the Born asymptotic solution to the point‐source, scalar wave equation. This total process, termed Born DMO, simultaneously accomplishes geometric spreading corrections, NMO, and DMO in an amplitude‐preserving manner. The theory is for constant velocity and density, but variable velocity can be approximately incorporated. Common‐shot Born DMO can be analytically verified by using Kirchhoff scattering data for a horizontal plane. In this analytic test, Born DMO yields the correct zero‐offset reflector with amplitude proportional to the angular reflection coefficient. Numerical tests of common‐shot Born DMO on synthetic data suggest that angular reflectivity is successfully preserved. In those situations where amplitude preservation is important, Born DMO is an alternative to conventional NMO + DMO processing.

Geophysics ◽  
2007 ◽  
Vol 72 (3) ◽  
pp. S155-S166 ◽  
Author(s):  
Feng Deng ◽  
George A. McMechan

Most current true-amplitude migrations correct only for geometric spreading. We present a new prestack depth-migration method that uses the framework of reverse-time migration to compensate for geometric spreading, intrinsic [Formula: see text] losses, and transmission losses. Geometric spreading is implicitly compensated by full two-way wave propagation. Intrinsic [Formula: see text] losses are handled by including a [Formula: see text]-dependent term in the wave equation. Transmission losses are compensated based on an estimation of angle-dependent reflectivity using a two-pass recursive reverse-time prestack migration. The image condition used is the ratio of receiver/source wavefield amplitudes. Two-dimensional tests using synthetic data for a dipping-layer model and a salt model show that loss-compensating prestack depth migration can produce reliable angle-dependent reflection coefficients at the target. The reflection coefficient curves are fitted to give least-squares estimates of the velocity ratio at the target. The main new result is a procedure for transmission compensation when extrapolating the receiver wavefield. There are still a number of limitations (e.g., we use only scalar extrapolation for illustration), but these limitations are now better defined.


Geophysics ◽  
1987 ◽  
Vol 52 (2) ◽  
pp. 151-173 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. P. A. Wapenaar ◽  
N. A. Kinneging ◽  
A. J. Berkhout

The acoustic approximation in seismic migration is not allowed when the effects of wave conversion cannot be neglected, as is often the case in data with large offsets. Hence, seismic migration should ideally be founded on the full elastic wave equation, which describes compressional as well as shear waves in solid media (such as rock layers, in which shear stresses may play an important role). In order to cope with conversions between those wave types, the full elastic wave equation should be expressed in terms of the particle velocity and the traction, because these field quantities are continuous across layer boundaries where the main interaction takes place. Therefore, the full elastic wave equation should be expressed as a matrix differential equation, in which a matrix operator acts on a full wave vector which contains both the particle velocity and the traction. The solution of this equation yields another matrix operator. This full elastic two‐way wave field extrapolation operator describes the relation between the total (two‐way) wave fields (in terms of the particle velocity and the traction) at two different depth levels. Therefore it can be used in prestack migration to perform recursive downward extrapolation of the surface data into the subsurface (at a “traction‐free” surface, the total wave field can be described in terms of the detected particle velocity and the source traction). Results from synthetic data for a simplified subsurface configuration show that a multiple‐free image of the subsurface can be obtained, from which the angle‐dependent P-P and P-SV reflection functions can be recovered independently. For more complicated subsurface configurations, full elastic migration is possible in principle, but it becomes computationally complex. Nevertheless, particularly for the 3-D case, our proposal has improved the feasibility of full elastic migration significantly compared with other proposed full elastic migration or inversion schemes, because our method is carried out per shot record and per frequency component.


Geophysics ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 78 (6) ◽  
pp. U77-U88 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qunshan Zhang ◽  
George A. McMechan

The source extrapolation step in wave-equation prestack reverse-time migration gives wavefield polarization information, which can be used to generate angle-domain common-image gathers (ADCIGs) from seismic reflection data from acoustic media. Concatenation of P-wave polarization segments gives wavefield propagation paths (“wavepaths”), which are similar to the raypaths in ray-based velocity tomography. The ADCIGs provide residual depth moveout (RMO) information, from which a system of linear equations is constructed for tomography to solve for the velocity ratio used for velocity updating. An empirical relation between the RMO data and the velocity ratio updates reduces the amount of computation, and is stabilized by the feedback provided by the iterative loop through prestack migration, to RMO, to velocity update, to prestack migration. Correcting the RMOs to flatten the ADGIGs is the convergence condition. Synthetic data for a layered model with a fault successfully illustrates the method.


Geophysics ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 75 (3) ◽  
pp. S95-S101 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tariq Alkhalifah

Using the stationary-phase method, prestack phase-shift migration is implemented one offset at a time. This separate-offset implementation allows for a Fourier (reasonably fast) wave-equation-type migration on data with irregular offset sampling. However, the separate-offset phase-shift migration, like its zero-offset counterpart, handles only vertically inhomogeneous media. Using the combination of the split-step and phase-shift-plus-interpolation (PSPI) approaches, the separate-offset phase-shift migration is extended to handle laterally inhomogeneous media. The cost of the separate-offset implementation is practically equivalent to that of the conventional zero-offset version. However, due to the lack of exact source and receiver ray-trajectory information in the separate-offset implementation, the combined split-step and PSPI handles only smooth lateral inhomogeneity. Specifically, it produces images equivalent to those resulting from smoothing the velocity model laterally over a window equal to the half offset. Thus, for zero-offset or laterally homogeneous media, the separate-offset migration is equivalent to any wave-equation-based migration. Errors might occur for finite-offset data in laterally inhomogeneous media. Such errors depend primarily on the strength of lateral inhomogeneity. Using this separate-offset phase-shift migration, accurate images of synthetic data of a model with large reflector dips and good images from real data from offshore Trinidad are obtained.


Geophysics ◽  
1983 ◽  
Vol 48 (11) ◽  
pp. 1514-1524 ◽  
Author(s):  
Edip Baysal ◽  
Dan D. Kosloff ◽  
John W. C. Sherwood

Migration of stacked or zero‐offset sections is based on deriving the wave amplitude in space from wave field observations at the surface. Conventionally this calculation has been carried out through a depth extrapolation. We examine the alternative of carrying out the migration through a reverse time extrapolation. This approach may offer improvements over existing migration methods, especially in cases of steeply dipping structures with strong velocity contrasts. This migration method is tested using appropriate synthetic data sets.


Geophysics ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 84 (3) ◽  
pp. C171-C180 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qifan Liu ◽  
Ilya Tsvankin

Tilted orthorhombic (TOR) models are typical for dipping anisotropic layers, such as fractured shales, and can also be due to nonhydrostatic stress fields. Velocity analysis for TOR media, however, is complicated by the large number of independent parameters. Using multicomponent wide-azimuth reflection data, we develop stacking-velocity tomography to estimate the interval parameters of TOR media composed of homogeneous layers separated by plane dipping interfaces. The normal-moveout (NMO) ellipses, zero-offset traveltimes, and reflection time slopes of P-waves and split S-waves ([Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text]) are used to invert for the interval TOR parameters including the orientation of the symmetry planes. We show that the inversion can be facilitated by assuming that the reflector coincides with one of the symmetry planes, which is a common geologic constraint often employed for tilted transversely isotropic media. This constraint makes the inversion for a single TOR layer feasible even when the initial model is purely isotropic. If the dip plane is also aligned with one of the symmetry planes, we show that the inverse problem for [Formula: see text]-, [Formula: see text]-, and [Formula: see text]-waves can be solved analytically. When only [Formula: see text]-wave data are available, parameter estimation requires combining NMO ellipses from a horizontal and dipping interface. Because of the increase in the number of independent measurements for layered TOR media, constraining the reflector orientation is required only for the subsurface layer. However, the inversion results generally deteriorate with depth because of error accumulation. Using tests on synthetic data, we demonstrate that additional information such as knowledge of the vertical velocities (which may be available from check shots or well logs) and the constraint on the reflector orientation can significantly improve the accuracy and stability of interval parameter estimation.


Geophysics ◽  
1990 ◽  
Vol 55 (9) ◽  
pp. 1166-1182 ◽  
Author(s):  
Irshad R. Mufti

Finite‐difference seismic models are commonly set up in 2-D space. Such models must be excited by a line source which leads to different amplitudes than those in the real data commonly generated from a point source. Moreover, there is no provision for any out‐of‐plane events. These problems can be eliminated by using 3-D finite‐difference models. The fundamental strategy in designing efficient 3-D models is to minimize computational work without sacrificing accuracy. This was accomplished by using a (4,2) differencing operator which ensures the accuracy of much larger operators but requires many fewer numerical operations as well as significantly reduced manipulation of data in the computer memory. Such a choice also simplifies the problem of evaluating the wave field near the subsurface boundaries of the model where large operators cannot be used. We also exploited the fact that, unlike the real data, the synthetic data are free from ambient noise; consequently, one can retain sufficient resolution in the results by optimizing the frequency content of the source signal. Further computational efficiency was achieved by using the concept of the exploding reflector which yields zero‐offset seismic sections without the need to evaluate the wave field for individual shot locations. These considerations opened up the possibility of carrying out a complete synthetic 3-D survey on a supercomputer to investigate the seismic response of a large‐scale structure located in Oklahoma. The analysis of results done on a geophysical workstation provides new insight regarding the role of interference and diffraction in the interpretation of seismic data.


2015 ◽  
Vol 46 (4) ◽  
pp. 342-348
Author(s):  
Ho Seuk Bae ◽  
Wookeen Chung ◽  
Jiho Ha ◽  
Changsoo Shin

Geophysics ◽  
1988 ◽  
Vol 53 (6) ◽  
pp. 786-799 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. B. Dillon

Wave‐equation migration can form an accurate image of the subsurface from suitable VSP data. The image’s extent and resolution are determined by the receiver array dimensions and the source location(s). Experiments with synthetic and real data show that the region of reliable image extent is defined by the specular “zone of illumination.” Migration is achieved through wave‐field extrapolation, subject to an imaging procedure. Wave‐field extrapolation is based upon the scalar wave equation and, for VSP data, is conveniently handled by the Kirchhoff integral. The migration of VSP data calls for imaging very close to the borehole, as well as imaging in the far field. This dual requirement is met by retaining the near‐field term of the integral. The complete integral solution is readily controlled by various weighting devices and processing strategies, whose worth is demonstrated on real and synthetic data.


Geophysics ◽  
1993 ◽  
Vol 58 (1) ◽  
pp. 79-90 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhengxin Dong ◽  
George A. McMechan

A three‐dimensional (3-D) prestack reverse‐time migration algorithm for common‐source P‐wave data from anisotropic media is developed and illustrated by application to synthetic data. Both extrapolation of the data and computation of the excitation‐time imaging condition are implemented using a second‐order finite‐ difference solution of the 3-D anisotropic scalar‐wave equation. Poorly focused, distorted images are obtained if data from anisotropic media are migrated using isotropic extrapolation; well focused, clear images are obtained using anisotropic extrapolation. A priori estimation of the 3-D anisotropic velocity distribution is required. Zones of anomalous, directionally dependent reflectivity associated with anisotropic fracture zones are detectable in both the 3-D common‐ source data and the corresponding migrated images.


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