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Pitfalls in seismic interpretation

Depth migration artifacts

BP Amoco, Houston, Texas, U.S.

Corresponding author: D. Herron, herronda@bp.com

Editor's note: This series is designed to update the classic Pitfalls in Seismic Interpretation by Tucker and Yorstan, first published by SEG in 1973. Contact Steve Henry (geolearn@aol.com) for information about contributing to this series.

The first 20% of the full text of this article appears below.

Interpretation of depth-migrated data has become increasingly common owing to advances in both post- and prestack depth processing. It is well known that depth processing can provide better imaging of complex subsurface geology than conventional time processing, depending largely on the accuracy of the depth-migration velocity model. This paper briefly describes an example of an artifact in a prestack depth-migrated image caused by an inaccurate velocity model.

Depth migration moves reflections to their correct subsurface positions based on traveltimes calculated from the migration velocity model. In comparison to time migration, which provides accurate images in areas where velocity is predominantly a function of depth and does not have large lateral variations, a depth migration velocity model contains significant lateral velocity variations—most often as discrete low- or high-velocity bodies embedded in a relatively smooth sediment velocity field. The geometries of these bodies effectively determine the . . . [Full Text of this Article]