Redefining what we mean by shared earth model

David Gawith and Pamela Gutteridge of Ikon Science* argue that a new generation of interactive and integrated earth models will revolutionize subsurface interpretation projects and reservoir management. There is an assumed ‘earth model’ implicit in the work of every subsurface discipline. Seismic interpretation, for instance, is guided by a constantly reviewed mental model. A flow simulation model is a numerical abstraction guided by the engineer’s feeling for the dynamic effects of geological features and rock properties. Sedimentologists and petrophysicists form a geological concept in order to make internally consistent interpretations of well data.