Advances in subsurface imaging technology boost the search for elusive hydrocarbons

Frank Dumanoir, Bin Wang and Simon Baldock, TGS (Houston) review the development of today’s highly sophisticated seismic data processing and imaging technology and discuss the challenges ahead. The remarkable improvements in data quality due to rapid advances in processing algorithms and computer technology over the past several years have been nothing short of phenomenal. The provision of 3D data cubes processed through pre-stack depth migration has given explorationists the ability to analyze and look for elusive reservoir targets in ever more complex geologic settings.