Megaregional Seismic Approach to New Play Concept Development

Allen J. Bertagne, Claude Vuillermoz, Richard A. Maxwell

A megaregional seismic line is a continuous line that traverses more than one basin. After such a line is interpreted using well control, surface geology, and other available data, it serves as a concise expression of our understanding of the geology along a transect and provides a starting point for developing new play concepts.

Megaregional seismic lines aid in the development of exploration concepts by providing new insights into (1) what is and is not basement, (2) maturation history and migration pathways, (3) regional structural geology, and (4) regional stratigraphy.

An ongoing project to prepare a series of interpreted transcontinental megaregional seismic lines uses a segment that starts in the Arkoma basin of Oklahoma, traverses the Ouachita thrust belt, and terminates at the northern Texas Gulf coastal plain. This segment shows that several potential plays exist, both structural and stratigraphic, between areas of current exploration activity. Regional seismic lines from the Sacramento Valley and the Illinois basin further illustrate how interpretation of long seismic lines can lead to new exploration ideas.

AAPG Search and Discovery Article #91022©1989 AAPG Annual Convention, April 23-26, 1989, San Antonio, Texas.