Analysis of the Seismic
Coherence
Attribute
with Respect to Subsurface Fault Geometry
The objective of this study is to analyze the behavior of the seismic
coherence
attribute
, particularly its relationship to subsurface fault geometry. Using data from the
seismic
survey of the Kuparuk River Field of the North Slope of Alaska as well as model data, a Monte Carlo method was applied to test the sensitivity of the coherence
attribute
in both settings. The coherence
attribute
responds differently to different fault geometries. Also, the ability of this
attribute
to resolve fault geometry depends on the selection of input parameters within the software suite used to compute it and on the frequency of sampling performed on the resulting coherence volumes. It was confirmed that the coherence
attribute
is affected significantly by the choice of migration methodology. Random noise, on the other hand, has a negligible effect on how faults are imaged with the coherence
attribute
. This work relates a geophysical
attribute
to a geologic property, a relationship that can be used for detailed interpretations of fault geometry from coherence
attribute
volumes in the future.
AAPG Search and Discovery Article #90090©2009 AAPG Annual Convention and Exhibition, Denver, Colorado, June 7-10, 2009