Any P-wave kinematic algorithm for vertical transversely isotropic media can be ADAPTed to moderately anisotropic media of arbitrary symmetry type

2003 ◽  
Vol 54 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 335-346 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patrick N.J. Rasolofosaon
Geophysics ◽  
1994 ◽  
Vol 59 (4) ◽  
pp. 591-596 ◽  
Author(s):  
Suhas Phadke ◽  
S. Kapotas ◽  
N. Dai ◽  
Ernest R. Kanasewich

Wave propagation in transversely isotropic media is governed by the horizontal and vertical wave velocities. The quasi‐P(qP) wavefront is not an ellipse; therefore, the propagation cannot be described by the wave equation appropriate for elliptically anisotropic media. However, for a limited range of angles from the vertical, the dispersion relation for qP‐waves can be approximated by an ellipse. The horizontal velocity necessary for this approximation is different from the true horizontal velocity and depends upon the physical properties of the media. In the method described here, seismic data is migrated using a 45-degree wave equation for elliptically anisotropic media with the horizontal velocity determined by comparing the 45-degree elliptical dispersion relation and the quasi‐P‐dispersion relation. The method is demonstrated for some synthetic data sets.


Geophysics ◽  
1996 ◽  
Vol 61 (2) ◽  
pp. 467-483 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ilya Tsvankin

Progress in seismic inversion and processing in anisotropic media depends on our ability to relate different seismic signatures to the anisotropic parameters. While the conventional notation (stiffness coefficients) is suitable for forward modeling, it is inconvenient in developing analytic insight into the influence of anisotropy on wave propagation. Here, a consistent description of P‐wave signatures in transversely isotropic (TI) media with arbitrary strength of the anisotropy is given in terms of Thomsen notation. The influence of transverse isotropy on P‐wave propagation is shown to be practically independent of the vertical S‐wave velocity [Formula: see text], even in models with strong velocity variations. Therefore, the contribution of transverse isotropy to P‐wave kinematic and dynamic signatures is controlled by just two anisotropic parameters, ε and δ, with the vertical velocity [Formula: see text] being a scaling coefficient in homogeneous models. The distortions of reflection moveouts and amplitudes are not necessarily correlated with the magnitude of velocity anisotropy. The influence of transverse isotropy on P‐wave normal‐moveout (NMO) velocity in a horizontally layered medium, on small‐angle reflection coefficient, and on point‐force radiation in the symmetry direction is entirely determined by the parameter δ. Another group of signatures of interest in reflection seisimology—the dip‐dependence of NMO velocity, magnitude of nonhyperbolic moveout, time‐migration impulse response, and the radiation pattern near vertical—is dependent on both anisotropic parameters (ε and δ) and is primarily governed by the difference between ε and δ. Since P‐wave signatures are so sensitive to the value of ε − δ, application of the elliptical‐anisotropy approximation (ε = δ) in P‐wave processing may lead to significant errors. Many analytic expressions given in the paper remain valid in transversely isotropic media with a tilted symmetry axis. Moreover, the equation for NMO velocity from dipping reflectors, as well as the nonhyperbolic moveout equation, can be used in symmetry planes of any anisotropic media (e.g., orthorhombic).


Geophysics ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 83 (2) ◽  
pp. C75-C83 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zedong Wu ◽  
Tariq Alkhalifah

The acoustic approximation, even for anisotropic media, is widely used in current industry imaging and inversion algorithms mainly because P-waves constitute most of the energy recorded in seismic exploration. The resulting acoustic formulas tend to be simpler, resulting in more efficient implementations, and they depend on fewer medium parameters. However, conventional solutions of the acoustic-wave equation with higher-order derivatives suffer from S-wave artifacts. Thus, we separate the quasi-P-wave propagation in anisotropic media into the elliptic anisotropic operator (free of the artifacts) and the nonelliptic anisotropic components, which form a pseudodifferential operator. We then develop a separable approximation of the dispersion relation of nonelliptic-anisotropic components, specifically for transversely isotropic media. Finally, we iteratively solve the simpler lower-order elliptical wave equation for a modified source function that includes the nonelliptical terms represented in the Fourier domain. A frequency-domain Helmholtz formulation of the approach renders the iterative implementation efficient because the cost is dominated by the lower-upper decomposition of the impedance matrix for the simpler elliptical anisotropic model. In addition, the resulting wavefield is free of S-wave artifacts and has a balanced amplitude. Numerical examples indicate that the method is reasonably accurate and efficient.


Geophysics ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 80 (1) ◽  
pp. T51-T62 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qi Hao ◽  
Alexey Stovas ◽  
Tariq Alkhalifah

Analytic representation of the offset-midpoint traveltime equation for anisotropy is very important for prestack Kirchhoff migration and velocity inversion in anisotropic media. For transversely isotropic media with a vertical symmetry axis, the offset-midpoint traveltime resembles the shape of a Cheops’ pyramid. This is also valid for homogeneous 3D transversely isotropic media with a horizontal symmetry axis (HTI). We extended the offset-midpoint traveltime pyramid to the case of homogeneous 3D HTI. Under the assumption of weak anellipticity of HTI media, we derived an analytic representation of the P-wave traveltime equation and used Shanks transformation to improve the accuracy of horizontal and vertical slownesses. The traveltime pyramid was derived in the depth and time domains. Numerical examples confirmed the accuracy of the proposed approximation for the traveltime function in 3D HTI media.


Geophysics ◽  
1995 ◽  
Vol 60 (1) ◽  
pp. 268-284 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ilya Tsvankin

Description of reflection moveout from dipping interfaces is important in developing seismic processing methods for anisotropic media, as well as in the inversion of reflection data. Here, I present a concise analytic expression for normal‐moveout (NMO) velocities valid for a wide range of homogeneous anisotropic models including transverse isotropy with a tilted in‐plane symmetry axis and symmetry planes in orthorhombic media. In transversely isotropic media, NMO velocity for quasi‐P‐waves may deviate substantially from the isotropic cosine‐of‐dip dependence used in conventional constant‐velocity dip‐moveout (DMO) algorithms. However, numerical studies of NMO velocities have revealed no apparent correlation between the conventional measures of anisotropy and errors in the cosine‐of‐dip DMO correction (“DMO errors”). The analytic treatment developed here shows that for transverse isotropy with a vertical symmetry axis, the magnitude of DMO errors is dependent primarily on the difference between Thomsen parameters ε and δ. For the most common case, ε − δ > 0, the cosine‐of‐dip–corrected moveout velocity remains significantly larger than the moveout velocity for a horizontal reflector. DMO errors at a dip of 45 degrees may exceed 20–25 percent, even for weak anisotropy. By comparing analytically derived NMO velocities with moveout velocities calculated on finite spreads, I analyze anisotropy‐induced deviations from hyperbolic moveout for dipping reflectors. For transversely isotropic media with a vertical velocity gradient and typical (positive) values of the difference ε − δ, inhomogeneity tends to reduce (sometimes significantly) the influence of anisotropy on the dip dependence of moveout velocity.


Geophysics ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 81 (3) ◽  
pp. C79-C97 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qi Hao ◽  
Alexey Stovas

We have developed an approximate method to calculate the P-wave phase and group velocities for orthorhombic media. Two forms of analytic approximations for P-wave velocities in orthorhombic media were built by analogy with the five-parameter moveout approximation and the four-parameter velocity approximation for transversely isotropic media, respectively. They are called the generalized moveout approximation (GMA)-type approximation and the Fomel approximation, respectively. We have developed approximations for elastic and acoustic orthorhombic media. We have characterized the elastic orthorhombic media in Voigt notation, and we can describe the acoustic orthorhombic media by introducing the modified Alkhalifah’s notation. Our numerical evaluations indicate that the GMA-type and Fomel approximations are accurate for elastic and acoustic orthorhombic media with strong anisotropy, and the GMA-type approximation is comparable with the approximation recently proposed by Sripanich and Fomel. Potential applications of the proposed approximations include forward modeling and migration based on the dispersion relation and the forward traveltime calculation for seismic tomography.


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