Quantifying the uncertainty in an AVO interpretation
Lithologic interpretations of amplitude variation with offset (AVO) information are ambiguous both because different lithologies occupy overlapping ranges of elastic properties, and because angle‐dependent reflection coefficients estimated from seismic data are uncertain. This paper presents a method for quantifying and combining these two components of uncertainty to get a full characterization of the uncertainty associated with an AVO‐based lithologic interpretation. The result of this approach is a compilation of all the lithologies that are consistent with the observed AVO behavior, along with a probability of occurrence for each lithology. A 2‐D line from the North Sea illustrates how the method might be applied in practice. For any data set, the interaction between the geologic and measurement components of uncertainty may significantly affect the overall uncertainty in a lithologic interpretation.