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Trace Attributes
January 2004
Contents
Trace Attributes
Index
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Overview
This section lists the trace attributes calculated, the methodology used,
and the concept of a complex trace.
General
Math
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Reflection Patterns
You can calculate any of these trace attributes using Data Attributes.
and selecting the desired attribute. There are no parameters for data
attribute calculation.
Methodology
Complex trace analysis separates amplitude and phase information.
The data attribute options provide different ways of viewing and
combining the extracted amplitude and phase information.
Complex trace data is calculated following the procedure. Input data is
converted to the frequency domain by performing a Fast Fourier
Transform (FFT). To prevent undesirable data wraparound effects,
significant data padding is used before applying FFTs.
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i ( t )
f ( t ) + h2( t ) = F( t )
( t ) = tan1 [ h ( t ) f ( t ) ]
A ( t ) is called reflection strength, and ( t ) is called instantaneous
phase, after Bracewell (1965).
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Instantaneous Attributes
PostStack calculates the following Instantaneous Attributes. These are
the complex trace attributes. All the instantaneous measurements are
associated with an instant of time rather than an average over a time
interval.
To deduce any stratigraphic meaning from the seismic data before
estimating the instantaneous parameters, the amplitude and frequency
content of the seismic signal must be preserved in each processing step.
Any variation in the shape of the basic waveform that is not attributable
to the subsurface geology must be eliminated. Multiples and all types of
random noise limit the reliability of the results.
Quadrature Trace
The quadrature component is calculated by performing a Hilbert
transform on the recorded trace:
1
h ( t ) = ----- f ( t )
t
where denotes convolution
f(t) is the recorded trace
h(t) is the quadrature trace.
A quadrature trace is identical to the recorded trace but phase-shifted
by 90. It can be thought of as representing potential energy while the
recorded trace represents the kinetic energy of particles moving in
response to the seismic wave. Quadrature trace is used as the basis for
all other seismic attribute calculations.
Uses
Since quadrature data is simply the input data phase-rotated by 90, it
contains no new information, but it gives you another perspective.
Because of the phase rotation, peaks and troughs from the input data
appear as zero crossings in the quadrature data, and zero crossings from
the input data appear as peaks and troughs in the quadrature data. The
difference in wavelet appearance may be enough to highlight certain
features that were obscured on the recorded data.
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Also, a comparison of the quadrature data and the recorded data may
indicate that neither is zero phase and a phase rotation is needed. You
can analyze and correct phase problems with Seismic Balance, or you
can use the phase rotation option in PostStack.
Furthermore, quadrature data may help you understand and check other
trace attributes since all complex trace attributes are merely different
mathematical combinations of the recorded trace and the quadrature
trace.
Example
A comparison of recorded seismic data and quadrature data is shown
on the next page.
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-128
-128
+127
+127
-128
+127
recorded seismic
data
Quadrature
Reflection Strength
Instantaneous amplitude, or reflection strength, is the square root of the
total energy of the seismic signal at an instant of time. Reflection
strength can then be thought of as amplitude independent of phase. It is
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the envelope of the seismic trace. For each time sample, reflection
strength is calculated as follows:
reflection
Example
An example of recorded seismic data and reflection strength data for
the same section is shown below. Interpreted time horizons appear at
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+127
recorded seismic
data
+127
+127
Reflection
Strength
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Phase
The instantaneous phase is a measure of the continuity of events on a
seismic section. The temporal rate of change of the instantaneous phase
is the instantaneous frequency.
Phase describes the angle between the phasor (a rotating vector formed
by the real and imaginary components of the time-series) and the real
axis as a function of time. Therefore, it is always a number between 180 and +180.
Instantaneous phase data has a discontinuous, sawtooth appearance
caused by the sudden phase-wrapping from +180 to -180. For a more
normal looking display, you can use cosine of phase (page 188). Taking
the cosine of instantaneous phase essentially unwraps the data.
Uses
Instantaneous phase tends to enhance weak coherent events because it is
independent of reflection strength. It emphasizes the continuity of
events and is therefore helpful in revealing faults, pinchouts,
angularities, channels, fans, and internal depositional geometries. Phase
displays often reveal sedimentary layering patterns and thus can help
you in identifying seismic sequence boundaries.
In certain gas reservoirs, instantaneous phase may be used to identify
and map phase reversals, which are indicative of gas content. This
attribute can also be used to detect and calibrate thin-bed tuning effects,
which may result from the constructive and destructive interference of
reflector wavelets.
Example
A comparison of recorded seismic data and instantaneous phase data is
shown on the next page.
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-128
-128
+127
+127
+127
recorded seismic
data
-180
+180
Instantaneous
Phase
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-128
(-128)
+127
(+127)
maximum
zero (-/+)
zero (+/-)
-180
minimum
+180
phase wrapping
-180
Amplitude Trace
+180
Any horizon that has been snapped to an onset type should reveal a
constant phase angle in an instantaneous phase display. In general,
horizons picked on peaks and troughs in the normal seismic display
will be displayed at zero crossings and at points of phase wrapping,
respectively, in the instantaneous phase display.
Regardless of the amplitude value at the peak or trough, the magnitude
of the instantaneous phase will always be the same (0 for peak
amplitudes, 180 for troughs). In other words, instantaneous phase
tends to equalize weak and strong events and thus makes it easier to
track weak, coherent events.
Frequency
Frequency represents the rate of change of instantaneous phase as a
function of time. It is a measure of the slope of the phase trace and is
obtained by taking the derivative of the phase. Values may range from Nyquist frequency to +Nyquist frequency; however, most
instantaneous frequencies will be positive.
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Uses
Instantaneous frequency can provide information about the frequency
signature of events, the effects of absorption and fracturing, and
depositional thickness.
Low-frequency shadows may be associated with reflectors below gas
sands, condensate, and oil reservoirs. Generally this shift to lower
frequencies occurs only on reflectors immediately beneath the
producing zone; deeper reflectors appear normal. Also, loss of higher
frequencies may indicate the onset of formation pore fluid overpressure.
Instantaneous frequency also provides a means of detecting and
calibrating thin-bed tuning effects, which may result from the
constructive and destructive interference of reflector wavelets.
Because it represents a value at a point rather than averaged over an
interval, instantaneous frequency can reveal abrupt changes that would
otherwise get lost in the averaging process. Such changes could
indicate pinchouts or the edges of hydrocarbon-water interfaces.
Instantaneous frequency is, therefore, a good check-and-balance to use
in combination with other measurements.
Example
A comparison of instantaneous phase and instantaneous frequency data
is shown on the next page.
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-180
-180
+180
+180
Instantaneous
Phase
-Nyquist
+Nyquist
Instantaneous
Frequency
In the instantaneous phase display, the slope of the phase trace changes
with time. The time between any two troughs varies down the trace,
even though the phase always moves between -180 and +180. The
measure of the slope of the phase trace is the derivative of the phase.
The steepness of that slope is a measure of the frequency at that point in
the trace.
Since instantaneous frequency is the slope of the instantaneous phase,
negative values are possible and valid. The instantaneous frequency
will never have a value greater than the Nyquist frequency, or the
reciprocal of twice the sample rate.
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+127
+127
Reflection
Strength
-Nyquist
-Nyquist
+Nyquist
+Nyquist
Instantaneous
Frequency
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Apparent Polarity
Apparent polarity is defined as the sign of the recorded trace where the
reflection strength trace has a local maximum. This calculation assumes
a zero-phase wavelet and assigns a positive sign when the reflection
coefficient is positive or a negative sign when the reflection coefficient
is negative.
The value of a time sample corresponding to a local maximum (m) on
the reflection strength trace is computed as
Value m = ReflectionStrength m Sign m
This value is held constant and applied to all time samples until the next
local maximum occurs. As a result, apparent polarity displays have a
blocky appearance. Compare apparent polarity with response phase,
where instantaneous phase values are applied between minima; and with
response frequency, where instantaneous frequency values are applied
between minima.
Apparent polarity measurements are extremely sensitive to data quality.
Uses
Apparent polarity can sometimes help you distinguish between different
types of amplitude anomalies. As Taner et al (1979) point out, Bright
spots associated with gas accumulations in clastic sediments usually
have lower acoustic impedance than surrounding beds and hence show
negative polarity for reservoir top reflections and positive polarity for
reflections from gas-oil or gas-water interfaces (often called flat
spots).
Example
A comparison of recorded seismic data, reflection strength data, and
apparent polarity data is shown on the next page.
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-128
+127
recorded seismic
data
+127
+127
Reflection
Strength
-128
+127
Apparent Polarity
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Bandwidth
Instantaneous bandwidth (t) is defined as absolute value of the time
rate of change of the natural logarithm of the instantaneous amplitude,
a(t), divided by 2 :
d
a' ( t )
1
( t ) = ------ ----- ln a ( t ) = ---------------2 dt
2a ( t )
Quality Factor
Instantaneous quality factor q(t) is defined as the instantaneous
frequency f(t) divided by twice the instantaneous bandwidth (t):
f(t)
q ( t ) = ------------2 ( t )
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Dominant Frequency
Instantaneous dominant frequency fd(t) is defined as the square root of
the sum of the squares of the instantaneous frequency f(t) and the
instantaneous bandwidth (t):
f (t) =
f (t) + (t)
Dominant frequency has units of Hertz with values that range from 0 to
Nyquist frequency and occasionally larger. It is always positive and at
least as large as instantaneous frequency.
Uses
Instantaneous dominant frequency is used as a replacement for
instantaneous frequency, because it is less susceptible to the problem of
spikes and a better measure for tracking reflection spacing.
Amplitude Acceleration
Instantaneous amplitude acceleration (t) is defined as the second
derivative of the logarithm of the reflection strength. It is scaled to have
units of Hz/s. Like all second-order attributes, it is wildly variable and
hence should be interpreted qualitatively and not quantitatively. In
particular, it can have huge values, and tends to spike at the same
places where instantaneous frequency spikes. As a result, scaling this
attribute can be difficult.
Uses
At a workshop at the 1997 Dallas SEG convention, T. Taner touted the
merits of this attribute, arguing that it can reveal detail in the amplitude
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of the data that was not before apparent. Oliveros and Radovich (1997)
and Radovich and Oliveros (1998) employ this attribute as the basis for
a 3D instantaneous continuity computation. Amplitude acceleration in
fact can in fact highlight some discontinuities, and can reveal thin beds
that cannot be found on other common displays. It produces a display
that looks rather like a noisy cosine of the phase display, but with
additional features that complement the cosine of the phase. It appears
especially good at helping distinguish areas of continuous reflectivity
from areas of chaotic or hummocky reflectivity.
Response Phase
The concepts of response phase and response frequency were taken by
Bodine (1984) from signal analysis and applied to geophysical
waveform analysis. Response phase attempts to extract physically
meaningful phase information about the localized seismic wavelet.
Response phase is defined as the instantaneous phase calculated at the
peak of the amplitude envelope (reflection strength). The algorithm
computes the instantaneous phase at each envelope peak, then applies
that value to every sample between minima in the amplitude envelope
trace. As a result, a response phase trace has a blocky appearance.
Compare response phase with apparent polarity, where reflections
strength values are applied between minima; and with response
frequency, where instantaneous frequency values are applied between
minima.
Uses
A response phase display will emphasize the dominant phase
characteristics of the reflectors. Response phase is also useful for
detecting phase changes associated with lateral fluid content or even
lithologic changes.
Bodine (1986) suggests that response phase and response frequency
may be used to distinguish between pay zones and nonpay zones with
similar amplitude response. He gives the example of two seismic bright
spots. One with low frequency and -90 was a gas reservoir; the other
with high frequency and +90 was merely a tight streak.
Example
A comparison of instantaneous phase, reflection strength, and response
phase follows. In both the instantaneous phase and response phase
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-180
+180
+180
Instantaneous
Phase
+127
Reflection
Strength
-180
+180
Response Phase
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Response Frequency
The concepts of response frequency and response phase were taken by
Bodine (1984) from signal analysis and applied to geophysical
waveform analysis. Response frequency attempts to extract physically
meaningful frequency information about the localized seismic wavelet.
Response frequency is defined as the instantaneous frequency
calculated at the peak of the amplitude envelope (reflection strength).
The algorithm computes the instantaneous frequency at each envelope
peak, then applies that value to every sample between minima in the
amplitude envelope trace. As a result, a response frequency trace has a
blocky appearance. Compare response frequency with response phase,
where instantaneous phase values are applied between minima; and with
apparent polarity, where reflection strength values are applied between
minima.
Uses
Response frequency has much the same uses as instantaneous
frequency. However, a response frequency display may be more
interpretable in areas where the instantaneous frequency displays are
quite noisy.
Response frequency will emphasize the dominant frequency
characteristics of the reflectors. This data may be useful in detecting the
effects of frequency absorption related to fluid content, fracturing, or
changing depositional environments.
Example
A comparison of instantaneous frequency, reflection strength, and
response frequency is shown on the next page.
Note the slight lowering of response frequency values beneath the
thicker parts of the reservoir. At the edges of the reservoir and off the
reservoir, response frequency remains high and relatively constant. The
higher response frequency values at the edge of the reservoir are due to
reduced absorption as the gas column thins.
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+Nyquist
-Nyquist
+Nyquist
Instantaneous
Frequency
+127
Reflection
Strength
-Nyquist
+Nyquist
Response
Frequency
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Perigram
Perigram is the amplitude envelope (reflection strength) with the dc
component removed. Gelchinsky and his colleagues suggested that such
a display would make the locations of energy maxima more obvious in
the seismic section (Gelchinsky et al 1985, Shtivelman et al 1986).
The low-frequency component of the reflection strength is calculated as
follows:
1 ( t + T 2 )
A ( t ) = -------
A ( ) d
T ( t T 2 )
Then that low-frequency component, A (t), is subtracted from the
reflection strength, A (t), to produce the perigram, g (t):
g(t) = A(t) A(t)
Uses
Perigram has essentially the same uses as reflection strength; but
because perigram data has both positive and negative values, it can be
analyzed with the standard color maps and can be subjected to trace
mixing or other data enhancement processes. Reflection strength data,
because it is only positive, is not suitable for many types of analysis
and processing.
Example
A comparison of the amplitude envelope (reflection strength) and the
perigram is shown on the next page.
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+127
+127
Reflection
Strength
-128
+127
Perigram
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Cosine of Phase
The cosine of the instantaneous phase, described as the normalized
trace by Gelchinsky et al (1985), is another useful data attribute.
The recorded trace, we defined earlier as the product of amplitude and
phase:
f ( t ) = A ( t ) cos ( t )
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-180
+180
-1
+1
Instantaneous
Phase
Cosine of Phase
The time range for a complete cycle is the same on the cosine of phase
data as it is on the instantaneous phase data. The cosine function gives
the cycle a smoother shape, which may impact the appearance of events
in the seismic display.
The gas-oil contact can be readily tracked as a positive polarity event on
the cosine of phase data. Furthermore, the termination of this interface
against the Top Chalk reflector can also be clearly seen. The polarity
reversal in Top Chalk due to changing fluid content is also apparent.
Above the gas-oil contact, Top Chalk tracks a large, negative cosine of
phase value; below the gas-oil contact, it tracks a large, positive cosine
of phase value.
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-128
+127
The product of the perigram and the cosine of phase yields yet another
useful type of complex trace, as suggested by Shtivelman et al (1986).
The recorded trace, we defined earlier as the product of amplitude and
phase:
f ( t ) = A ( t ) cos ( t )
In other words, the recorded trace, f ( t ) , is equal to the reflection
strength, A ( t ) , multiplied by the cosine of phase, cos ( t ) .
The product of the perigram and the cosine of phase is a variation on the
above expression. Recall the definition of perigram:
g(t) = A(t) A(t)
The product of the perigram and the cosine of phase is defined as
G ( t ) = g ( t ) cos ( t )
if
g( t) > 0
and
G(t) = 0
if
g(t) 0
if
g(t) > 0
and
G(t) = 0
if
g(t) 0
In other words, whenever the perigram values are positive, the product
of the perigram and the cosine of phase is equal to the input data, f ( t ) ,
multiplied by a trace scalar, [ 1 A ( t ) A ( t ) ] , that is slightly less
than one. When perigram values are negative, the amplitudes are set to
zero. The composite effect is to zero essentially half of the data
samples, corresponding to the lower reflection strength amplitudes.
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-128
+127
Perigram
-1
+1
Cosine of Phase
-128
+127
Perigram Cosine
of Phase
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General Attributes
General attributes are transforms in which each output sample is some
combination of either samples before or samples after.
PostStack calculates the following four General Attributes.
Integration
Integration integrates the trace using Fourier transform. This is done by
transforming the trace, dividing each frequency by (2*Pi*freq*sqrt(1)), and zeroing the zero frequency component (removing dc). This
gives a result similar to the simple (trace(i) = trace(i) + trace (i-1)), but
has a more accurate 90 degree phase response at all frequencies. The
frequency domain method is also not dependent on dc biases caused by
small amplitude variations of the first few samples.
Integration produces an output trace in which each output sample value
is the sum of the original samples, including this original sample.
Uses
If we assume that the seismic trace is a low frequency estimate of
reflectivity, we can derive an estimate of acoustic impedance from the
integrated trace attribute using
the following formula:
m
A cm = A c1 e
Tn
n=1
where
A c 1 = firstreflectioncoefficient
m
IntegratedTrace m =
Tn
n=1
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Example
An example of Integration is shown below:
Differentiation
Differentiation differentiates the trace using Fourier transform: (trace(i)
= trace(i) - trace(i-1)). This is implemented in the same manner as
integration, but each frequency is multiplied by the quantity
(2*Pi*freq*sqrt(-1)), rather than divided by it.
In other words, Differentiation describes a trace value as the difference
between the preceding sample and the succeeding sample divided by
the difference in time. The calculation is done in the frequency domain.
Uses
Many useful attributes result from applying Differentiation to the
instantaneous attributes such as Instantaneous Phase or Instantaneous
Frequency, or to volume attributes such as Dip and Azimuth.
Example
An example of Differentiation is shown below:
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Energy Half-Time
This process computes the energy half-time, the proportion of time
required for the energy contained within a time interval to build up to
one-half of the total energy contained within the entire interval. One of
several windowed attributes, this attribute gives the energy distribution
in the analysis window.
Uses
Changes in energy half-time spatially should be related to possible
facies changes.
Parameter
There is only one parameter to set in the Data Attribute - Energy-HalfTime dialog box that appears:
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Arc Length
Arc Length is a scaled measure of the total excursion of a seismic trace
in a window. To illustrate, imagine a seismic trace plotted in wiggletrace format. Then imagine that a string is placed on the trace such that
the string follows every wiggle. The Arc Length of the trace is then
defined as the total length of the string stretched out. The length does
not account for any smooth wiggle appearance. It only measures the
distance from sample to sample. The formula is:
N
1
S = -------
NT
[a(i + 1) a(i)] + T
i=1
where:
a(i) = amplitude at the ith sample
T = sample period
N = number of samples in the window
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Uses
Changes in arc length spacially indicates frequency and/or amplitude
changes, which may be indicative of different facies or changes in
attenuation in the seismic data.
Parameter
There is one parameter to set in the Data Attribute - Arc Length dialog
box that appears:
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RMS Amplitude
RMS amplitude provides a scaled estimate of the trace envelope. Like
energy half-time and arc length, it is computed in a time window whose
length is set by the user. If this window has N samples, then the RMS
amplitude RMS at the center of the window is given by:
x RMS
1
N
2
i
i =1
Uses
RMS amplitude resembles reflection strength, but is smoother
(depending on the window length). However, there is usually no
particular reason to favor it over reflection strength. If the smoother
nature is desirable, then prefer a smoothed reflection strength instead.
Parameters
There is one parameter to set in the Data Attribute - RMS Amplitude
dialog box that appears:
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Math Attributes
Math Attributes apply mathematical operations or transforms to
prepare traces for further processes. More than one attribute can be
applied. For example, if a trace near zero phase is first integrated with
the Integration attribute, then followed by the Exponential Base e
attribute, the result should look like an estimate of acoustic impedance.
PostStack calculates the following six Math Attributes.
Absolute Amplitude
Absolute Amplitude replaces all samples with the absolute value of the
original sample.
Uses
With application of the Absolute Amplitude attribute, zones of high
acoustic impedance change become more visible.
Example
An example of the Absolute Amplitude attribute is shown below:
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Log Base e
Log Base e computes the Loge of the absolute value of every sample of
the original trace, and retains the sign of the original trace. This tends to
bring the high amplitudes down more than the low amplitudes. For
example, Loge(10) = 2.302, whereas Loge(5) = 1.609.
Uses
A useful attribute can result from applying the Log Base e or Log Base
10 transform on the Absolute Amplitude transform for bad trace zone
detection or depth of penetration analysis.
Example
An example of the Log Base e attribute is shown below:
Log Base 10
Log Base 10 computes the log10 of the absolute value of every sample
on the trace, and retains the original sign. This tends to bring high
amplitudes down more than low amplitudes. For example, Log10(10)
equals 1, whereas Log10(5) is approximately 0.7.
Uses
The Absolute Amplitude transform followed by the Log Base e or Log
Base 10 transform may show depth of penetration (time).
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Example
An example of the Log Base 10 attribute is shown below:
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Power (Amp**Power)
Power raises the absolute value of each trace sample to a user-specified
number (power). The absolute values may be clipped so that
exponentiation will not result in a floating overflow. After each sample
is raised to the power, the original sign is retained.
Uses
This transform may be used to further separate high amplitudes from
low amplitudes.
Parameter
There is only one parameter to set in the Data Attribute - Power dialog
box that appears:
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Power
Specifies the power to which the absolute value is to be raised.
Example
An example of the Power attribute is shown below:
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That is, for 7 lines in the analysis window, input at least 4 lines.
A similar relation holds for the minimum number of traces.
Time to Depth Conversion
Unless seismic data is already in depth, most reflection pattern
attributes (all except amplitude variance and azimuth) require a
velocity input. Velocity is used for time to depth conversions to
correctly scale the attributes.
You can either input a TDQ Velocity model or create a suitable 1D
Velocity function: t1,v1,t2,v2,t3,v3,... (Time units are ms and velocity
units are m/s or ft./s)
Time-to-depth conversion here correctly scales the attributes. It does
not account for changes in reflection orientation that result from a true
time to depth conversion. These conversions are strictly correct for a
1D velocity model. For better results, run PostStack's time-to-depth
conversion prior to the reflection pattern attributes. If you run this
process, a velocity model is not required. For rather simple layer-cake
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velocity models, or when qualitative results are all that is needed, these
conversions are sufficient.
Dip and azimuth are particularly affected by details of the velocity
structure, though the other reflection pattern attributes are less
sensitive. (Azimuth, though it doesn't require velocity input in any case,
is nonetheless sometimes greatly altered by true time-to-depth
conversions.)
Amplitude variance
Reflection amplitude variance is how much seismic amplitude varies
from the average amplitude within an analysis window.
Uses
Use to compare between different datasets with different amplitude
levels.
Parameters
.
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Resolution
Local attributes
Local attributes are smoother and more stable than instantaneous
attributes. That is, they are free of spikes. However, they take several
times longer to compute, depending upon the window size.
Amplitude variance is normalized by the average amplitude.
Instantaneous
Not as smooth or stable as local attribute but runtime is much faster.
Window Size for Local Averaging
Number of Traces
The default is 3.
Number of Lines
The default is 3.
Number of Samples
The default is 5.
Azimuth
Reflection azimuth is measured in degrees from north.
Uses
Azimuth reveals structural units and details, complementing reflection
dip and continuity attributes.
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Parameter
Resolution
Local attributes
Local attributes are smoother and more stable than instantaneous
attributes. That is, they are free of spikes. However, they take several
times longer to compute, depending upon the window size.
This attribute is weighted by instantaneous power (reflection strength
squared).
Instantaneous
Not as smooth or stable as local attribute but runtime is much faster.
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Dip
Reflection dip is the angle between a reflection and the horizontal
measured in degrees.
Uses
Dip is useful in revealing structural details, much like continuity
attributes.
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Parameters
Resolution
Local attributes
Local attributes are smoother and more stable than instantaneous
attributes. That is, they are free of spikes. However, they take several
times longer to compute, depending upon the window size.
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Divergence
Reflection divergence is the degree to which succeeding reflections in a
sequence diverge consistently from one another. Divergent reflections
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The default is 3.
Number of Lines
The default is 3.
Number of Samples
The default is 5.
Advanced Parameters
Time/Depth Conversion Uses
Toggle between velocity function or velocity model. You can
either input a TDQ Velocity model or create a suitable 1D Velocity
function: t1,v1,t2,v2,t3,v3,... (Time units are ms and velocity units are
m/s or ft./s).
Hummocky
Reflection hummockiness is the degree to which reflections in a
window exhibit waviness in both the inline and crossline directions.
Hummockiness is best recognized on a moderate to large scale.
Uses
Hummocky reflections can help delineate the types and thickness of
sedimentary units.
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Parameters
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The default is 5.
Advanced Parameters
Time/Depth Conversion Uses
Toggle between velocity function or velocity model. You can
either input a TDQ Velocity model or create a suitable 1D Velocity
function: t1,v1,t2,v2,t3,v3,... (Time units are ms and velocity units are
m/s or ft./s).
Parallelism
An attribute that quantifies how parallel reflections are within a multidimensional window. Parallelism is a measure of the variance of the
dips and azimuths from the average direction. The more uniform the
dips and azimuths, the greater the parallelism, and the more variance in
the dips and azimuths, the less the parallelism.
Uses
Highly parallel stratigraphy indicates sedimentation in a low-energy
environment, suggesting shale. Nonparallel stratigraphy indicates
sedimentation in a high-energy environment, which could suggest
sands.
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Parameters
Resolution
Local attributes
Local attributes are smoother and more stable than instantaneous
attributes. That is, they are free of spikes. However, they take several
times longer to compute, depending upon the window size.
This attribute is weighted by instantaneous power (reflection strength
squared).
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Instantaneous
Not as smooth or stable as local attribute but runtime is much faster.
Window Size for Local Averaging
Number of Traces
The default is 3.
Number of Lines
The default is 3.
Number of Samples
The default is 5.
Advanced Parameters
Time/Depth Conversion Uses
Toggle between velocity function or velocity model. You can
either input a TDQ Velocity model or create a suitable 1D Velocity
function: t1,v1,t2,v2,t3,v3,... (Time units are ms and velocity units are
m/s or ft./s).
Shaded relief
PostStack s shaded relief attribute represents seismic reflections as
apparent topography. This facilitates geologic understanding by
revealing structural and stratigraphic details hidden in seismic data and
presenting them in a familiar and intuitive display.
Shaded relief combines reflection dip and azimuth into apparent
topography. Hence, it contains the same information as the common
dip-azimuth attribute, the difference being in how the information is
presented. Dip-azimuth shows dip and azimuth together with dip
determining the shading of the display and azimuth determining its
color.
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Uses
Shaded relief complements other attributes, such as continuity. Both
shaded relief and continuity reveal details hidden in the data, but
continuity highlights faults and other discontinuities, whereas shaded
relief shows changes in reflector orientation. There is also a difference
of directionality, for most attributes reveal structures in all directions,
whereas shaded relief is directional, enhancing features perpendicular
to the illumination direction while suppressing those that are parallel.
As a result, shaded relief displays should be created in pairs with
orthogonal illumination directions so as to capture all features. This
directionality is useful, as it makes a powerful directional filter of
shaded relief, enabling you to selectively highlight certain trends while
hiding others.
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Resolution
Local attributes
Local attributes are smoother and more stable than instantaneous
attributes. That is, they are free of spikes. However, they take several
times longer to compute, depending upon the window size.
This attribute is weighted by instantaneous power (reflection strength
squared).
Instantaneous
Not as smooth or stable as local attribute but runtime is much faster.
Window Size for Local Averaging
Number of Traces
The default is 3.
Number of Lines
The default is 3.
Number of Samples
The default is 5.
Sun Position (in degrees)
These parameters as well as the Advanced Parameters describe
where the light is coming from that shines on the data to produce
shaded relief. Enter the values for Elevation above Horizontal and
Azimuth from True North.
Advanced Parameters
Surface Type
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Since shaded relief makes a time slice look like apparent topography,
this surface type option allows you to select the type of topography (dry
or wet). The same information is shown by all choices, but sometimes a
wet surface can enhance subtle features better.Toggle between the
following surface types:
Dull is a surface that scatters light like a dry surface. For example,
desert is a dull surface. This is called specular reflection.
Surface Reflectance
Toggle on the type of surface reflectance from the following choices:
Uniform, Amplitude, or Spacing. Further character can be added
by selecting amplitude or reflection spacing for the surface reflectance.
This allows either of these two stratigraphic attributes to be combined
with the structural information of the shaded relief.
Vertical Exaggeration
Enter the vertical exaggeration of the model. This value enhances the
slopes in the data so as to improve the contrast in the shaded relief.
Time/Depth Conversion Uses
Toggle between velocity function or velocity model. You can
either input a TDQ Velocity model or create a suitable 1D Velocity
function: t1,v1,t2,v2,t3,v3,... (Time units are ms and velocity units are
m/s or ft./s).
Similarity
Similarity is a stratigraphic attribute that quantifies the variance of the
reflection spacing, dip, and azimuth together within the analysis
window. Similarity is much like parallelism with the additional factor
of reflection spacing. Similarity is also rather like a 3D bandwidth
measure scaled to have units of feet or meters, and which may be
thought of as a kind of diameter of a zone of similar reflections. Larger
values imply greater similarity; smaller values imply dissimilarity.
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Parameters
Local attributes
Local attributes are smoother and more stable than instantaneous
attributes. That is, they are free of spikes. However, they take several
times longer to compute, depending upon the window size.
This attribute is weighted by instantaneous power (reflection strength
squared).
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Instantaneous
Not as smooth or stable as local attribute but runtime is much faster.
Window Size for Local Averaging
Number of Traces
The default is 3.
Number of Lines
The default is 3.
Number of Samples
The default is 5.
Advanced Parameters
Time/Depth Conversion Uses
Toggle between velocity function or velocity model. You can
either input a TDQ Velocity model or create a suitable 1D Velocity
function: t1,v1,t2,v2,t3,v3,... (Time units are ms and velocity units are
m/s or ft./s).
Spacing
The distance between two succeeding reflections measured
perpendicularly to the reflections and starting and ending on points of
common phase. Computed as a wavelength with units of ft. or m.
Uses
Reflection spacing is the 3D counterpart to instantaneous frequency,
which is a 1D trace attribute.
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Velocity
Unless the seismic data is already in depth, most reflection patterns
attributes require suitable velocity input for on-the-fly conversions to
depth. The two exceptions are amplitude variance and azimuth, which
do not require velocity input.
You can choose an existing TDQ velocity model or create a single 1D
velocity function.
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References
Taner and Sheriff (1977) and Taner et al (1979) are two classic articles
on the derivation and use of complex trace attributes. These and the
other articles listed below are recommended for more information on
complex trace analysis.
Abatzis, I., and J. Kerr, 1991. New spatial visualization techniques in
tectonic and stratigraphic interpretation optimize reservoir delineation
of the Roar Field, Danish North Sea. SEG Expanded Abstracts.
Albu, I., and A. Papa, 1992. Application of high-resolution seismics in
studying reservoir characteristics of hydrocarbon deposits in Hungary.
Geophysics, v. 57, p. 1068-1088.
Bahorich, M. S., and S. R. Bridges, 1992. Seismic sequence attribute
map (SSAM). SEG 62nd Annual International Meeting, October, New
Orleans.
Barnes, A.E., 2000, Attributes for automating seismic facies analysis:
70th Ann. Internat. Mtg., Soc. Expl. Geophys., Expanded Abstracts,
553-556.
Barnes, A. E., 1991. Instantaneous frequency and amplitude at the
envelope peak of a constant-phase wavelet (short note). Geophysics,
v. 56, p. 1058-1060.
Barnes, A.E., 1993. Instantaneous bandwidth and dominant frequency
with applications to seismic reflection data: Geophysics, 58, 419-428.
Barnes, A. E., 1992. The calculation of instantaneous frequency and
instantaneous bandwidth (short note). Geophysics, v. 57, p. 1520-1524.
Bodine, J. H., 1984. Waveform analysis with seismic attributes. SEG
54th Annual International Meeting, December, Atlanta.
Bodine, J. H., 1986. Waveform analysis with seismic attributes. Oil &
Gas Journal, v. 84, no. 24, p. 59-63.
Bondar, I., 1992. Seismic horizon detection using image processing
algorithms. Geophysical Prospecting, v. 40, p. 785-800.
Bracewell, R. N., 1965. The Fourier transform and its applications.
New York, McGraw-Hill, p. 268-271.
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