Hybrid ocean bottom seismic receiver and streamer seismic data acquisition using wide towed sources

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11802986-B2
Application number	US-202016892557-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 4, 2020
Priority date	Jun 12, 2019
Publication date	Oct 31, 2023
Grant date	Oct 31, 2023

Abstract

Methods for performing a marine survey of a subterranean formation using a hybrid combination of ocean bottom seismic (“OBS”) receivers, wide towed sources, and moving streamers are described herein. In one aspect, a sail line separation in a crossline direction is determined based on an average streamer separation and number of streamers. An array of OBS receivers are deposited on a surface of a subterranean formation with an OBS receiver separation that is based on the sail line separation. Wide towed sources and streamers are towed above the array of OBS receivers behind a survey vessel that travels sail lines separated by the sail line separation. The wide towed sources may be activated above the array of OBS receivers. Wavefields reflected from the subterranean formation are recorded at the OBS receivers and receivers located in the streamers as seismic data.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method for performing a marine survey of a subterranean formation, the method comprising:
determining a sail line separation in a crossline direction based on an average streamer separation and number of streamers selected for the marine survey;
depositing an array of ocean bottom seismic (“OBS”) receivers on a surface of the subterranean formation with an OBS receiver separation in the crossline direction based on the sail line separation;
towing two or more wide towed sources and streamers above the OBS receivers in an inline direction behind a survey vessel that travels sail lines separated in the crossline direction by the sail line separation;
activating the wide towed sources; and
recording wavefields reflected from the subterranean formation at the OBS receivers and receivers located in the streamers as seismic data, wherein determining the sail line separation in the crossline direction comprises multiplying the average streamer separation by the selected number of streamers and a streamer spread factor that corresponds to a percentage of streamer overlap in a region between adjacent sail lines separated by the sail line separation.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein depositing the array of OBS receivers on the surface of the subterranean formation with the OBS receiver separation in the crossline direction comprises determining an OBS receiver separation in the crossline direction based on the sail line separation multiplied by a selected natural number value.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein towing the two or more wide towed sources and streamers above the array of OBS receivers in the inline direction comprises:
determining a source separation between adjacent wide towed sources based on the sail line separation divided by the number of sources; and
towing the wide towed sources in the inline direction along source trajectories separated by the source separation.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein towing the two or more wide towed sources and streamers above the array of OBS receivers in the inline direction comprises:
determining a source separation between adjacent wide towed sources based on the OBS receiver separation and the number of sources; and
towing the wide towed sources in the inline direction along source trajectories separated by the source separation.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein towing the two or more wide towed sources and streamers behind the survey vessel in the sail lines comprises:
towing the two or more wide towed sources and streamers behind the survey vessel along a first sail line of the sail lines;
towing the two or more wide towed sources and streamers behind the survey vessel along a second sail line adjacent to the first line such that streamer sublines are aligned with empty streamer sublines.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein towing the two or more wide towed sources and streamers above the array of OBS receivers comprises towing the tow or more wide towed sources such that streamer sublines are uniformly spaced apart in the crossline direction and OBS receiver sublines are uniformly spaced apart in the crossline direction.

7. A method for recording seismic data in a marine survey of a subterranean formation, the method comprising:
determining a sail line separation in a crossline direction based on an average streamer separation and number of streamers selected for the marine survey;
determining a source separation in the crossline direction for two or more wide towed sources based on the sail line separation and a selected number of wide towed sources;
depositing an array of ocean bottom seismic (“OBS”) receivers on a surface of the subterranean formation with an OBS receiver separation in the crossline direction based on the sail line separation;
towing the streamers and the two or more wide towed sources behind a survey vessel above the OBS receivers, wherein the two or more wide towed sources are spaced apart in the crossline direction by the source separation;
activating the wide towed sources; and
recording wavefields reflected from the subterranean formation at the OBS receivers and the receivers located in the streamers as seismic data, wherein depositing the array of OBS receivers on the surface of the subterranean formation with the OBS receiver separation in the crossline direction comprises determining an OBS receiver separation in the crossline direction based on the sail line separation multiplied by a selected natural number value.

8. The method of claim 7 wherein determining the sail line separation in the crossline direction comprises multiplying the average streamer separation by the selected number of streamers and a streamer spread factor that corresponds to a percentage of streamer overlap in a region between adjacent sail lines separated by the sail line separation.

9. The method of claim 7 wherein determining the source separation in the crossline direction comprises determining the source separation between adjacent wide towed sources based on the sail line separation divided by the number of sources.

10. The method of claim 7 wherein towing the streamers and the two or more wide towed sources behind the survey vessel comprises the survey vessel traveling in sail lines separated in the crossline direction by the sail line separation.

11. The method of claim 7 wherein towing the two or more wide towed sources and streamers behind the survey vessel in the sail lines comprises:
towing the two or more wide towed sources and streamers behind the survey vessel along a first sail line of the sail lines;
towing the two or more wide towed sources and streamers behind the survey vessel along a second sail line adjacent to the first line such that streamer sublines are aligned with empty streamer sublines.

12. The method of claim 7 wherein towing the two or more wide towed sources and streamers above the array of OBS receivers comprises towing the tow or more wide towed sources such that streamer sublines are uniformly spaced apart in the crossline direction and OBS receiver sublines are uniformly spaced apart in the crossline direction.

13. A method for manufacturing a geophysical data product, the method comprising:
determining a sail line separation in a crossline direction based on an average streamer separation and number of streamers selected for the marine survey;
depositing an array of ocean bottom seismic (“OBS”) receivers on a surface of the subterranean formation with an OBS receiver separation in the crossline direction based on the sail line separation;
towing two or more wide towed sources and streamers above the OBS receivers in an inline direction behind a survey vessel that travels sail lines separated in the crossline direction by the sail line separation;
activating the wide towed sources;
recording wavefields reflected from the subterranean formation at the OBS receivers and receivers located in the streamers as seismic data; and
storing the recorded seismic data in a non-transitory computer-readable medium, wherein determining the sail line separation in the crossline direction comprises multiplying the average streamer separation by the selected number of streamers and a streamer spread factor that corresponds to a percentage of streamer overlap in a region between adjacent sail lines separated by the sail line separation.

Assignees

• Pgs Geophysical As

Inventors

• Beitz Manuel
• Widmaier Martin
• Long Andrew

Classifications

• G01V1/3852 Primary

  to the seabed · CPC title

• G01V1/3808 Primary

  Seismic data acquisition, e.g. survey design · CPC title

• G01V2210/1293

  Sea · CPC title

• G01V2210/165

  Wide azimuth · CPC title

• G01V2210/121

  Active source · CPC title