Wavelet estimation and nonstretching NMO correction

Abstract

Normal-moveout (NMO) correction is an important step applied to common-midpoint (CMP) gathers for subsequent stacking. However, conventional NMO correction methods often suffer from the problem of NMO stretching, which nonlinearly increases with offsets and decreases with zero-offset traveltime. The NMO stretching can be quantified by frequency distortion, so stretching is confined mainly to large offsets and shallow times. To solve this problem, we have proposed a wavelet-based method with the following four steps. First, we estimate a wavelet from the CMP gather by using the NMO stretching appearing in the conventional NMO correction. Second, we deconvolve the original CMP gather based on the estimated wavelet. This step of removing the wavelet from the CMP gather is helpful for the next steps of NMO velocity scan and NMO correction. Third, we apply an improved NMO correction to the deconvolved CMP gather and obtain flattened reflectivities. Finally, we convolve the flattened and deconvolved gather with the estimated wavelet back to obtain an NMO-corrected gather without stretching artifacts. In our method, by using a deconvolved CMP gather, we are able to calculate a high-resolution semblance velocity spectrum that benefits from the NMO velocity picking. In addition, applying the NMO correction to the deconvolved CMP gather, instead of the original gather, is helpful in reducing the NMO stretching related to the wavelet distortion. Tests on synthetic and field data find that our new NMO correction method can estimate an accurate seismic wavelet and obtain an NMO-corrected gather without NMO stretching. Reducing the NMO stretching can significantly improve the resolution of shallow layers at far offsets and preserve the spectral bandwidth.