Attribute mapping of variable-thickness incised valley-fill systems

Abstract

Whether we realize it or not, seismic amplitude is the composite expression of multiple frequency components. Spectral components tuned to a given thickness often exhibit a high signal-to-noise ratio and thus provide the highest lateral resolution, giving clear images of channels and other stratigraphic features that otherwise might be buried in broadband data. For the same reason, coherence and other edge-sensitive attributes provide correspondingly sharper images when computed from spectral-magnitude or voice components. Multiple stages of incisement are preserved in a survey acquired over the Red Fork Formation of the Anadarko Basin, Oklahoma. Color-blended images of 20-, 35-, and 50-Hz spectral components and corresponding coherence images are used to map the valley fill at different stages.