Interactive Three-Dimensional Seismic Display by Volumetric Rendering

Abstract

Generally, seismic data have been visualized through display of two-dimensional (2-D) sections, and three-dimensional (3-D) display has come into play only for graphically rendering structural features, once they have been interpreted. We consider the display of the 3-D data directly, before any interpretation is done. We call the direct display procedure volumetric rendering, and we describe the procedure and illustrate its utility by application to a migrated 3-D seismic data set. Our intent is to peer into the volume of seismic samples. We form an image of such a view by representing each seismic sample by a colored cell in the viewed volume. We find that we can identify 3-D reflection features present in the data, much as we have identified reflection horizons in 2-D sections. As in the case of 2-D sections, we discover that sidelobes can obscure somewhat the defmition of the reflective surfaces, and we devise a nonlinear filter to suppress the sidelobes. The resulting clarified display provides 3-D views of synclines, anticlines, faults, and pinchouts. We consider stereoscopic viewing and data volume partitioning to further facilitate interpretation. Based on these results, we conclude that volumetric rendering can prove useful for identifying and mapping potential reservoirs.