The Seismic Signal Process

Abstract

In terms of linear filter theory, the seismic signal process is the convolution of the seismic pulse with the earth’s reflectivity. This process is a mixture of determinism and randomness, because the seismic pulse has a deterministic waveform, while the reflectivity is a random function. This concept of the seismic signal process was developed by the Geophysical Analysis Group at MIT and is described in a number of publications, including Wadsworth et al. (1953) and Robinson (1957). They consider the reflectivity to be a set of weighted impulses whose weights and arrival times are mutually uncorrelated. The seismic pulse is deterministic because its characteristics obey basic physical laws.