ABSTRACT

Hypocenter location errors of passive microseismic events located by using a 3-C VSP downhole geophone array are estimated through numerical experiments. In the case of employing the conventional hypocenter location algorithm, which combines backazimuth and P-wave first arrival times of passive events, the hypocenter location error distribution depends on the location, accuracy of the measurement of backazimuth, and the picking error of P-wave first arrival times. The depth range and the number of the geophones in an array can also influence the error distribution. In addition, we developed a more reliable error estimation algorithm than is generally used today.

Keywords:
vsp array, backazimuth, error distribution, numerical experiment, depth range, hypocenter location error, hypocenter location algorithm, orientation, backazimuth error, accuracy
Subjects:
Reservoir Characterization, Seismic processing and interpretation
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2006. Society of Exploration Geophysicists
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