Angle gathers from reverse time migration

Abstract

Reverse time migration (RTM), based on directly solving the two-way wave equation, provides a natural way to deal with large lateral velocity variations and imposes no dip limitations on the seismic images. It has become a standard migration tool for subsalt imaging in the Gulf of Mexico. In addition, the adoption of wide-azimuth (WAZ) data acquisition provides better subsurface illumination and more azimuthal information, which significantly aids imaging beneath complex overburdens. Because WAZ data are richer in the propagation directions of the waves recorded, RTM and WAZ acquisition go hand-in-hand.