Can Seismology Sensors Replace Air-Gun Blasting in Oil Exploration?

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SUMMARY

Seismology sensors, specifically earthquake monitoring technologies, are being considered as alternatives to air-gun blasting in oil exploration to minimize environmental impact. The discussion highlights that while air-guns are currently permitted due to their effectiveness in seismic surveying, they may cause some disruption to marine life. However, the resolution and timing challenges associated with using natural acoustic sources for detecting fossil fuel reserves make them less viable. The consensus among participants is that air-guns provide superior seismic data compared to previous methods, such as aqua pulse systems.

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  • Understanding of seismic surveying techniques
  • Familiarity with air-gun technology and its impact on marine ecosystems
  • Knowledge of earthquake monitoring systems and their applications
  • Basic principles of acoustic wave propagation in geological formations
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Shane Kennedy
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Having just read Scientific America's article on the Cascade fault, I wonder if Seismology/Earthquake monitoring sensors could be used to detect fossil fuel reserves and eliminate the use of air-gun blasting that is wreaking havoc on ocean life. Can the oil companies not use naturally occurring acoustic sources ? Why is it that air-guns are permitted, but using actual explosives (as in salvaging materials from shipwrecks) is tightly controlled and contained within bubble shields ?
 
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Greetings Shane

Shane Kennedy said:
I wonder if Seismology/Earthquake monitoring sensors could be used to detect fossil fuel reserves and eliminate the use of air-gun blasting that is wreaking havoc on ocean life. Can the oil companies not use naturally occurring acoustic sources ?
Not enough events often enough, nor close enough together, nor close enough to the exploration areas of interest
As a result there is a total lack of resolution in determining what lies below. Plus timing would be a huge problem.
Timing of the boomer and the return signal are very precisely known. This allows for pretty accurate determination
of water depth and depth to the various strata and their individual thicknesses.

Shane Kennedy said:
Why is it that air-guns are permitted,
They may do a little damage to fish life ……. I would suspect that most fish would flee the area after the first couple of booms

When I did geology at university, I did sessions of offshore (and onshore) seismic surveying
There was never a trail of dead fish floating to the surface behind the boat ……Dave
 
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I have to agree with Dave, I took several research projects offshore on working seismic ships,
and there were not any trails of dead fish behind the ships.
If there had been there would also be a trail of sea gulls, like what follow a shrimp boat.
Air Guns are much better seismic sources than the aqua pulse that came before them.
An interesting note, the real signal from an air gun is the the bubble release, but the collapse
of the bubble, it produces a very clean negative pulse.
 
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