3D Elastic Full Waveform Inversion - On Land Study case

Abstract

Full Waveform Inversion is one of the most advanced processing methods that is recently reaching a mature state after years of solving theoretical and technical issues such as the non-uniqueness of the solution and harnessing the huge computational power required by realistic scenarios. In this work, we present the application of this method to a 3D on-land dataset acquired to characterize the shallow subsurface. The current study explores the possibility to apply elastic isotropic Full Waveform Inversion using only the vertical component of the recorded seismograms. One of the main challenges in this case study remains the costly 3D modeling that includes topography and free surface effects. Nevertheless, the resulting models provide a higher resolution of the subsurface structures than starting models, and show a good correlation with the available borehole measurements.