CORRECTION FOR WATER DEPTH VARIATIONS OF MARINE CRUSTAL REFLECTION SEISMIC DATA USING REFRACTION STATICS

Water depth variations in marine reflection seismic profiling cause velocity push-down and, in regions of rapid fluctuations of the water-bottom slope, stack degradation. Static corrections are a very satisfactory and practical solution to these problems under typical survey conditions with water depths not exceeding a few hundred metres and relatively hard water bottoms. Static time shifts are best derived from a refraction analysis of first arrivals rather than from fathometer data, especially over underwater valleys where unconsolidated sediment of velocity close to that of water has been deposited unconformably onto the underlying lithified rocks. These points are illustrated by a field example from the GLIMPCE survey in Lake Superior. The availability of computer-effective algorithms such as the generalized linear inversion method allows the implementation of refraction statics during the initial processing of regional marine crustal surveys.