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At least 145 records · Page 8

Seismic monitoring of CO 2 geosequestration using multi-well 4D DAS VSP: Stage 3 of the CO2CRC Otway project

An important part of any CO 2 geosequestration project is to ensure CO 2 containment and conformance in the subsurface. This is generally done by implementing a comprehensive, risk-based Measurement, Monitoring and Verification plan, a key element of which is active time-lapse seismic monitoring. However, high cost and environmental impact of the standard surface seismic monitoring dictate the need for a cost-effective and environmentally friendly alternative. An opportunity to develop such method emerges with advances in distributed acoustic sensing (DAS) technology, which turns an optical fibre into a seismic sensor with dense spatial sampling. DAS can be permanently deployed in multiple wells across the geosequestration site providing a robust and non-intrusive network of seismic receivers. This approach was developed and tested in the CO2CRC Otway project, where injection of 15 kt of CO 2 at 1.5 km depth was monitored with a 4D vertical seismic profiling (VSP) using five borehole DAS arrays and mobile vibroseis sources. The 4D DAS VSP in each of the five wells provides broadly consistent images of the CO 2 plume with some differences due to different illumination of the target horizon, lateral variation of velocities, and seismic anisotropy. When the newly injected CO 2 reaches a CO 2 plume created as a result of an earlier injection into the same formation ~600 m updip, 4D DAS VSP shows a change in reflectivity in that area and beyond. Furthermore, this shows a potential of 4D DAS VSP for monitoring gas injection into gas-saturated reservoirs.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗

Influence of Fault Architecture on Induced Earthquake Sequence Evolution Revealed by High-Resolution Focal Mechanism Solutions

The increasing seismicity and improved seismic observation network in recent years provide an opportunity to explore factors that influence the triggering processes, spatiotemporal evolution, and maximum magnitude of induced sequences. We map the fault architecture and stress state of four induced sequences in Oklahoma to determine their influence on the seismicity. We systematically relocate the earthquakes and compute hundreds of focal mechanisms of small to medium events (1.0 < M < 5.1) using various techniques, including machine learning, for the Guthrie, Woodward, Cushing, and Fairview sequences. The detailed fault geometry and spatiotemporal evolution of seismicity and stress states reveal different dominant driving forces for each sequence. In Cushing and Fairview (largest event ≥M5.0), the main fault structures are near-vertical narrow strike-slip faults, with most of the small earthquake fault planes optimally oriented. The two sequences exhibit discontinuous temporal migration but strong earthquake self-driven rupture growth. In Guthrie and Woodward (largest event <M5.0), the two sequences show more complex diffuse fault structures with varying dipping angles along depth. The inverted focal mechanisms show a mix of strike-slip faulting and normal faulting in both sequences, and the normal faulting events are less optimally oriented than strike-slip events. The two sequences are dominated by continuous diffusive migration in time driven by pore pressure propagation. The above results suggest that fault architecture and stress state influence sequence evolution, major driving forces, and possibly maximum magnitude.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗

How we processed Apollo lunar seismic data

The Apollo lunar seismic station network gathered data continuously at a rate of 3 x 10 to the 8th bits per day for nearly eight years until termination in September, 1977. The data were processed and analyzed using a PDP-15 minicomputer. On average, 1500 long-period seismic events were detected yearly. Automatic event detection and identification schemes proved unsuccessful because of occasional high noise levels and, above all, the risk of overlooking unusual natural events. The processing procedures which were finally chosen consist of plotting all the data on a compressed time scale, visually picking events from the plots, transferring event data to separate sets of tapes and performing detailed analyses using the latter. Many problems remain, especially in the automatic processing of extraterrestrial seismic signals.

Nakamura, Y.↗

Understanding the Seismic Ground Motion Spatial Variability Using Network Analysis Community Detection

This project is to explore ground motion spatial distribution using a new approach graph-based network analysis. In this study, we combine a large-N seismic array and graph analytics to explore spatial variability and correlation at a local scale using small local and regional earthquakes. In this method, each seismic station is modeled as a node and the similarities of the waveforms that represent ground motions between two stations are modeled as edges. By analyzing this graph network using the similarity matrices and community detection algorithm, we can group the stations spatially with similar patterns. A random forest algorithm is used to reveal the important features that affect the spatial grouping. The result suggests site conditions, and how they interact with the incident seismic wavefield, strongly condition the spatial correlation of ground motion. Future progress in characterizing ground motion spatial variability will require dense wavefield measurements, either through nodal deployments, or perhaps distributed acoustic sensing measurements of seismic wavefields.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗

Alsep data processing: How we processed Apollo Lunar Seismic Data

The Apollo lunar seismic station network gathered data continuously at a rate of 3 x 10 to the 8th power bits per day for nearly eight years until the termination in September, 1977. The data were processed and analyzed using a PDP-15 minicomputer. On the average, 1500 long-period seismic events were detected yearly. Automatic event detection and identification schemes proved unsuccessful because of occasional high noise levels and, above all, the risk of overlooking unusual natural events. The processing procedures finally settled on consist of first plotting all the data on a compressed time scale, visually picking events from the plots, transferring event data to separate sets of tapes and performing detailed analyses using the latter. Many problems remain especially for automatically processing extraterrestrial seismic signals.

Latham, G. V.↗

Finding, Organizing, and Preserving Legacy Nuclear Test Monitoring Data—Examples from the Livermore Nevada Network

A challenge for geophysical research is the relatively short time for which continuous digital data have been available. There are many events of research interest where much of the data were collected by analog or temporary digital means. These legacy data require special efforts to find, organize, and preserve for future research. Here, we focus on one type of legacy data, nuclear explosions, and associated events (e.g., collapses, aftershocks) of high interest for nuclear monitoring research and development. For nuclear tests conducted in Nevada, the Lawrence Livermore Nevada Network recorded valuable data on a variety of formats. In this article, we briefly review this network, and describe one set of data that previously was available via CD-ROM by request, and since 2018 has become available through Incorporated Research Institutions for Seismology as assembled dataset 18-001.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗

Pycheron: A Python-Based Seismic Waveform Data Quality Control Software Package

Supplementing an existing high-quality seismic monitoring network with openly available station data could improve coverage and decrease magnitudes of completeness; however, this can present challenges when varying levels of data quality exist. Without discerning the quality of openly available data, using it poses significant data management, analysis, and interpretation issues. Incorporating additional stations without properly identifying and mitigating data quality problems can degrade overall monitoring capability. If openly available stations are to be used routinely, a robust, automated data quality assessment for a wide range of quality control (QC) issues is essential. To meet this need, we developed Pycheron, a Python-based library for QC of seismic waveform data. Pycheron was initially based on the Incorporated Research Institutions for Seismology’s Modular Utility for STAtistical kNowledge Gathering but has been expanded to include more functionality. Pycheron can be implemented at the beginning of a data processing pipeline or can process stand-alone data sets. Its objectives are to (1) identify specific QC issues; (2) automatically assess data quality and instrumentation health; (3) serve as a basic service that all data processing builds on by alerting downstream processing algorithms to any quality degradation; and (4) improve our ability to process orders of magnitudes more data through performance optimizations. This article provides an overview of Pycheron, its features, basic workflow, and an example application using a synthetic QC data set.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗

Event‐Based Training in Label‐Limited Regimes

Abstract The distribution of attributes assigned using data on independent sensors for a specific source, for example, magnitude, can be richly descriptive for final event characterization and associated uncertainty. Attribute distributions can also provide powerful context for event characterization in the absence of comprehensive annotation. This work develops a way to leverage distributional information across a set of sensors in the absence of comprehensive annotation as a domain‐informed regularization term applied during gradient‐based learning. The regularization term is the basis of event‐based training which I show can be a powerful semi‐supervised learning (SSL) approach. I first use a simple feed forward neural network and a toy data set to outline how data set structure interacts with the assumptions inherent to many semi‐supervised learning approaches. I then demonstrate the effectiveness of event‐based training using a deep convolutional neural network for seismic event classification in Utah, which increases SSL accuracy from 92% to 97% on event classification with a limited number of training labels.

Linville, Lisa M.↗

Bayesian OED for Seismic Monitoring

SAND2024-13870O The Bayesian OED (Optimal Experiment Design) for Seismic Monitoring code provides the tools to analyze and optimize seismic monitoring networks using Bayesian OED. This method designs a utility function for experiments (network designs) using network analysis and network optimization. Sandia National Laboratories is a multimission laboratory managed and operated by National Technology & Engineering Solutions of Sandia, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Honeywell International Inc., for the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration under contract DE-NA0003525.

Catanach, Thomas↗

Assessing the Effectiveness of Generalized Likelihood Ratio Test Detector Schemes in Seismic Event Detection and the Avoidance of Nontarget Signals

Cross-correlation techniques have played a long-standing and pivotal role in seismic event monitoring. However, the performance of correlation-based detectors is challenged by nuisance seismicity, or nontarget signals. Such detections are a problem when the mission is to automatically map events to the correct source region. Using aftershocks of the 2014 $M_w$ 6.0 South Napa, California, earthquake, we demonstrate the effectiveness of utilizing a dynamic correlation processor framework in a generalized likelihood ratio test (GLRT) detector configuration to minimize nontarget detections. A GLRT maximizes a detection statistic with respect to one or more unknown parameters. In this case, the detection statistic is a template signal match against the waveform in a window sliding over a data stream, and the unknown parameter is an index variable indicating group membership of the template event or events. Detected events are assigned to the event group that yields the largest detection statistic. In this work, our results show that a GLRT detector will outperform a suite of independently operating correlation and subspace detectors in terms of having a lower nontarget detection rate at a given missed detection rate. We also show that a GLRT detector composed of a few high-rank subspace detectors has a slightly higher nontarget detection rate, but a significantly lower missed detection rate, than a GLRT detector composed of many low-rank subspace detectors. The high-rank GLRT configuration produced impressive results even with marginal data (single channel, single station, and very low time bandwidth product), which bodes well for the utility of building efficient aftershock classification systems and global monitoring systems at larger scales. However, future work is required to assess performance at the regional scale and to assess the performance of the system at detecting target events not used in the detector template creation.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗

The Global DAS Month of February 2023

During February 2023, a total of 32 individual distributed acoustic sensing (DAS) systems acted jointly as a global seismic monitoring network. The aim of this Global DAS Month campaign was to coordinate a diverse network of organizations, instruments, and file formats to gain knowledge and move toward the next generation of earthquake monitoring networks. During this campaign, 156 earthquakes of magnitude 5 or larger were reported by the U.S. Geological Survey and contributors shared data for 60 min after each event’s origin time. Participating systems represent a variety of manufacturers, a range of recording parameters, and varying cable emplacement settings (e.g., shallow burial, borehole, subaqueous, and dark fiber). Monitored cable lengths vary between 152 and 120,129 m, with channel spacing between 1 and 49 m. The data has a total size of 6.8 TB, and are available for free download. Finally, organizing and executing the Global DAS Month has produced a unique dataset for further exploration and highlighted areas of further development for the seismological community to address.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗

Intelligent Monitoring Systems and Advanced Well Integrity and Mitigation

Long-term seismic monitoring of carbon capture and storage projects is needed to verify that the injected gas is safely stored in the subsurface until permanence can be assured. Conventional surface seismic monitoring techniques are usually expensive, require highly invasive surface operations, and need significant time investments on the part of personnel for both the field effort and processing the acquired data. For these reasons, permanent reservoir monitoring technologies are preferred, as they can offer a cost-effective solution for long-term monitoring. As part of the monitoring program of the Archer Daniels Midland’s large-scale injection of CO 2 in Decatur, Illinois, USA, a continuous seismic monitoring array was installed using a combination of surface orbital vibrator (SOV) sources and fiber-optic cables for distributed acoustic sensing (DAS) acquisition with the objective to build a continuous monitoring array. The aim of the presented project was to build a monitoring array and platform that integrates real-time seismic data with conventional data streams and provides continuous data analysis using dynamic computational models to deliver a comprehensive real-time assessment of subsurface conditions. It is in this context that the Intelligent Monitoring Systems and Advanced Well Integrity and Mitigation project was proposed with the objective to develop an integrated architecture that utilizes a permanent seismic monitoring network, combines the real-time geophysical and process data with reservoir flow and geomechanical models to create a comprehensive monitoring, visualization, and control system that delivers critical information for process surveillance and optimization.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

GraphAlign: Graph-Enabled Machine Learning for Seismic Event Filtering

This report summarizes results from a 2 year effort to improve the current automated seismic event processing system by leveraging machine learning models that can operated over the inherent graph data structure of a seismic sensor network. Specifically, the GraphAlign project seeks to utilize prior information on which stations are more likely to detect signals originating from particular geographic regions to inform event filtering. To date, the GraphAlign team has developed a Graphical Neural Network (GNN) model to filter out false events generated by the Global Associator (GA) algorithm. The algorithm operates directly on waveform data that has been associated to an event by building a variable sized graph of station waveforms nodes with edge relations to an event location node. This builds off of previous work where random forest models were used to do the same task using hand crafted features. The GNN model performance was analyzed using an 8 week IMS/IDC dataset, and it was demonstrated that the GNN outperforms the random forest baseline. We provide additional error analysis of which events the GNN model performs well and poorly against concluded by future directions for improvements.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗

Meteoroid environment near the Earth-Moon system

We undertook a research program to investigate the properties of small objects crossing the orbit of the Earth-Moon system using a unique set of data obtained during the Apollo lunar landing missions with a network of seismic stations on the surface of the Moon. The primary objectives of the study were to find out the nature of these objects, whether they were of cometary or asteroidal origin based on their orbital distributions and seismic effects upon impacts, and then to infer the role these small objects play in the evolution of the solar system. In this final technical report, we briefly summarize the results of this study. Detailed results of the study have been published in a series of papers and a dissertation, which are listed in the PUBLICATIONS section. Abstracts of the published papers and the dissertation are attached as an appendix.

Nakamura, Yosio↗

Scientific investigations at a lunar base

Scientific investigations to be carried out at a lunar base can have significant impact on the location, extent, and complexity of lunar surface facilities. Among the potential research activities to be carried out are: (1) Lunar Science: Studies of the origin and history of the Moon and early solar system, based on lunar field investigations, operation of networks of seismic and other instruments, and collection and analysis of materials; (2) Space Plasma Physics: Studies of the time variation of the charged particles of the solar wind, solar flares and cosmic rays that impact the Moon as it moves in and out of the magnetotail of the Earth; (3) Astronomy: Utilizing the lunar environment and stability of the surface to emplace arrays of astronomical instruments across the electromagnetic spectrum to improve spectral and spatial resolution by several orders of magnitude beyond the Hubble Space Telescope and other space observatories; (4) Fundamental physics and chemistry: Research that takes advantage of the lunar environment, such as high vacuum, low magnetic field, and thermal properties to carry out new investigations in chemistry and physics. This includes material sciences and applications; (5) Life Sciences: Experiments, such as those that require extreme isolation, highly sterile conditions, or very low natural background of organic materials may be possible; and (6) Lunar environmental science: Because many of the experiments proposed for the lunar surface depend on the special environment of the Moon, it will be necessary to understand the mechanisms that are active and which determine the major aspects of that environment, particularly the maintenance of high-vacuum conditions. From a large range of experiments, investigations and facilities that have been suggested, three specific classes of investigations are described in greater detail to show how site selection and base complexity may be affected: (1) Extended geological investigation of a complex region up to 250 kilometers from the base requires long range mobility, with transportable life support systems and laboratory facilities for the analysis of rocks and soil. Selection of an optimum base site would depend heavily on an evaluation of the degree to which science objectives could be met. These objectives could include lunar cratering, volcanism, resource surveys or other investigations; (2) An astronomical observatory initially instrumented with a VLF radio telescope, but later expanding to include other instruments, requires site preparation capability, "line shack" life support systems, instrument maintenance and storage facilities, and sortie mode transportation. A site perpetually shielded from Earth is optimum for the advanced stages of a lunar observatory; (3) an experimental physics laboratory conducting studies requiring high vacuum facilities and heavily instrumented experiments, is not highly dependent on lunar location, but will require much more flexibility in experiment operation and EVA capability, and more sophisticated instrument maintenance and fabrication facilities.

Extraterrestrial Environment↗

COMPASS Final Report: 2008 International Lunar Network (ILN)

The Compass team developed three designs for a soft lander for the International Lunar Network (ILN) using different power systems. These systems included solar arrays and batteries and two radioisotope power system (RPS) options scaled down from previous designs. These are a half Stirling radioisotope generator and a one-eighth Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generator (RTG). The COMPASS design consists of a soft-lander capable of network science (seismic, magnetospheric, laser reflector, and thermal transfer) that can land anywhere on the near side of the Moon and operate for at least six years. The baseline version, using only batteries and solar arrays, requires a very large battery (~80 kg) for the roughly 20 W night-time power requirements. The lander launch mass (with solid rocket breaking motor) is almost 900 kg. With such a large battery, the lander will require a launcher larger than the desired Minotaur V; a Taurus II (being developed for NASA Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS)) or larger (Delta II or Atlas V) would be needed. The two RPS cases, half an Advanced Stirling Radioisotope Generators (ASRG) and one-eighth RTG have much smaller launch masses of 500 and 600 kg respectively. (The one-eighth RTG case lacks the power for the full science package, so a solar array battery is still needed.) Unfortunately, the Minotaur V’s launch capability is still not large enough (~430 kg to trans-lunar injection (TLI)) for the RPS systems. Consequently, a fourth case was developed to fly a limited science floor suite of instruments (seismometer only) which reduced the RPS Lander launch mass to fit on a Minotaur V.

Radioisotope Power Systems↗