Explorer Geophysical Corner

Geology is the correct starting point for any geophysical discussion in AAPG. This two-part article starts with the rock, progresses to the wave and concludes with our increased understanding of the rock. If you, dear reader, can stay for both parts, you will gain a basic understanding of how anisotropy in P-P seismic reflection data can add to our understanding of the rocks, specifically the reservoir, at depth.

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Explorer Director’s Corner

Energy dominance is how the White House described the Trump Administration’s emerging energy policy in mid-2017. With expanding U.S. oil and natural gas production coupled with growing exports to global markets, the muscular language signaled a notable policy shift from the previous administration, and a desire to leverage the nation’s petroleum resources for its economic and security potential.

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Explorer Historical Highlights

The Plate tectonic paradigm – “the unifying theory of geology” – has just turned 50. In 2017, the Geological Society of London’s William Smith Meeting celebrated this historical occasion, perhaps with a touch of self-congratulation, but with little discussion of alternative ideas.

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Explorer Article

New methods in hydraulic fracturing have turned the Haynesville Shale play into a behemoth of natural gas production.

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Explorer Article

Core Laboratories’ experiments with engineered gas injection show tremendous promise for enhanced oil recovery, but will it work in the field?

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Explorer Article

New research from the Anthropocene Working Group sheds light on whether humans have created a new geological epoch.

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Explorer Emphasis Article

The United Kingdom has long flirted with the prospect of attempting to emulate the United States’ success with hydraulic fracturing for cheap and plentiful shale gas, but a recent study raises doubts.

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Explorer Emphasis Article

Headlines out of Europe of late indicate an aggressive transition away from fossil fuels. But will market forces allow it?

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Learn! Blog

What we know about unconventionals is constantly changing, thanks to a focus on the rocks themselves. University consortia are doing important work that focuses on rock properties and also the rocks as they occur in the rock properties.

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Europe Blog

This new workshop will encompass all parts of a “deal” from opportunity identification and strategic fit through to subsurface, financing and closing a deal. Register now as space is limited!

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Workshop
Houston, Texas
Tuesday, 10 December Wednesday, 11 December 2024, 8:00 a.m.–7:00 p.m.

Join us for an AI and analytics workshop that focuses specifically on subsurface energy, and provides the needed knowledge, tools, and insights.  Opportunities are emerging, and those who have the tools, skills, and knowledge will be at the forefront   Specifically, the conference will bring together AI and Machine Learning and a wide range of data issues in the form of technical presentations, probing panel discussions and poster sessions.

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American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
DL Abstract

Around 170 million years ago, the Gulf of Mexico basin flooded catastrophically, and the pre-existing landscape, which had been a very rugged, arid, semi-desert world, was drowned beneath an inland sea of salt water. The drowned landscape was then buried under kilometers of salt, perfectly preserving the older topography. Now, with high-quality 3D seismic data, the salt appears as a transparent layer, and the details of the drowned world can be seen in exquisite detail, providing a unique snapshot of the world on the eve of the flooding event. We can map out hills and valleys, and a system of river gullies and a large, meandering river system. These rivers in turn fed into a deep central lake, whose surface was about 750m below global sea level. This new knowledge also reveals how the Louann Salt was deposited. In contrast to published models, the salt was deposited in a deep water, hypersaline sea. We can estimate the rate of deposition, and it was very fast; we believe that the entire thickness of several kilometers of salt was laid down in a few tens of thousands of years, making it possibly the fastest sustained deposition seen so far in the geological record.

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Request a visit from Frank Peel!

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
VG Abstract

The Betic hinterland, in the westernmost Mediterranean, constitutes a unique example of a stack of metamorphic units. Using a three-dimensional model for the crustal structure of the Betics-Rif area this talk will address the role of crustal flow simultaneously to upper-crustal low-angle faulting in the origin and evolution of the topography.

Request a visit from Juan I. Soto!

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
DL Abstract

Why H₂ is generated in subsurface? Which are the reactions and the promising geological setting? Example in countries where H₂ have already been found: Australia, Brazil. Kinetic reactions: i.e., Is the natural H₂ renewable? What we don't know yet about this resource and about the H₂ systems (generation/transport/accumulation). Overview of the current landscape (subsurface law, permitting, E&P activity)

Request a visit from Isabelle Moretti!

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
DL Abstract

President Biden has laid out a bold and ambitious goal of achieving net-zero carbon emissions in the United States by 2050.  The pathway to that target includes cutting total greenhouse gas emissions in half by 2030 and eliminating them entirely from the nation’s electricity sector by 2035. The Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management will play an important role in the transition to net-zero carbon emissions by reducing the environmental impacts of fossil energy production and use – and helping decarbonize other hard-to abate sectors.

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Request a visit from Jennifer Wilcox!

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
DL Abstract

The Energy sector is a changing business environment. Throughout the 20th century fluctuations of oil supply and demand produced changes in the barrel price that pushed the growth or shrinkage of the industry. In this 21st century, new challenges such as diversification of the energy mix, boosting gas demand, require the exploration of critical minerals and development of new technologies as well.

Request a visit from Fernanda Raggio!

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
DL Abstract

Local sea-level changes are not simply a function of global ocean volumes but also the interactions between the solid Earth, the Earth’s gravitational field and the loading and unloading of ice sheets. Contrasting behaviors between Antarctica and Scotland highlight how important the geologic structure beneath the former ice sheets is in determining the interactions between ice sheets and relative sea levels.

Request a visit from Alex Simms!

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
DL Abstract

While there are many habitats that are associated with the deposition of organic-rich marine and lacustrine source rocks, one important pathway is linked to the onset of increased basin subsidence associated with major tectonic events. A key aspect is that this subsidence is spatially variable, with the uplift of basin flanks contemporaneous with the foundering of the basin center, resulting in a steeper basin profile.

Request a visit from Kurt W. Rudolph!

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
DL Abstract

This presentation is a survey of subsurface machine learning concepts that have been formulated for unconventional asset development, described in the literature, and subsequently patented. Operators that utilize similar subsurface machine learning workflows and other data modelling techniques enjoy a competitive advantage at optimizing the development of unconventional plays.

Request a visit from Shane Prochnow!

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
DL Abstract

Subsurface risk and uncertainty are recognized as very important considerations in petroleum geoscience. And even when volume estimates are relatively accurate, the reservoir characteristics that determine well placement and performance can remain highly uncertain. In analyzing results and work practices, three aspects of uncertainty are reviewed here.

Request a visit from Kurt W. Rudolph!

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
DL Abstract

Three-dimensional (3D) seismic-reflection surveys provide one of the most important data types for understanding subsurface depositional systems. Quantitative analysis is commonly restricted to geophysical interpretation of elastic properties of rocks in the subsurface. Wide availability of 3D seismic-reflection data and integration provide opportunities for quantitative analysis of subsurface stratigraphic sequences. Here, we integrate traditional seismic-stratigraphic interpretation with quantitative geomorphologic analysis and numerical modeling to explore new insights into submarine-channel evolution.

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Request a visit from Jacob Covault!

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)

Other Interests

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