Geostatistical integration of near-surface geophysical data

Accurate statics calculation and near‐surface related noise removal require a detailed knowledge of the near‐surface velocity field. Conventional seismic surveys currently are not designed to provide this information, and 3D high‐resolution reflection/refraction acquisition is not feasible for large survey areas. Satellite images and vibrator plate attributes are dense low‐cost data, which can be used in spatially extrapolating velocities from sparse uphole data by geostatistics. We tested this approach in two different areas of Saudi Arabia and found that the optimal recipe depends on the local geology.