JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH, VOL. 100, NO.

B7, PAGES 12,659--12,673,JULY 10, 1995

Seismic
studiesof a bottomsimulatingreflectionrelatedto gas
hydrate
beneath
thecontinental
marginoftheBeaufort
Sea
K. Andreassen
Institute
ofBiology
andGeology,
University
ofTroms0,
Troms0,
Norway

P.E. Hart andA. Grantz

U.S.Geological
Survey,
MenloPark,California

Abstract,The uppercontinental
marginof theBeaufortSea,northof Alaska,is underlain
byastrong
bottom
simulating
reflection
(BSR)thatlies300to700rnbeneath
theseafloor
andcorrespondsto thephaseboundarybetween interstitial
waterandnaturalgasbelowand
solid
gashydrate above. BSRsof similaroriginarecommon worldwide,wheretheyare
usually
interpretedtomarkthebaseof gashydrate-bearing clasticsediment,
withorwithout
underlying
freegasin thesediment.Surprisinglylittleisknownabouttheoriginof these
strong
reflections.
In thispaperweanalyze thecontrastingphysical properties
which
produce
BSRs
bycomparing
synthetic
BSRamplitudes
andwaveforms
forvarying
source-
receiveroffsetswith multichannelseismicreflectiondataacrossthe well-developedBSR of
theBeaufortSea.In orderto discriminatewhetherfree gasis presentundertheB SR or not,
it wasnecessary
to supplement
near-vertical
incidence
datawithprestack
offsetdata.The
amplitude-versus-offset
(AVO)analysis
indicates
thattheBSRisproduced
mainly
bythe
existence
of freegasin theclasticsedimentsbeneaththeBSR.Thezoneof freegasis,based
onverticalincidencesynthetics,
estimatedto bethinnerthan11-16m. It is possibly
thicker
than16rnif thegasconcentration decreaseswithdepth.Saturation
of gashydrate in the
sedimentabovetheBSR is tentativelyestimatedfromtheAVO modelingto belessthan
10%of theporevolume.

Introduction etal., 1991;Hyndman

andSpence,
1992;Leeetal., 1993;Singh
etal., 1993;MinshuIlet al., ! 994], but few of thesemodelsare
A bottomsimulatingreflection(BSR) at a depthcorres-
constrained
by independent
drillingor sampleor laboratory
pondingapproximatelyto the baseof the methanehydrate data.Littleis thereforeknownabouthowsignificant
theroleof
stability
fieldis the mostwidely usedindicatorof thepresence
naturalgashydrates
isin thegeological
system
in whichthey
of gashydrateaccumulations beneaththe seabed.BSRs are are involved.
observedworldwide on reflection seismic data from continental
Seismic reflection data suggest that an extensive
margins[Kvenvoldenand Barnard, 1983; Kvenvoldenet al., accumulation
of gashydrateunderliestheoutermost continental
1993]andarecommonlyassumed to markaninterfacebetween shelf,slope,and uppercontinental rise of the BeaufortSea
high-velocity
gashydrateandunderlying sedimentsof normal
north of Alaska (Figure 1) [Grantz and Dinter, 1980;
velocity[StollandBryan, 1979;HyndmanandSpence,1992] Kvenvo!den andGrantz,1990].The gashydrateaccumulations
or sedimentsof low velocitycontainingfree gas[Dillonandareinferredfromthepresence of a strongBSR that lies300to
Paull, 1983; Miller et al., 1991]. BSRs that lie at the700 m beneaththeseafloor.These depthscloselyapproximate
approximate positionof the baseof the gashydratestability
the baseof the methanehydratestability field [MacLeo&
field are characterizedby high reflectionamplitudeand 1982],indicatingthatthisstrongreflectioneventmarksthebase
negativepolarity,indicatingthattheBSR represents
a strong of hydrate-bearing
sediments.Thisinterpretationis supported
decrease
inacousticimpedance.A wealthofideasregarding
the byhighreflection
amplitudes
andreversed reflection
polarity
of
significance
of naturalgashydrateshavebeenpresented.Gas theBSRwithrespecttotheseafloor
reflection.
TheBSRoccurs
hydrates
mayhavea significanteffectonglobal
climate
change, wherethewaterdepthexceeds400 m, andit eitherdiesoutor
mayconstitute a sourceof naturalgas [Kvenvolden,1988; becomesindistinguishable
fromthe gentlybasinward dipping
1993],and may dissociate and causeslopefailure on reflections of the Canada Basin in the Arctic Ocean where the
continental
margins [Mclver, 1982;Kayenand Lee, 1991]. waterdepthexceeds 2,900m.
Manyinvestigators are developing modelsto estimatethe In thispaperwe examinethe natureof the BSR through
mountsof hydrate orfreegasassociated
withtheBSR[Miller seismicmodelingof itsamplitudeandwaveform withvarying
source-receiver
offsets.Amplitude-versus-offset
(AVO) canbe
animportantindicatorof freegasat aninterfaceandhasbeen
Copyright
!995by theAmerican
Geophysical
Union. anincreasingly
important techniquein theoil andgasindustry
for the lastdecade. The AVO methodhasbeenusedin recent
Papernumber95JB00961. hydrate
BSRstudies
byHyndman
andSpence
[ ! 992],Bangs
et
0148-0227/95/95JB-00961
$05.00 al. [1993],andEckerandLurnley[1993].
12,659
12,660 ANDREASSEN ET AL.: SEISMIC STUDIES OF BOTTOM SIMULATING REFLECTION

158 ø 154 ø 150 ø 146 ø 142 ø

Minimum area inferred to be

underlain by discontinous
BEAUFORT occurrences of gas hydrates

SEA 100km i
72 ø ...
ß

Fig. 2a

Point
lrrow

71
ß o

Dalton-I

Foran-I

i
ASKA •
i
CANADA
I

'1'

Figure 1. BeaufortSeastudyareashowingarealextentof theinterpretedgashydrateandlocationof seismic

linesusedin themapping.The seismiclinesegment
shownin Figure2a is indicated
by thethickblackline,and
the solid circles show location of the wells mentioned in the text.

Seismic line 769 from the Beaufort Sea, which shows a petroleum,Tissotand Welte [1978] note that, in general,
strong BSR (Figures I and 2), was studiedin detail and importantamountsof methanecanbe generatedin suchbeds,
compared with syntheticseismograms for a varietyof models. especiallyif organicmatterof typeHI is present.The presence
Prior to modeling,physicalpropertiesof sedimentspartially of thestrongBSR on line 769 beneathlocalbathymetric highs
saturatedwith gashydrateor with free gaswerecomputed,to couldbe a resultof gasmigrationalongthe BSR. The location
provide a basis for the modeling and a framework for of theBSR to areaslackingnormalfaultssuggests thatthegas
interpretingour results. associatedwith the BSR is not thermogenicgasthatmigrated
The seismicreflectiondatausedin thisstudy(Figure1) were upsectionfromwithinor belowtheoil window.Theassumption
collectedby theU.S. GeologicalSurvey in 1977 fromtheR/V of high contentof organicmatterin theinferredgashydrate-
S.P. Lee [Grantzet al., 1982]. The acquisitionsystemincluded beatingsediments favorsa biogenicoriginof thegas.
a 24-channelhydrophone streamerwitha 2400-mactivesection
and a five air gun 22.7 L sourcearray.The 24-fold datawere Reflection Characteristics of the BSR Area
reprocessed for thepresentstudyto preserverelativereflection
amplitudes. The BSR beneaththe Beaufort Sea (Figure 1) hasthe
followingseismicreflectioncharacteristics:
1. The BSR hashighreflectionamplitudeandreversed
GeologicSetting polarity
relativetotheseafloor
reflection
(Figures
2band2c).
Hydratedepositsof theBeaufortSeaoccurin the upperpart The BSR therefore marks an interface at which there is a
of a progradational sedimentaryprismconstructed acrossthe significant
decrease
in acousticimpedance.
rift thatcreatedthepassivecontinentalmarginnorthof Alaska 2. No consistentreflection that could representthe
[Grantz et al., 1990], about 133 Ma. Extrapolationfrom test shallowmostlimit of gashydrateis present.
wellsontheNorth Slopeof Alaskaandinnershelfsuggests that 3. TheintervalvelocityabovetheBSRis notmeasurably
thehydrate-bearing bedsin thewesternBeaufortSeanear line higherthanthatatcorresponding
subbottom
depthswhere
the
769 (Figure 1) are intertonguedintradeltadepositsof the BSR is not present.
This observation
may indicatethatgas
Sagavanirktok Formationandprodeltadeposits of theChanning hydratedepositsarenoteverywhereunderlain
by BSRs.
An
Formation,of NeogeneandpossiblylatePaleogeneage.These alternative
interpretation
isthattheconcentration
ofgashydrate
depositshavebeendown-dropped towardtheCanadaBasinto in thesediments
abovetheBSRis low or thatgashydrate
is
the north on a series of listtic normal faults. Beneath the confinedto a thin interval above the BSR and therelbredoesnot
westernNorth Slope the Sagavanirktokfacies consistof affectthe intervalvelocityabovethe BSR enoughto be
fluvial-deltaic and shallow marine shale, siltstone, sandstone, detected
withthese data.Average
interval
velocity
between
the
conglomerate,and coal and have averageorganiccontentsof seafloor
reflection
andtheBSRis approximately
1750m/sfor
0.65 and 1.99% type III (terrestrial)kerogenin the coastal the sectionof the line shownin Figure 2a.
Foran-I and Dalton-I wells (Figure 1) [Magoon and Bird, 4. Bathymetric highson theseafloor arecommonly
1988].Althoughthesebedsare immaturefor the generation of underlain byhigh-amplitude BSRs, andBSRsarecommonly
 ANDREASSENET AL.' SEISMICSTUDIESOF BOTTOMSIMULATINGREFLECTION 12,661

LINE 769
a)
CDP1100 1200 1300 1400 1500

•••-•"
,.•..
•.._'
"2•-•------:.
-•.......',;;:-•-?
... ..... : Fig.2b 2kin

:.',:,.',•.'z.::.':-.:,.'...,.i.:7...-':::
....... -:,-.--•--
.'.•'.
.' ':':':.. .: .:-:L: .....:.6 '...:-'.'
-..' '-.•'.'•::,..--.7-•.:•...2 7'r;•
:"-':"'-.-
L.•.-...-7•:-•.
,-•',--';•'-"• •.•.'•__,•.".•.'.-.--.,,•_•.
':', "'::-- --' _.2:
3.0 - •-----,'•--'-•-:'. •:".
•':-
'..•.....f:'?,•:•ST'•:•;7---?:-.'•'•
ß.•.::-,..._•.._
...•..-?,~ -.::;,•7.•-••,••'•'•-•-¾•.::.-.
!.• :;,:.:;-.;.. ....
-•.
•:, .,-:~•,..,.'.-.•
,-_•.
,•-.._..j•:•:-;.........
.,.,.,, i:':..":'.:i'-7•..'.•,
:>.'•-'...•... r :'•',:
..::•:...,
2:?yz 2,..,..,,
::.-..,,;•.t•.,-• :,"•..'."
.•••:
'-'•,.
ß,-•.
,,, ,.,_
....
•...
'•,. .'.:?.-
7 ,i............... .••-:.....• "--•.>' '

b) A. Fig. 2c
FGH
CDP1400 ! ' -I 1460

2.0 _11tllJI
,

3.0
o lOOO 2ooom

c)
CDP1420 1430

:'"!f
.-'...1
.....
l......
'.'
.......
....
_

o 500m
Distance

Figure 2. (a) Relativeamplitudesectionof unmigrated multichannelseismicline 769 showingstrongbottom

simulatingreflection(BSR) segments(locationof the seismicsectionis shownin Figure 1). LettersA-H
indicatelocationsfor detailednear-tracedisplays(Figure3). (b) A portionof line 769 illustratingthe shapeof
theseafloorandBSR reflections. (c) Detaildisplayt¾omline769 illustrating
theseismicwavetbrmsof theBSR
and seafloor reflections.

muchlowerin amplitudeor absentbeneaththe intervening valuesas largeas -0.2 to -0.25 [Miller et al., 1991]. Valuesof
bathymetric
lows(Figure2a).Thehighreflection amplitudes -0.1 to -0.15 are calculated for BSR amplitudesoffshore
beneath
thebathymetric
highshavebeenattributedto freegas Vancouver Island [Hyndmanand Spence, 1992]. and BSR
trappedbeneaththe upward convex base of a seafloor- amplitudes,andreflectioncoefficients,offshoreColombiaare
simulating
bodyof sediment
madeimpermeablebygashydrate reportedto exceedthoseof the seabedreflection,indicating
[Grantz
et al., 1987]. reflectioncoefficientsof-0.2 to -0.3 [Minshull et al., 1994].
5. The BSR crosscuts
beddingplanereflections,
which Near tracesfrom the Beaufort Sea profile 769, shownin
indicate
thatit isnota bedding
planereflection. Figure 3 (locationslabeledA-H in Figure 2a) displayhigh
6. Amplitudes
of reflections
thatcrosscut
theBSR areoften reflectionamplitudeandoppositepolarityof the BSR relative
increased
immediately
belowtheBSR(Figure
2a). to the seafloor reflection. Estimates of the BSR reflection
coefficientswere obtainedby comparingthe BSR amplitude
BSR Reflection Coefficients with the amplitudeof the seafloorreflection [Anstey,1977].
The seafloor reflection coefficient was estimated to be
BSRsassociated withgashydrate arecharacterized
bylarge approximately
0.25 to 0.3, basedon the followingestimates
of
negativereflectioncoefficients,indicatingthat the BSR compressional velocity(V•,)anddensity(p) of theseafloor
originates
at an interface
witha strongdecrease in acoustic sediments:
V•,•..,,•..,,•
= 1460-1480 m/s;P.,,.,w:,,•
= 1000-1020
impedance.
Forexample,
offshore
Peru,reflection
coefficientskg/m
3' V•,.•..,noo•
.•ai,,,•,,,•
= 1500-1600
m/s;andP•..,noo•
.•,ai,,,,:,,•
=
ofhydrate
BSRsareestimated
to average-0.135
and reach 1600-1700
kg/m3,whicharereasonable
estimates
forseafloor
 12,662
ANDREASSEN
ETAL.:SEISMIC
STUDIES
OFBOTTOM
SIMULATING
REFLECTION
Location A B C D E F G H
that
thecrystalline
structure
isstabilized
byguest
molecules
of
gas.
Submarine
gashydrates
sampled
todategenerally
contain
methaneaccompanied
by varyingamounts
of heavier
100 ms . .
hydrocarbon
gases
such
asethane
and
propane
[Sloan,
1990].
Thedensity
ofpure
gas
hydrate
isapproximately
920-930
kg/m
3[Whalley,
1980,KvenvoIden
andMcDonald,
1985;
Mathews
andvon
Huene,
1985].
Inthepresent
study
thethree.
BSR
--,,-' " .. --..• phase
weighted
average
equation
ofZimmerman
and
King
,. ,

[1986]
isused
toestimate
p, thebulk
density
ofgas
hydrate-
bearingsediments.
...•
Compressional
wavevelocity
(Vp)of puregashydrate
is
approximately
3300-3800
m/s[Witalley,
1980;
$loan,
1990].
CDP 1109 1125 1409 1422 1433 1500 1507 1520 Theformationof gashydrate
in sediments
involves there-
placement
ofpore
fluidwithsolid
gashydrate,
aprocess which
Figure3. Near-offset of the isnotwellunderstood
tracesfromline769.Locations [Sloan,
1990].
Moreover,
littleisknown
sections
areindicated
in Figure2a. about
howgas
hydrate
affects
thecompressional
wave
velocity
of thesediments.
Thethree-phase
timeaverage
equation
acoustic (Figure
5, labeled
properties [Hamilton,1978;HamiltonandBachman, "Time
averageequa.")
wasproposed
by
Pearson
etaL,[1986]
1982]. The reflectioncoefficientof the seafloorwas also forestimating
Vpofhydrate-beating
estimated
bycomparing
therelative oftheprimary sediments.
amplitude Thetimeaveragerelationship
forcalculating
seafloor
reflection
withitsfirstmultiple 1977;Warner, compressional
[Anstey, wavevelocity
hasbeenshown
tobeapplicable
1990].
Thereflection
coefficient
R isestimated forconsolidated
tobeA,/Ap, with porous
rocks[Zimmerman
andKing,
1986],
whereA, andAparetheamplitudesof theprimary
andfirstporosities
between
0 and25%[Pandit
andKing,1979],
multiple
reflections
fromtheseafloor.
Theamplitudespreadingbut it is inapplicable
to unconsolidated
sediments
unless
an
correction
usedforthemultiplewastwicethecorrection
factorartificially
low valueis used
fortherockmatrix
velocity
usedfor the seafloorreflection,
as thepathlengthof the [Zimmerman andKing,
1986].Notealso
that
the
timeaverage
multiplereflection
isdouble To avoidthe equation
thatof theprimary. givesa volume
average
of thevelocityof themedium
effectof anyvariations
in reflectioncoefficientwithincidence componentsandthatthemethoddoesnot take into account
the
angle,theprimaryamplitudes weremeasured fromthenearest physicalproperties
of the rock suchas elasticmoduliand
offsettracesandthemultipleamplitudes fromtraces withtwice density.
Thetimeaverage equationof Figure5 clearly
under-
that offset. A seafloorreflection coefficientof about0.28 is estimates
compressional
velocityfor hydrate-bearing
sedi-
ments.
obtained
usingthismethodat an areawherethe seaflooris flat
andwherewaterdepthis about1450m. Compressionalwavevelocity Vpandshear
velocity
V,can
Thenear-trace
amplitudes
of theBSRalongprofile769are alsobecalculated
for gashydrate-bearing
sediment
applying
commonly
60to 80%ofthoseof theseafloor (Figure theGassmann
reflection [ 1951] equations
3) andin placesare evenhigherthanthe seafloorreflection Vp=((K+4/3G)
Ip )m
amplitudes.Reflection
coefficients
for the high-amplitudeand
segments
of theBSRonline769aretherefore
commonlyof the V•=(G/p )m
orderof-0.15 to -0.24,withhighsaround-0.3.

PhysicalPropertiesUsedin theModeling
Water-Saturated Sediments

Compressional
wavevelocity(Vp)of water-saturated
sediments
wascalculated
from stackingvelocities
of the
BeaufortSea seismicprofilesat locationswhereno BSR is
observed,
givinganaverage
intervalvelocity
of about1750m/s
between the seafloor reflection and the BSR. Densities are
obtained
fromthedataof Hamilton[1979],andporosities
are
estimated
fromHamiltonandBachman[1982]andLeeet al.
[1993]. Poisson's ratios for water-saturated sediments are
estimatedfrom Castagnaet al.'s [1985] relationbetween
Poisson's
ratioandVp(Figure
4) andfromHamilton[1979].
For
water-saturated
sedimentsat the depth of the BSR,
compressional
wavevelocity
is estimated
to beapproximately
1900m/s,density
is1900kgtm3,porosity
is 40%,andPoisson's 1400 1800 2200 2600 3000
ratio is 0.47. Compressional
wavevelocity(m/s)

GasHydrate-BearingSedimentsAbovethe BSR Figure4. The relationship

betweenPoisson's
ratioandcom-
pressional
wavevelocity
(Vj•)forclastic
sediments,
calculated
Gashydrate
is anicelikesolidwherein
gasmolecules
are usingtheequation
V• = 1.16V,+ 1.36of Castagna
etag
included
within
acrystalline
water
lattice,
similar
toice,except [•9851.
 ANDREASSEN
ET AL.: SEISMICSTUDI•SOFBOTrOMSIMULATINGREFLECTION 12,663

1984].Compressional
andshearwavevelocity,aswell asbulk
4000
iCømpressiø'i•al
wave
velocity
(Vp)•,..,.•density,
are calculatedas a percentage of gassaturation
sediments(Figure7), usingthe Biot-Gassmann
in
relationsas
3500-.-Gassm•n'sequa.
•ime•rageequ•.•.
.'• givenby Gregory[1977a].It isclearlydemonstrated
in Figures
6 and7 thatthelargest
reduction
in V•,andinPoisson's
ratio
occursfor gassaturation
between0 and5%. P wave velocities
between1200and1400m/sareusedin theseismicmodeling,
• 2000-
500-' and densityand Poisson'sratios are determinedfrom the
relationships
shownin Figures6 and7.

Modeling the BSR

ooo- The seismicresponses
areevaluated
of five models(Figure8 andTable 1)
in thepresent
paper.The presence of gashydrate
500
-• Gassmann's
equa. or freegascanstrongly affectthecompressional wavevelocity
of clasticsediment,whereasthe densitywill decreaseonly
0 20 40 60 80 100 slightlywithincreasedconcentrationsof gashydrateor freegas
Hydratesaturation
( % of porespace) (Figures5 and7). Thereforethe modelswe haveevaluatedare
displayedasvelocitymodels.
For modelswith no free gasbelow the BSR (IA andI]3 in
Figure5. Calculatedrelationshipfor bulk density,com-
Figure8), andassuming a velocityof 1900m/sbelowtheBSR,
pressionalwavevelocity,andshearwavevelocityversus gas
hydratesaturation, basedon the time averageequation and a velocityof at least2600m/s is neededfor thehydrate-bearing
sediments above the BSR to obtain a reflection coefficient more
Gassmann's [ 1951] equations.
negativethan-0.15,asestimated for the BSR on profile769. A
velocity of 2600 rrdsis thereforeusedfor hydrate-bearing
andaredisplayed in Figure5 (labeled"Gassmann's equa.").
The sediments in thesemodels.For modelswith free gasunderthe
bulk modulus of the sediment, K, and the sediment shear BSR (IIA, liB, and IIC in Figure 8), velocitiesof 1900-2400
modulus,G, arecalculated usingan "inclusion theory"thatwas m/s are needed for the sediments above the BSR to obtain
appliedto permafrost sediments by KusterandToksdiz [1974] reflection COefficientsof-0.15 to -0.24, assuminga gas
andthathasbeentestedby experimental andtheoreticalstudies saturationof at least 1% of the sedimentpore volume.
onpartiallyfrozensediments byZimmerman andKing[1986], Therefore in modelswith free gas under the BSR a median
whoalsogive a detailedexplanationof the calculations. The value of 2150 m/s is usedfor the velocityof hydrate-bearing
gashydratemoduliusedin thecalculations areobtainedfrom sediments above the BSR.
Sloan[1990]. AVOmodel parameters areoftenexpressed asV•, We haveevaluatedmodelswith a thin layerof gashydrate,
andPoisson's ratio, a, that can be calculatedfrom in whichthehydratehasa uniformconcentration (IA andRA
in Figure8); modelswith a thin layer of gashydratehavinga
a-- {!/2 ( VJV•): - I } / {( V•/•):-! } . gradationalincreasein hydrateconcentration with depth(IB
andlib in Figure8); andmodelswith nogashydrateabovethe
Poisson'sratioversusgashydratesaturation is displayedin
figure6 (hydratecurve).The equations of KusterandTokstz
[1974]andGassmann [1951] are probablysuitablefor gas Poisson's ratio
hydrate-saturations
of 30%orgreater, according toZimmerman
andKing[1986]andCurtis[1992].The modelis probably not 0.4-
applicabletosedimentwithlow concentrations of gashydrate.
Ano•erproblem is thatthismodelisapproximate onlyforvery
sand-richsediments.Gashydrates, however,commonly occur 0.3-
inclay-rich sediment,
andCastagna etal. [1985]haveshown
thatV•/Vsandhence
thePoisson's
ratioa increase
withclay
content.
Thehydratecurveof Figure6 will providea minimum 0.2
estimate
of thePoisson's
ratio.Establishing a completetheo-
retical
modelfor gashydrate-bearingclay-rich sedimentsis
beyondthescope of thispaper.
In thepresent studyP wave 0.1
velocities
for gashydrate-bearingsediments at depthof the
BSRareestimated fromvelocity
analysis andfromtheBSR
reflection
coefficient,
asdiscussedlaterinthispaper,whereas
thePoisson's
ratiosusedareobtained fromFigure6 andthe
6assmann curveofFigure 5. 0 20 40 60 80 100
Hydrate/ Freegassaturation
(% of porespace)
FreeGasBeneaththe BSR
Figure 6. The relationshipbetweenPoisson's
ratio andsatu-
Freegascauses
a drastic
reductionin compressional
wave ration of hydrateor free gas in the sedimentpore space,
velocity
andPoisson's
ratioof clasticsediments
[Domenico, calculatedfromthe equations
givenby Gassrnann [1951]and
!976,1977;Gregory,
1977a,b;
Murphy,1984;Ostrander,by Gregory[1977a],respectively.
12,664 ANDREASSEN ET AL.: SEISMIC STUDIES OF BOTTOM SIMULATING RE•EC•ON

3000 Models With Free Gas Beneath the BSR

Models witha layeroffreegasbeneaththeBSRupto22ms

thick(11-16mofsediments withgassaturation
between100%
2500 Dentsity and1%,respectively)
andmodels withathicklayerofgas
that
1 decreasesin concentrationwithdepthbothproduceBSR
2000
..................................
]...................................................
reflections
thatcloselymatch thefielddata(Figure10c).
A
layerwithconstanthydrateconcentrationabove
theBSRwill
1500 modifythe BSR modelwaveform(Figure10a),butthe
correlation
with the field datais still reasonable,
alsofor
hydrate
thicknesses
greater thanhalfof thewavelength
(22ms
1000
or 24 m of gashydrate-bearing
sediment
witha velocity
of
2150m/s) (Figures10aand10b).BSRwaveforms
similar
to
thefielddataareobtained
formodels
witha gradafional
layer
500 ofincreasing
hydrate
saturation
withdepth
aswell(Figure
10b).
Shear wave velocity(Vs) A goodfit withthedatacanbeobtained
alsoformodels
withno
0 '' I''' l"'' I''' I hydrateabovethe BSR if the underlying
freegaslayeris
0 4 8 12 16 20 thinner
than22ms(11-16mforfreegas-bearingsediments).
Concentrationof free gas(% of porespace) Thegaslayercan,however,
bethicker
if it decreases
ingas
saturationwith depth(Figure 10c).
It is apparentfrom the foregoinganalysisthat studies
of
Figure 7. Calculatedrelationshipfor bulk density,com-
near-verticalseismicdataprovideinformationaboutthebest
pressionalwave velocity, and shear wave velocity versus
usedare fit models.
contrationof free gasin the sediment.The equations Usingonlythenear-vertical
seismicdata,however,
thosegivenby Gregory[ 1977a]. we cannotdiscriminatebetweenmodelswithfreegasbelowthe
BSR andmodelswithouta freegaslayer,nor canweestimate
thethicknessof the hydratelayer.
BSR (IIC of Figure 8). Free gasundertheBSR is modeledin
two ways: (1) confinedto a thin layer with constantgas Amplitude-Versus-Offset(AVO) Analyses
concentration and (2) confinedto a layer in whichthe gas A great deal of attentionhas beendevotedto usingthe
concentrationdecreases with depth (Figure8, dashedlines). Poisson's ratio as a directhydrocarbonindicatoreversincethe
Syntheticseismogramswere constructedfor each of the
nowclassicpaperon AVO published by Ostrander[1984].The
models by estimatinga sourcewavelet from the seafloor
differencesin elasticproperties, as quantifiedby Poisson's
reflectionin an area whereit appearsto be free from inter- ratio, betweengashydrate,free gas,and liquidwaterarethe
ference with other reflections.
physical basisfor AVO analysis of theBSR.Thechange ofthis
ratio at an interfacedirectly affects the reflectedP wave
Near-Vertical Incidence BSR Waveform and amplitude asa functionof offsetonprestack data.
It can be seenfrom Figures4 and 6 that a change in
Reflection Coefficients of the Models
Poisson's ratio will occurat the baseof gashydrate-beating
The near-vertical seismic traces calculated for the different sediment, atthetopof gas-bearing sediment,
andataninterface
modelspresented in Figure8 aredisplayedin Figures9 and 10. with gas hydrate-bearing sediment overlying sediment
Two representativedata traces from seismicline 769 are containing freegas.Changes in concentration
levelsofbothgas
displayedat the fight sideof the figuresfor comparison. The hydrate andfreegaswill affectthePoisson's ratioacrossthe
histograms abovethetracesindicatethecalculated near-vertical BSR andwill henceaffecttheBSRamplitude variation
with
reflection coefficient for each model, and the BSR reflection offset.The variationin P waveamplitude withoffsetcanbe
coefficients,estimatedfrom line 769, are displayedhereas a
shaded band between-0.15 and-0.24.

Models With No Free Gas Beneath the BSR

Modelswithno freegasbeneaththeBSR anda thinhydrate BSR

layer of uniformconcentrationabovegiveat the depthof the
BSR two separatepeaks of oppositepolarity for layer
thicknesses greaterthan half of the wavelength)•, which is
approximately22 ms (29 m of gashydrate-beating sediments IB IIA IIB IIC

with a velocityof 2600 m/s) (Figure9a). Thesepeaksarenot

observed in thefield data(Figure9a). Forhydratelayersthinner Figure8.Relative changesincompressional wavevelocity
for
than 22 ms the BSR model waveform is asymmetricwith a thefivemodles thathave beenevaluated.
Vpisincreasingtothe
strongnegativepeak followedby a slightlysmallerpositive right. Thevalues ofVpused inthemodeling arementioned
and
peakwhichalsodiffersfromthefield datatraces.Modelswith discussed inthepaper. Freegasunder theBSRismodeled as
increasinghydrateconcentration withdepthcanprovidea more confined to a thinlayerwithconstant gasconcentrationoras
symmetric BSR waveform(Figure9b) anda betterfit withthe confined toa layerinwhich gasconcentration decreases
with
data,for all hydratethicknesses. depth,asindicated withthedashed lines.
 ANDREASSEN
ETAL.:SEISMICSTUDIES
OFBOTTOMSIMULATING
REFLECTION 12,665

Table 1. Model Comparisons

iiiii i ii i

PhysicalProperties
Qualities V•,,Density,
Poisson's
Ratio Match With Near-Vertical Match With
i Incidence Data AVO Data

Model Above BSR Below BSR Above BSR Below BSR

IA thinlayerof no free gas 2600, 1860, 1900, 1900, poor poor

uniform 0.38/0.42 0.47
hydrate
concentration

IB thinlayerof no free gas 2600-1900, 1900, 1900, good poor

increasing 1860-1900, 0.47
hydrate 0.38-0.47
concentration
at depth

IIA thinlayerof freegasin 2150,1880, 1200-1400, good,forgaslayersthinner good

uniform sediments 0.44 1880-1890, than22 ms(11-16m)or
hydrate 0.2-0.3 thickerandwith a
concentration gradational
base

IIB thinlayerof freegasin 2150-1900, 1200-1400, good,forgaslayersthinner good

increasing sediments 1880-1900, 1880-1890, than22 ms(11-16m)or
hydrate 0.44-0.47 0.2-0.3 thickerandwith a
concentration gradational
base
at depth

IIC nohydrate freegasin 1900,1900, 1200-1400, good,for gaslayersthinner good,if the gas
sediments 0.47 1880-1890, than22 ms (11-16m) or layer hasa
0.2-0.3 thicker and with a gradationa!
gradational
base base

V•,isgivenin meters
persecond,
anddensity
isgiveninkilograms
percubicmeter.

calculated for differentBSR modelsand can be directly The sectionof line 769 shownin Figure2a was reprocessed
compared withmeasurements of therealdataBSRamplitude- for the AVO studyto preserverelative amplitudes,and the
versus-offset. Unfortunately, thesemeasurements arecompli- followingprocessing sequence wasapplied:commonmidpoint
catedby manyfactorswhichaffecttherecorded amplitude as (CMP) sorting,spikingdeconvolution,sphericaldivergence
a functionof offset,of which! 1 werecitedby Ostrander amplitudecorrection,bandpassfiltering, detailed velocity
[1984].Thesecomplications havebeendiscussed in several analysis,and normalmoveoutcorrection.Spikingdeconvo-
papers [O'DohertyandAnstey,1971;Swan,1991],andsomeof lutionwasappliedto produce a zero-phase outputandcollapse
themajorfactors are(1) reflectioncoefficient,(2) theencasing thewaveletasmuchaspossible. This affectsthewaveform,but
sediments, (3) sphericalspreading,(4) sourceand receiver after having analyzedseveralgathersbefore and after de-
arrayattenuation,(5) event tuning, (6) interfacegeometry convolution,we concludethat the shapeof the AVO curveis
(smooth versuscomplexboundary),(7) structure,(8) ani- notsignificantly changed. Detailedvelocityanalyses weremade
sotropy,(9) noise,(10) residualnormalmoveout(NMO), and for every20 CDP or aboutevery 1 km alongtheline.We then
(11) processing. The reflectioncoefficient,or the relative usedtwo independent methodsof offset-dependent amplitude
change in reflectioncoefficient,is the factorwe wouldlike to balancingto correctthegathers for arrayattenuation,
andeach
observe. It is difficultto isolateand removemanyof the areexplainedbelow.
differentcauses thataffecttheAVO response. Theinteractive
AVOmethod does,however, allowustoidentifytheeffects of Amplitude Balancing
some[Sorokaand Reilly,1992].For example,low signalto
noise ratioandinterference effectscaused by strongout-of- Successfulevaluationof AVO resultsrequiresthat true
plane coherent noiseorthinbedtuningcanoftenbeidentified amplitude-versus-offset dataareobtained.To thisendwe have
withtheinteractive AVOapproach. Detailed examination ofthe corrected thepeakvaluesof therelativeBSRamplitudes in two
commondepthpoint(CDP) gatherswill help to judge the ways: (1) by a deterministic methodthat correctsfor hydro-
qualityandsignificance of AVO results. phonedirectivityand (2) statistically,by usingthe seafloor
Wehaverestricted theAVO analysis to sections of theline reflection as a reference calibration event.
whereboththeBSR andtheseafloorreflectorarerelatively Method !: Correctingfor receiverarmy directivity. Of
smooth andflat (Figure2c), so thatno dip correction was themajorfactorsthataffectreflectionamplitudeasa function
required.Theprestack datawerecarefully examined, andonly of offset,themostimportantfactorfor thisstudyis thereceiver
CDPgathers wheretheBSRisa single symmetric pulse atall arrayattenuation, because thereceiveris anextended armyand
offsetswereselected forAVO analysis, in ordertominimize nota pointreceiver.The source,however,canbe treatedasa
interference effectswithotherreflections. singlepointsourcebecause the five-elementsourcearraywas
12,666 ANDREASSEN ET AL.: SEISMIC STUDIES OF BOTTOM SIMULATING REFLECTION

Model IA
(a)
No free gasbeneaththe BSR Data from

Rc
Thin gashydrateabovethe BSR line 769
-O. lO
-0.20
-0.30 CDP CDP
, ,
1422 1427
Time
(s)
Sea-
1.96
floor

2.37 BSR'-•-

Thickness 2 4 8 12 20 24 28 ms
of hydrate
layer _

Model IB
(b)
No free gasbeneaththe BSR Data from
Gradationalgashydrateabovethe BSR line 769

Rc
-o.2o ....
::,:•,.,,d;•i!Z,..Sdi-!ZL:',:,.2:•:!.i;::.•i.
.......
;:...:.d!L..i
...........
121:1. ........
-0.30 ....... CDP
1422
CDP
1427

Time
r' ' i' ' ' I :
(s)

2.37
b BSR•

Thickness 2 4 8 12 20 24 28 ms
of base
hydratelayer

Figure 9. Near-verticalseismictracesproducedfrom modelswith no free gasunderthe BSR andgashydrate

in the sedimentover the BSR: (a) for modelswith a thin layerwith uniformgashydrateconcentration;
(b) for
modelswith a thin layer of increasingconcentration
of gashydratewith depth.The histogramsabovethe traces
indicate the calculated near-vertical reflection coefficient for each model, and the BSR reflection coefficients
estimatedfrom line 769 are indicatedby the shadedbandbetween-0.15 and -0.24.

distributedcross-line,not inline, and thus,a sourcearray interactivelywithin CDP gathersfrom areas wherethis
correctionis not needed.Hydrophonearrayattenuation is a reflectionis "good."A generalAVO behaviorof theseafloor
functionof incidenceangleon the hydrophone arrayandwas reflectionwasestimated by smoothing
theAVO response of
calculatedusingthefunctionof SheriffandGeldart[1982,p. thesegathers.
140]. The AVO response of the seafloorreflectionwasthen
Method 2: Trace normalization usingthe seaflooras a modeledby usingthe following estimatesof theelastic
reference calibration event. The seafloor reflection in the properties
attheseafloor:
(1)A smallcontrastincompressional
zero-phase velocityacrossthisinterface,from 1460m/sfor theseawater
studyareais,in someplaces,a single,symmetrical to
pulse,afterthe datahavebeendeconvolved,which is character- about1500-1600m/sfor theseafloorsediments(obtained
from
istic of a reflection from a simple interface.The seafloor Hamilton[1978]);(2) density
acrossthisboundaryisassumed
reflection from these areas is used as a reference event for toincrease
fromapproximately
1020kg/m
3inthewater
column
offset-dependent
balancing asexplained to about1600- 1700kg/m3 for theshallowmost
of theBSRamplitudes, sediments
below. (estimatedfrom Hamilton[1978] andHamiltonandBachman
Peak amplitudesof the seafloorreflectionwere measured [ 1982]); (3) Poisson's
ratioof 0.49-0.48is estimated
forthe
 ANDREASSENET AL.: SEISMIC STUDIESOF BOTI'OM SIMULATING REFLECTION 12,667

Model IIA
(a)

it Rc
Free gasbeneaththe BSR
Thin gashydrateabovethe BSR
Data from
line 769
-0.10
-0.20
-0.30 CDP CDP
1422 1427

(s)
Sea-

1.96
floor 1

2.37 BSR'-•

Thickness ,..
....
ofhydrate4 16 20 24 42 4 42ms
Gas thick- 20 20 20 20 20 Gradational
hess (ms)

Model IIB
(b)
Free gasbeneaththe BSR Data from
Gradationalgashydrateabovethe BSR line 769

Time
i | i i i | | I
CDP
1422
CDP
1427

(s)

2.37
•- BSR•

Thickness '
ofhydrate4 16 20 24 42 4 42ms
Gas thick- 20 20 20 20 20 Gradational
ness (ms)

Figure 10. Near-verticalseismictracesproducedfrom•nodelswith freegasundertheBSR: (a) for modelswith

a thinlayerwith uniformgashydrateconcentration in thesedimentsabovethe BSR; (b) for modelswith a thin
layer with increasingconcentrationof gashydratewith depthin thesedimentabovethe BSR; (c) for models
with no gashydratein the sedimentabovetheBSR.The histograms abovethetracesindicatethecalculated
near-vertical reflection coefficient for each model, and the BSR reflection coefficients estimated from line 769
areindicatedby the shadedbandbetween-0.15 and-0.24.

seafloor
sediments
[from Castagnaet al., 1985;Hamilton, Observed AVO for the BSR
1979].
A correction
function,for offset-dependent
balancing,
was Examplesof CDP gathers,correctedfor receiver array
calculated
fromcomparison of theobserved,
smoothed AVO directivity,usingmethodI fromabove,areshownin Figure11
andillustratetheamplitude-versus-offset
responseof the seafloor reflection and the theoretical AVO behaviorof the BSR.
response.
Ratiosfor theobservedseafloorAVO response A slight increasein relativeBSR amplitudewith offsetwas
to the
theoreticalseafloor
AVO response
werecalculatedforeach observedin severalareasalongthe line 769, but the following
trace
of thetwoCDPgathers function AVO analysiswas,asbeforementioned,restrictedto sections
andusedasa correction
withincidence
anglefor balancingtheBSRamplitudes. Using of the line where both the BSR and the seafloor reflection are
areference
eventtorestore
thereflection
amplitudes
withoffset relativelysmoothandflat.The averageAVO trendfor 10 CDP
isanalternativeor a supplementto deterministic
methodsgathersis displayedin Figures12 and 13, wheretheresultof
requitingcomplexor undeterminable correctionschemes usingcorrectionmethod1 aboveis displayedas a thicksolid
[Chiburis,
1992;RossandBeale,1994]. line, and the resultof method2 aboveis displayedas a thick
12,668 ANDREAS SEN ET AL.: SEISMIC STUDIES OF BOTTOM SIMULATING REFLECTION

- i i III Ill II II I I I I J I I I IIII I I

Model
IIC (C)
Free gasbeneaththe BSR Data from
No gashydrateabovethe BSR line 769....

-0.30•Good,,,
Good Good,
Bad,Bad,,
,BadGood 14221427
Time
(s) Sea-
1.96
floor
--•T ß ß ß ß i i

2.37 BSR-•

Thickness 4 8 12 22 26 44 Grada-
of gas(ms) tional
Vgas(m/s) 1200 1400 1400 1400 1200 1200 1200
i i ii

Figure 10. (continued)

dashedline. The generalagreement of thetwo AVO averages, digitizedand normalizedto the neartraceamplitudepeak,are
calculatedby independent methods,providesassurance thatour displayedin Figures12 and 13. The modelswithnofreegas
corrected data AVO trend for the BSR is valid. The corrected below the BSR exhibit an AVO trend that is very different
AVO averages exhibita slightincreasein relativeamplitudeto from that observedin the data (Figures 12a and 12b).These
a factor of 1.8-1.9 at the far offset of 2300 m, which cor- modelsshowa slightdecrease in BSR amplitudefor offsets
up
respondsto a BSR incidence angle of approximately48 to 1300 - 1700 m and then an abrupt3- to 4-fold amplitude
degrees. increase.An exceptionwasthemodelAVO curvein Figure12a
for a 20-ms-thickgashydratelayer (26 m of hydrate-beating
Modeling the BSR Amplitude With Offset sedimentswith a velocityof 2600 m/s) andno freegas,which
correlatedwell with the datafor offsetsup to 1800m butwhich
The amplitude-versus-offset responsewas studiedfor the
showedsubstantialdeviationfor largeroffsets.
velocity modelsof Figure 8 using a PC AVO programfrom
Hampson-RussellSoftware Services Ltd. Synthetic seismo-
grams were generated by ray tracing and the Zoeppritz CDP 1434

equations[Waters, 1987], accountingfor mode conversion

effects.
Gradients
of themodelinputparameters
Vp,p anda are
approximatedby thin homogenouslayers, and interference
effectsareexaminedby varyingthe layerthicknesses
from2 ms
to thewavelengthof theseismicpulseusedin the modeling,44 CDP
..................
1443
ms.

Selectionof appropriatePoisson'sratiosis essentialfor

realisticmodeling of the AVO response.For water-saturated
sedimentsat the depthof the BSR a Poisson's ratioof 0.47 is
.............
......
estimated fromFigure4. For sediments partiallysaturatedwith CDP 1454

freegas,minimumvaluesof the Poisson'sratiosare calculated

from Figures 5, 6, and 7, and since these are minimum
estimates, slightly higher values are usedin the modeling
.......
'......................
(Table 1). For modelswith no free gasbeneaththe BSR anda 2.6
compressional wave velocity of 2600 m/s for the hydrate- CDP 1456

bearingsediments, a Poisson'sratio of 0.38 wasused. We have

for suchmodelsalso examinedthe AVO effect when usinga
Poisson'sratio of 0.42, which was used by Hyndmanand 2.6
Spence[ 1992] and which we take as a reasonableupperlimit (s)
for thePoisson'sratio of gashydrate-bearingsedimentswith a 268 Offset(m) 2175
Vpof 2600m/s.
The AVO responsewas studied for the five models Figure11.Common depthpoint (CDP)gatherswithnormal
illustratedin Figure 8. For each model a range of layer moveout from line 769, illustrating
amplitude-versus-offset
thicknesses, wave velocities (AVO) behaviorof the BSR. The amplitudes
Poisson',ratios,and compressional havebeen
were used.The peak valuesof the modeledBSR amplitudes, correctedfor receiverarraydirectivity.
 ANDREASSENET AL.: SEISMICSTUDIESOF BOTTOM SIMULATINGREFLECTION 12,669

Offset (m) of free gasin thesediments belowtheBSRandno hydrate

500 1000 1500 2000 2500
abovethe BSR had a slightlyhigherrate of increasein the
relativeamplitude
withoffset(Figure13c).A verygoodfit with
thedatawas,however, alsoobtainedformodels withfreegas
and no overlyinghydrateif the free gasconcentration was
decreasingwith depth(Figure13c,dashed line).
24

Discussion

The near-verticalincidenceBSR response demonstrated a

reasonable
fit withtherepresentative
datatracesfor someof the
modelswithnofreegasbeneaththeBSR(Figure9b) aswell as
for modelswitha freegaszoneundertheBSR(Figures10a,
10b,and 10c) andcouldnotdiscriminatebetweenmodelswith
free
_e,e,th
th,, ':":.. and withoutfree gas.The AVO methodwasmoreusefulfor
thispurpose.TheBSRamplitude-versus-offset observedin the
Thin
gas
hYdrate.above
!he
BSR "•'-': datacouldonly be obtainedfor modelswith free gasin the
Vp
gas
hydrate-bearing
sediments
=2600
m/s sedimentsbelowtheBSR,andsuchmodelsgave,independently
....... Poisson'•
_ra_tio
=0.42 of thehydratelayerthickness,
a goodfit withthedata(Figures
13aand13b).Modelswithnofreegasbeneath theBSR did not
.... Data
AVO,
,,U'end,
average
values correlatewith the BSR amplitude-versus-offset data obser-
(a) vationsfor anymodelthickness of the hydratelayer(Figures
12a and 12b). Changingthe physicalparameters,within
Offset (m) reasonablelimits,did notimprovethe correlationbetweenthe
no-gasmodelsand the data.
0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500
0

0.5 Offset(rn)
x2
20
500 1000 1500200025[00
1 Free
gas
beneath
theBSR
Thin gashydrateabovetheBSR
1
0.5
- Vp
=2150
m/s,
Poisson's
ratio
=0.44

. 1.5
I008

ge alues 2
3 '-•,,,-X.
I
(b) 2.5- 12 msfreegas
Figure12.AVO trends formodelswithnofreegasunderthe ..... Decreasing
gasconcentration
withdepth
BSRandgashydratein thesediment overtheBSR:(a) for .... DataAVO trend,averagevalues
modelswitha thin layerwithuniformgashydrateconcen-
tration;
(b) for modelswithincreasing
concentration
of gas
hydratewith depth.The curvesshowpeakvaluesof the (a)
modeled
BSRamplitudes
thatarenormalized
to thenear-trace
peakamplitude.
Thicknessof hydrate-bearingsedimentis Figure 13. AVO trendsfor modelswith free gasin the sedi-
indicated
bythenumbers
(inmilliseconds)
pointing
tothelines. mentsbeneaththe BSR: (a) for modelswith a thin layerwith
Theaverage
AVOtrend
for10CDPgathersiscalculated
using uniformgashydrateconcentration in the sedimentabovethe
two different methodsfor offset-dependent
amplitude BSR;(b) for modelswitha layerwith increasingconcentration
balancing,
asexplained
inthetext. of gashydratewith depthabovethe BSR; (c) for modelswith
no gas hydratein the sedimentabovethe BSR. The curves
showpeak valuesof the modeledBSR amplitudesthat are
AVO curvesfor modelswith free gasin the sediment normalizedto the near-tracepeak amplitude.Thicknessof
beneaththeBSRshowverygoodagreement withtheAVO hydrate-beatingsedimentis indicatedby the numbers(in
trend
of thereal dataforbotha thinlayerof constant
hydrate milliseconds)
pointingto thelines.The averageAVO trendfor
saturation
(Figure13a)anda thinlayerwithincreasing
hydrate 10 CDP gathersis calculatedusingtwo differentmethodsfor
withdepth(Figure13b).Modelswitha thinlayer offset-dependent
concentration amplitudebalancing,asexplainedin thetext.
12,670 ANDREASSEN ET AL.: SEISMIC STUDIES OF BOTTOM SIMULATING REFLECTION

Offset (m) inthesedimentsbeneaththeBSRcannotbeinferredfrom

the
0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 seismicdata,because
it is notpossible
to distinguish
subtle
0 differences
in Vpanda associatedwithgasconcentrations
abovea few percent.
Increased
amplitudes
beneath theBSRof reflections
that
[ Gradational
gashydrate
above
theBSR crosscut
theBSR(Figure2a) arecommonly observed
inthe
Beaufort
Seadataandmightalsoindicate
thepresence
offree
gasin the sedimentlayersbeneaththe BSR.
E
Gas Hydrate Above the BSR
Changesin elasticparameters
for thezoneabovetheBSR
aresmall
comparedwiththeextremechangesoftheunderlying
sediments
partially
saturated
withfreegas.Thisexplains
why
changes
inthickness
orelastic
moduliof thehydrate-bearing
sedimentsdid not substantiallyaffect the modeledAV0
behaviorfor freegasmodelsandwhy goodcorrelation withthe
2 12m
•e datacouldbe obtainedfor any hydratethickness.
Evenmodels
withnohydrate
abovetheBSRshowed
anAVOtrend
very
similar to that observedfor the data, and a goodfit was
2.5
f --.-..Data
AVO
trend,
average
values obtained for the no-hydratemodelwhenthe concentration
free gas was decreasing
with increasing
depth(Figure13c,
of
(b) dashedline).
Offset (m) Hydratesaturation
abovethe BSR can theoretically
be
estimatedfrom compressional
wave velocity,but thiscalcul-
0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 ation cannot be used here since we do not know the concent-
0
rationof free gasbeneaththeBSR. The AVO trendof thefield
Free gas beneath the BSR datamight,however,beusedto tentatively
estimate
thehydrate
No gashydrate above the BSR saturation above the BSR. The AVO trend of the BSR is
0.5-
Vp of gasintervalvariesfrom 1200to 1400m/s interpreted
toresultmainlyfromtheV•,anda contrasts
across
theBSR andis assumed notto be muchaffectedby interference
effects.We havein Figure14 ignoredinterference effectsfrom
beddingplanescloseto the BSR andmodeledthe reflection
coefficientversusoffsetfor the singleBSR interface, varying
22
the concentrations of gashydrateandfree gasandusingthe
curvesof Figures5 (Gassmann's equation),
6, and7. Thecurves
of Figure14areobtainedfromtheZoeppritzequation[Waters,
1987], and the reflectioncoefficientcurveof the data(shaded
bandin Figure14)is obtained fromtheestimated near-vertical
reflectioncoefficientsandfrom the averageAVO trendof the
2.5-
2022
• data.It is demonstrated in Figures14aand14bthatincreasing
Decreasing
gasconcentration
withdepth
saturation
of gashydrateabovetheBSRwill change theAVO
.... Data AVO trend,averagevalues
trend substantially,
while increasedsaturationof free gas
beneaththeBSR will not affecttheAVO curvesignificantly
oncethe gassaturation is aboveapproximately1% (Figure
(c) 14c).The estimated AVO trendof thedata(shaded bandin
Figure 13. (continued) Figures14aand 14b)showsverygoodagreement withthe
modeledAVO curvesforgashydrate
saturation
between0 and
Free Gas Beneath the BSR
10% (Figures14aand14b).For furtherincrease
in hydrate
saturation,
themodeled
AVO curvesshowincreased deviation
For modelswith a free gaszonebeneaththe BSR, thehigh from the AVO trend observed for the data.
Diminished
BSR reflectioncoefficientis primarilydueto theextremelylow reflection
amplitude,orblanking,
iscommonly
compressional wavevelocityfor gas-bearing observed
sediments.above
Even theBSRalongtheBlakeRidgeof theAtlantic
continental
small amountsof free gas in the sedimentscausea drastic margin oftheUnitedStates
[DillonandPaull,1983;
reductionin the compressional Shipleyet al., 1979;Leeet al., 1993],whereit hasbeen
velocity as well as in the
Poisson's
ratio,andthemodels
withextremely of Vp attributed
lowvalues tothepresence of gashydrateconcentration
inthe
andcrproduce
a distinctive
trendof increasing
amplitude
with orderof 6-10%of thetotalsediment
volume[Leeetai., 1993],
offset. or 10-17%of thesediment
porevolume.
Blanking
above
the
A goodcorrelationwith the BeaufortSeafield datawas BSRisnotcommonly reported
fromother
BSRlocations.There
obtainedwhen the thicknessof free gas in the sediments might beindicationsintheBeaufortSeadataofa zone with
beneaththeBSR wasthinnerthan11-16m or hada decreasing diminished amplitudeoverlying
theBSR,butit isdifficult
to
gasconcentrationwithincreasing
depth.It is alsopossible that decide
if theloweramplitudeabovetheBSRisaneffect of
free gas beneaththe BSR could be concentrated in several increasedamplitude
ofthereflections
immediately beneath
the
zonesof varyinggasconcentration.
Saturation levelsof freegas BSR.
 ANDREASSENET AL.- SEISMICSTUDIESOF BOTI'OM SIMULATING REFLECTION 12.671

Offset (m)
0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500

1% free gasbeneathBSR
0
(a)
10
-0.2 •s
2O
3O

-0.3 so
7o
-0.4 • 'ø ' ß

-0.5

3%freegasbeneath
BSR (b)
o
IO

70 Saturation above the BSR

-0.6

0
Effects of free gassaturation
Gas saturation beneath the BSR = 0%
-0.1 (c)
1
-0.2 2 •

-0.3

-0.4 2 50
-
_
100

-0.5
-- HydrateSaturationabovetheBSR= 10%
-0.6
500 1000 1500 2000 2500

Figure 14. CalculatedBSR reflectioncoefficientswith offset, basedon the velocity (Gassmann's[1951]

equation)anddensityfunctionsof Figures5 and7 andthe Poisson's ratiosof Figure6: (a) for 1% free gas
beneaththe BSR; (b) for 3% free gasbeneaththe BSR; (c) for 10% gashydrateabovethe BSR. The small
numbersnextto thelinesindicatein Figures14aand14bsaturation of gashydrateabovetheBSR andin Figure
14csaturationof freegasbeneaththeBSR,in percent of theporevolume.Estimatedreflectioncoefficientsfor
the studiedBSR of line 769 are indicatedby the shadedband.

ComparisonWith ResultsFrom Other Areas theporespace,hasbeensuggested for theselocations,but such

and Other Methods concentrationsof hydrateare too small to generatethe large
impedance contrastsrequired to match the observed BSR
A low-velocityzone, inferringthe presenceof free gas amplitudes.Instead,the low velocitycausedby smallconcen-
beneaththe BSR has also been observed in seismic data from
trationsof free gas beneaththe BSR will explainthe strong
offshore
Peru[Miller et al., 1991],fromtheBlakeRidgearea reflectionassociated withthebaseof thegashydratestability
oftheU.S.Atlanticmargin[Leeet al., 1993]andfromoffshore zone. The results from our study of the BSR beneaththe
Colombia [Minshull
etal., 1994].Logging
results
fromOcean Beaufort Sea are in accordance with such a BSR model.
DrillingProgram(ODP)sitessuggest thepresenceof small Our study demonstrates that investigationsof the BSR
amounts
of free gas beneaththe BSR, of the orderof 1-5% amplitude-versus-offset
behaviorcan be a usefultechniquefor
offshore
VancouverIslandandoffshore Oregon[MacKayetal., detectingthe presenceof free gasin the sedimentbeneaththe
1994]andapproximately 1% offshoreChile[Bangset al., BSRbutdonotprovideinformationaboutgassaturation levels.
1993].
Estimatedthic•kness
of theinferredfreegaslayervaries The AVO behaviorof theBSR is quite sensitiveto changesin
from8 m offshoreChileto morethan50 m offshore Oregon. saturationlevelsof gas hydratein the sedimentabovethe BSR
Thepresenceof gashydrate abovetheBSR,upto 10-20%of andoffersa firstapproachto estimatingtheamountof hydrate
12,672 ANDREASSEN ET AL.: SEISMIC STUDIES OF BOTTOM SIMULATING REFLECTION

immediatelyabovethe BSR. A methodbasedon thedegreeof Recovery,

edited
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velocity information,was recently proposedby Lee et al. Domenico,
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mentaryS waveinformationto informationthatcanbe obtained Ecker,
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of multichannel
research intohow the physical propertiesof sediments are seismic-reflection
datacollected
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Survey
in
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andstack
tapes
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DeborahR. Hutchinson,NathanL. Bangs,and JohnJ. Miller for
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R.E.,andH.J.Lee,Pleistocene
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of seismic
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