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Explorer Division Column DEG By Francois Marechal

Energy Mix: Converging Energy Sources to Meet Long-term Societal Requirements

In order to support our modern society in an ever- growing global population, energy supplies must converge to meet that growing demand.

Added on 01 December, 2019

Explorer Article By Gretchen Flint

Announcing the New Line-Up of Speakers for the 2019-20 Distinguished Lecture Program

Five internationally acclaimed geoscientists have been named for this season’s AAPG Distinguished Lecture program, the Association’s flagship offering of cutting-edge geoscience excellence that once again will be accessible to everyone, everywhere, at any time.

Added on 01 December, 2019

Explorer Geophysical Corner By Kurt Marfurt,Satinder Chopra

3-D Seismic Volume Visualization in Color: Part 1

Though machine learning techniques promise capabilities to sift through “big” data, interactive visualization of the generated attributes that make an effective use of color continue to be lacking. In order to effectively visualize seismic data/attributes in color, we need first to understand how color is perceived by the human eye and then how such colors are rendered on workstation monitors.

Added on 01 December, 2019

Explorer Emphasis Article By Barry Friedman

Oil and Gas Slow to Embrace Unstructured Data Management

'The industry, according to Alec Walker, is stuck in its sepia-toned past, especially during the down times, and he thinks it’s past time to move on.'

Added on 01 December, 2019

Explorer Emphasis Article By Emily Llinás

Staying Competitive with Smart Technologies

Today’s world runs on technology and its rapid advances affect every aspect of human life. Science plays a pivotal role in developing technologies that change the way we live, work and play. The field of geosciences is no exception, and each day new technologies like big data, deep learning and robotics are changing geoscientists’ role in society.

Added on 01 December, 2019

Explorer Emphasis Article By Heather Saucier

Blockchain Shows Potential to Streamline Oil and Gas Operations

While Blockchain technology is most known for its initial association with the cryptocurrency, Bitcoin, it has since made its way into the fields of banking, technology and healthcare. Now, it is on the verge of being adopted by the oil and gas industry. Although convoluted in concept and often mired in Bitcoin’s tumultuous history, Blockchain technology may be key to tackling the industry’s big data problem, increasing efficiency in operations and transactions, and ultimately lowering costs across the board.

Added on 01 December, 2019

Explorer Historical Highlights By Glen Penfield

Unlikely Impact

The Chixchulub crater on Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula was long believed to be the result of volcanic activity, until one young geologist with a No. 2 pencil, some drafting triangles and a calculator made an earth-shattering discovery.

Added on 01 December, 2019

Explorer Emphasis Article By Heather Saucier

Machine Learning Changes the Job Requirements for Geoscientists

When new technology enters the oil and gas scene, talk of layoffs can creep into water-cooler conversations. Will better software and computers replace people, or will they push the industry forward, creating the need for additional staff? These questions are especially pertinent for geophysicists today, as artificial intelligence and machine learning technologies are processing and interpreting seismic data at record speeds, often delivering results that rival, if not surpass, that of humans. With some software companies calling their platforms a “seismic revolution” by offering real-time data interpretation, geophysicists might question how they will fit into this new, seemingly supersonic world.

Added on 01 December, 2019

Explorer Article By David Brown

Data Analysis Suggests a Future 'Second Act' for Shale

Pity the Permian Basin. Investors complain about disappointing returns from Permian production. Stockholders worry about the financial outlook for operators in the play. Lenders have started to cast a skeptical eye at the basin’s profit potential. So it’s surprising to find that a data-derived solution for addressing the Permian Basin’s current challenges might be readily available. And it’s somewhat startling to hear that, someday, unconventional resource plays in the United States could fly higher than ever.

Added on 01 December, 2019

Explorer Article By Brian Ervin

Honoring AAPG's Best

Congratulations to Paul Weimer, Martha Lou Broussard, Fred Schroeder, Margot and Ned Timbel and the many other AAPG Award Winners who will be recognized at the 2020 AAPG Annual Convention and Exhibition in Houston, June 7-10. Paul Weimer is the recipient of the Association’s highest honor, the AAPG Sidney Powers Memorial Award. Martha Lou Broussard joins him at the top of the awardees list as this year’s Michel T. Halbouty Outstanding Leadership Award recipient.

Added on 01 December, 2019

DL Abstract By John Castagna

Beyond Physics in Geophysics

Physics is an essential component of geophysics but there is much that physics cannot know or address.

Request a visit from John Castagna!

Added on 14 September, 2023

DL Abstract By Sherilyn Williams-Stroud

Atmospheric and Social Climate Change: Implications for the Future Geoscience Workforce

Climate change is not only happening in the atmosphere but also in the anthroposphere; in some ways the former could drive or exacerbate the latter, with extreme weather excursions and extreme excursions from societal norms occurring all over the earth. Accomplishing geoscience for a common goal – whether that is for successful business activities, resource assessment for public planning, mitigating the impacts of geological hazards, or for the sheer love of furthering knowledge and understanding – can and should be done by a workforce that is equitably developed and supported. Difficulty arises when the value of institutional programs to increase equity and diversity is not realized.

Request a visit from Sherilyn Williams-Stroud!

Added on 14 September, 2023

DL Abstract By Shane Prochnow

Subsurface Machine Learning Approaches at Hydrocarbon Recovery and Resource Forecasting for Unconventional Reservoir Systems

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!

Added on 14 September, 2023

DL Abstract By Tao Sun

Integrated Reservoir Characterization and Modeling with Computational Stratigraphy

As oil and gas exploration and production occur in deeper basins and more complex geologic settings, accurate characterization and modeling of reservoirs to improve estimated ultimate recovery (EUR) prediction, optimize well placement and maximize recovery become paramount. Existing technologies for reservoir characterization and modeling have proven inadequate for delivering detailed 3D predictions of reservoir architecture, connectivity and rock quality at scales that impact subsurface flow patterns and reservoir performance. Because of the gap between the geophysical and geologic data available (seismic, well logs, cores) and the data needed to model rock heterogeneities at the reservoir scale, constraints from external analog systems are needed. Existing stratigraphic concepts and deposition models are mostly empirical and seldom provide quantitative constraints on fine-scale reservoir heterogeneity. Current reservoir modeling tools are challenged to accurately replicate complex, nonstationary, rock heterogeneity patterns that control connectivity, such as shale layers that serve as flow baffles and barriers.

Request a visit from Tao Sun!

Added on 20 July, 2022

DL Abstract By Alex Simms

Interactions Between Ice Sheets and Relative Sea Levels: Lessons From Antarctica and NW Scotland

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!

Added on 21 July, 2022

VG Abstract By Juan I. Soto

Salt versus Shales in Continental Margins and Orogens

In comparison with the known boundary conditions that promote salt deformation and flow in sedimentary basins, the processes involved with the mobilization of clay-rich detrital sediments are far less well established. This talk will use seismic examples in different tectonic settings to document the variety of shale geometries that can be formed under brittle and ductile deformations.

Request a visit from Juan I. Soto!

Added on 26 June, 2019

VG Abstract By Juan I. Soto

How Orogens Could Collapse Forming Sedimentary Basins: The Case of the Betic-Rif Orogen

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!

Added on 26 June, 2019

VG Abstract By Keith Gerdes

Tethyan Carbonates - Linking Tropical Seas and Crashing Plates to Some of the Largest Oil and Gas Fields in the World

The carbonate sequences that were deposited in the now exhumed Tethyan Ocean influence many aspects of our lives today, either by supplying the energy that warms our homes and the fuel that powers our cars or providing the stunning landscapes for both winter and summer vacations. They also represent some of the most intensely studied rock formations in the world and have provided geoscientists with a fascinating insight into the turbulent nature of 250 Million years of Earth’s history. By combining studies from the full range of geoscience disciplines this presentation will trace the development of these carbonate sequences from their initial formation on the margins of large ancient continental masses to their present day locations in and around the Greater Mediterranean and Near East region. The first order control on growth patterns and carbonate platform development by the regional plate-tectonic setting, underlying basin architecture and fluctuations in sea level will be illustrated. The organisms that contribute to sequence development will be revealed to be treasure troves of forensic information. Finally, these rock sequences will be shown to contain all the ingredients necessary to form and retain hydrocarbons and the manner in which major post-depositional tectonic events led to the formation of some of the largest hydrocarbon accumulations in the world will be demonstrated.

Request a visit from Keith Gerdes!

Added on 24 August, 2015

DL Abstract By Kurt W. Rudolph

The Assembly of Pangea, a View from Laurentia: Paleozoic Orogenies and their Impact on Basin Evolution and Petroleum Systems

Paleozoic North America has experienced multiple mountain building events, from Ordovician to Permian, on all margins of the continent. These have had a profound effect on the resulting complex basins and their associated petroleum systems. Subsequent uplift, erosion and overprinting of these ancient systems impedes the direct observation of their tectonic history. However, the basin sedimentary records are more complete, and provide additional insights into the timing and style of the mountain building events. In this study, we employ ~90 1D basin models, ~30 inverse flexural models, isopachs, and paleogeographic maps to better understand the Paleozoic history of North America.

Request a visit from Kurt W. Rudolph!

Added on 14 September, 2023

DL Abstract By Frank Peel

A Lost World Rediscovered: 3D Seismic Data Reveal Spectacular Images of a Jurassic Landscape on the Eve of Louann Salt Deposition in the Gulf of Mexico, with Implications for Salt Deposition

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.

Request a visit from Frank Peel!

Added on 16 November, 2022

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