Reflection seismology for oil exploration
Prospección sísmica de reflexión para petróleo
- Date
- 1921 · confidence high
- Place
- Vines Branch, Oklahoma, United States
- Credited to
- J. Clarence Karcher and the Geological Engineering Company team
- Field
- Matter & energy
What it is
In 1921 Karcher recorded seismic waves reflected from subsurface layers, set off by dynamite, to map structures that might hold oil. It turned oil exploration into a science of imaging the subsurface.
The first commercial discovery by seismic reflection was the Maud field (Oklahoma, 1924); the location of the 1921 trials is approximate.
What it led to
- discovery of oil fields beneath structural traps
- the geophysical services industry for oil
- 3D and 4D seismic