The Usefulness of Seismic Attribute Mapping in the Interpretation of Submarine Channel Seismic Geomorphology: A Comparative Review
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Abstract
Submarine channels are major components that transport and store sediments across the continental margins that act as confined pathways for turbidity currents, facilitating sediment transfer from the shallow to the deep ocean and forming important sand-rich deposits with high hydrocarbon reservoir potential. Sedimentary processes are crucial for sculpting submarine channel morphologies and the building blocks of their architectural elements. This could be understood by seismic geomorphology analysis, which reveals the geological and geomorphological features through seismic data. Understanding the submarine channels through their morphology and architecture will help to build detailed geometry and evolution for further application, such as reservoir prediction, hydrocarbon migration and geological carbon storage. This review evaluates the effectiveness of seismic attributes in characterizing submarine channel geomorphology. This study examines 20 peer-reviewed articles published between 2016 and 2023 that applied seismic attribute analyses for geological interpretation of submarine channels. Seismic attributes such as RMS (root-mean square), variance, instantaneous frequency, sweetness, dip, curvature, coherence, and envelope were commonly applied in the reviewed case studies. Physical attributes highlight amplitude-related variations that may reflect lithological contrasts, depending on data calibration and depositional context, while geometrical attributes delineate channel margins and planform geometries and are strongly dependent on seismic data quality. In cases where single attributes are insufficient to clearly reveal channel geomorphology, additional analyses such as co-rendering and spectral decomposition were employed to enhance interpretation. This study confirms that seismic attributes provide reliable insights into submarine channel deposits, including possible lithological contrasts, channel boundaries, channel-belt morphology, and the distribution of sediment accumulations within channel systems. However, the accuracy of interpretation depends on seismic data quality and the geological understanding of the study area. Inadequate knowledge or poor-quality seismic data can lead to misapplication of attribute parameters and potential misinterpretation.
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