Active and ambient seismic data inversion: A field example from the Gulf of Aqaba

We recorded active and ambient noise data sets along a 7.14 km profile located in the northern part of the Gulf of Aqaba, Saudi Arabia. A total of 120 wireless 3-components nodes are used to record the data with an interval of 60 meters between receivers. The first break traveltimes of the active data are picked and then inverted to generate the P-wave velocity tomogram. The cross-correlation interferometry approach is applied to the ambient noise data to extract 120-virtual CSGs. Both trace normalization and frequency whitening are applied to the recorded traces before the cross-correlation to enhance the signal-to-noise ratio of the final result. As the source for this signal is scattered energy traveling near the surface, the virtual shot gathers produced by this method are primarily composed of the fundamental-mode Rayleigh waves with a decent signal-to-noise ratio. The measurements were made at frequencies between 1 Hz and 12 Hz with a peak frequency at 1.1 Hz. The virtual data are then compared to active-shooting data in time- and frequency-domains. The virtual shot gathers show a sudden disappearance of the surface waves at offset coincides with the location of the main fault in the area. The virtual shot gathers are, then, inverted to generate the 1D near-surface shear-wave model.