Estimating Imaging Artifacts Caused by Internal Multiples

Imaging with seismic data is typically carried out under the assumption of single scattering. Here we illustrate a theory that includes multiply scattered waves in the imaging process. We estimate artifacts in the image caused by internal multiples rather than estimating the multiples themselves in the data. The theory behind this approach comes from a series derived from the LippmannSchwinger equation and the Bremmer coupling series. From this theory two images are formed, one with all the data and the other with the estimated artifacts from first-order internal multiples. The construction of the second image requires knowledge of the velocity model to the depth of the up to down reflection in the internal multiple. We illustrate this theory with a synthetic data example and examine the sensitivity of the method to the velocity model.