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SUMMARY:Flying 300 underwater Planes and other Oil Industry Innovations - 
 Dr Simon Bittleston\, Vice President Research\, Schlumberger
DTSTART:20150302T193000Z
DTEND:20150302T210000Z
UID:TALK55536@talks.cam.ac.uk
CONTACT:Dr Nigel Bennee
DESCRIPTION:Exploring for oil and gas reserves begins with seismic explora
 tion in which a picture of the subsurface is obtained using acoustic imagi
 ng.  For marine seismic exploration this involves a boat towing sources an
 d receivers. The acoustic signal from the sources propagates through the w
 ater\, and then into the earth\, where it is reflected at boundaries betwe
 en rock types.  The reflected signals are recorded on hydrophones within l
 ong cables\, towed at about 10m below the sea surface. These cables can be
  extremely long\, 12km or more\, and 10 to 20 cables are often simultaneou
 sly towed behind the boat\, approximately 50 m apart. A typical arrangemen
 t will contain 40\,000 to 100\,000 hydrophones\, which are all simultaneou
 sly recording the reflected signals.\nKeeping all these cables in the corr
 ect position is a major challenge and is achieved by small underwater plan
 es (called birds) placed periodically along the cables. In all\, there are
  several hundred underwater birds distributed amongst all the cables. Each
  bird can force the cable to locally change depth or horizontal position. 
 However\, to achieve the correct physical geometry\, required to ensure ac
 curate acoustic data is gathered\, all the birds must be instructed in con
 cert. \nThis talk describes the remarkable simultaneous flying of these hu
 ndreds of birds\; and how they are coordinated to respond to changes in se
 a currents\, the trajectory of the boat\, and other factors.  It will also
  explain the multi-level control system\, how the system is designed to co
 pe with critical events and how an accurate estimate of the position of th
 e equipment being towed is achieved.\nDr. Simon Bittleston invented these 
 underwater birds\, and the complete dynamic control system\, which allow t
 his massive acoustic array to be placed accurately whilst being towed.\n
LOCATION:Wolfson Lecture Theatre\, Churchill College\, Storey's Way\, Camb
 ridge
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