Accurate Trace-Cut and Phase Alignment of Active Ocean-Bottom Seismometer Data

Abstract Accurate positions of ocean-bottom seismometers (OBSs) on the seafloor are critical parameters and can only be obtained by inversion modeling of first-arrival travel times of overhead cross-line airgun shootings. With an increased sampling interval of ≤20 ms for long-term earthquake studies, apparent artifacts affect the phase alignment of first arrivals on the seismic sections of trace-cut airgun shots. Our analysis shows that these apparent misalignments are caused by timing inconsistencies and inaccuracies during the trace-cut, which are so-called rounding errors. To eliminate these rounding errors, a simple interpolation is used to resample traces. Further analysis shows the simple interpolation satisfactorily retains the original waveform. The improved timing accuracy significantly reduces the uncertainty of seafloor locations as shown by Hadal OBS data.