Accurately controlled and routinely operated signal system time lapse for a field study in a desert area of Saudi Arabia

Abstract A field study to assess the practicability of Accurately Controlled and Routinely Operated Signal System (ACROSS) time lapse was carried out in a desert area of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia from 2011 to 2015. Because the test field was located at a water pumping site, temporal variation associated with water pumping was expected to be detected in a time-lapse seismic observation using the ACROSS system. An ACROSS seismic source and a three-component seismometer network were used to obtain time-lapse seismic records. The time-lapse records show significant temporal changes in the surface waveforms due to water pumping and weather conditions that change the state of near-surface materials in time. The results suggest the importance of eliminating near-surface effects. In addition, the ambient noise of the acquired ACROSS observation data was analyzed. These results indicate the possibility of the ACROSS system being used simultaneously for both active and passive time-lapse seismic recordings.