CONCLUSION

Industrial standard muting accomplishes many goals and I do not claim the simple theory here forms an analytic basis for it all. Nevertheless, the concept that moveout and stack should be pre- and post- multiplied by weighting functions to make the composite operation quasi-unitary, provides a theoretical basis for what would otherwise be an entirely ad hoc process. Thus, quasi-unitary transformation (a form of operator preconditioning) is a mute-like process that should precede the human intervention of subsequent muting.

The example studied here of Texas gulf coast velocities is a mild form of the problem of traveltime cross overs, and this study needs elaboration for the much stronger velocity contrasts found in many other locations.