Seismic rock property prediction in forward time based on 4D seismic analysis

A system comprising:

• at least one processor;
• and
• a memory coupled to the processor having instructions stored therein, which when executed by the processor, cause the processor to perform a plurality of functions, including functions to:
• acquire seismic data for a subsurface formation over a plurality of time intervals;
• calculate a value of at least one rock property of the subsurface formation for each of the plurality of time intervals, based on the corresponding seismic data acquired for that time interval;
• determine at least one of a trend or a spatio-temporal relationship in the seismic data based on the value of the at least one rock property calculated for each of the plurality of time intervals;
• generate a set of equiprobable realizations of the at least one rock property for a future time interval;
• estimate a value of the at least one rock property for the future time interval, based on at least one realization selected from the set of equiprobable realizations;
• and
• select a location for a wellbore to be drilled within the subsurface formation, based on the estimated value of the at least one rock property, wherein the wellbore is drilled at the selected location.

A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having instructions stored therein, which when executed by a processor cause the processor to perform a plurality of functions, including functions to:

• acquire seismic data for a subsurface formation over a plurality of time intervals;
• calculate a value of at least one rock property of the subsurface formation for each of the plurality of time intervals, based on the corresponding seismic data acquired for that time interval;
• determine at least one of a trend or a spatio-temporal relationship in the seismic data based on the value of the at least one rock property calculated for each of the plurality of time intervals;
• generate a set of equiprobable realizations of the at least one rock property for a future time interval;
• estimate a value of the at least one rock property for the future time interval, based on at least one realization selected from the set of equiprobable realizations;
• and
• select a location for a wellbore to be drilled within the subsurface formation, based on the estimated value of the at least one rock property, wherein the wellbore is drilled at the selected location.