Methods of characterizing a spatial property of a previously fractured stage of a hydrocarbon well and hydrocarbon wells that perform the methods

A method of producing hydrocarbons from a hydrocarbon well, wherein the hydrocarbon well includes a wellbore that extends within a subsurface region, and further wherein the previously fractured stage includes at least one previous stage fracture that extends from the wellbore, the method comprising:

• initiating a received acoustic wave by a downhole acoustic wave source that is positioned within an uphole region of the wellbore;
• receiving, with an acoustic transducer, the received acoustic wave, wherein:
• (i) the uphole region of the wellbore extends within a subsequently fractured stage of the hydrocarbon well, and further wherein the uphole region of the wellbore is uphole from a downhole region of the wellbore, which extends within the previously fractured stage;
• and
• (ii) the received acoustic wave includes a previously fractured stage characteristic acoustic component generated via propagation of the received acoustic wave within the downhole region of the wellbore;
• and
• analyzing the previously fractured stage characteristic acoustic component of the received acoustic wave to characterize the spatial property of the previously fractured stage;
• responsive to the spatial property of the previously fractured stage, modifying a stage parameter of a subsequent stage of fracturing;
• fracturing the subsequent stage based on the modified stage parameter;
• and
• producing the hydrocarbons from the hydrocarbon well via fractures in the subsequently fractured stage.