System and method for seismic interferometry optimized data acquisition

A computing device for improving an image of a surveyed subsurface based on seismic interferometry, the computing device comprising:

• an interface for receiving seismic signals recorded by seismic receivers and generated with interferometry-based sources;
• and
• a processor connected to the interface and configured to,
• select traces corresponding to a pair of seismic receivers and an interferometry-based source such that ray paths between the interferometry-based source and the pair of seismic receivers contribute to a Green's function between the two receivers of the pair;
• cross-correlate the traces for calculating an earth's response associated with a ray propagating from a first seismic receiver of the pair to a second receiver of the pair;
• and
• generate an image based on the calculated earth's response.

A method for recording time-lapse information about a subsurface of a surveyed area, the method comprising:

• actuating interferometry-based sources over the surveyed area to generate seismic waves;
• recording seismic signals due to the interferometry-based sources, with seismic receivers;
• selecting traces corresponding to a pair of seismic receivers and an interferometry-based source such that ray paths between the interferometry-based source and the pair of seismic receivers contribute to a Green's function between the two receivers of the pair;
• cross-correlating the traces for calculating an earth's response associated with a ray propagating from a first seismic receiver of the pair to a second receiver of the pair;
• generating an image based on the calculated earth's response;
• and
• repeating the above steps later in time, using the seismic receivers, which were permanently installed in the surveyed area or left in the surveyed area from a previous survey or redeployed at the same locations in the surveyed area, and interferometry-based sources located at the same surveyed positions as for the previous survey.