ION completes development of next-generation ocean bottom technology

HOUSTON -- ION Geophysical Corporation has announced the completion of all 4Sea system components designed to revolutionize the safety, efficiency, quality and turnaround time of seabed data acquisition and imaging. Next-generation ocean bottom technology provides an opportunity to drastically improve the economics of today's very expensive surveys to significantly expand the number of fields or scope of programs where this superior imaging technology can be applied.

4Sea's transformational architecture enables a paradigm shift in performance by centralizing operational data to power analytics and optimize decision-making using intelligent software and novel hardware. The following 4Sea components are designed to optimize ocean bottom surveys from initial planning to final processing, and while they can be used individually, maximum value is achieved as an integrated system: 

• Gator is ION's leading ocean bottom command and control system providing intelligent connectivity and optimization for all 4Sea components.
• MESA SimSurvey is a software tool that optimizes survey parameters by rapidly modeling multiple acquisition scenarios to achieve imaging objectives as safely and cost effectively as possible.
• Marlin is an application that, similar to air traffic control, integrates activities across time and space with operational rules to improve situational awareness, safety and efficiency.
• The automated back deck is designed to significantly improve the safety and efficiency of seabed surveys by de-manning operations and tripling typical node deployment and retrieval speeds.
• New sensors capture a broader spectrum of frequencies to produce higher resolution images.
• SailWing is a light foil-based alternative to conventional bulky marine diverters for smarter, faster source vessel performance, reducing turn times by up to two-thirds and reducing repair time.
• The QA/QC system establishes an integrated and automated data flow from the sources and receivers that eliminates user-intensive workflows in an environment of ever increasing acquisition rates and data densities while providing ship-to-shore diagnostics to ensure data integrity and accelerated data delivery through the subsequent data processing cycle.