Seismic methods are considered as most conventional techniques in hydrocarbon exploration and production. Reflection 2D seismic have been widely used at least for seven decades. But 2D seismic is unable in detailed subsurface imaging as further demand for exploration of compex structures. This led to advent of 3D seismic technology considering 3D aspect of the seismic waveform.
The 2D and 3D seismic data of the Aghajari oilfield (SW Iran) is compared in this research from vertical and lateral resolution point of views. Results shows that the 2D seismic profile is unable in imaging details. On the other hand, the 3D seismic data provided improved sub-surface images as abundant subtle extensional faults in the crest of the anticline are detected by the 3D seismic data. This ability is due to adding the third dimension to the data and possibility of applying 3D migration algorithms in comparison to the 2D seismic technique.