Marchenko redatuming by MDD and by double focusing: a systematic comparison

In Marchenko redatuming, sources and receivers are moved from the acquisition surface to a new datum plane in the subsurface, thereby accounting for internal multiple reflections in the overburden. After estimating focusing functions from the reflection data at the surface, the sources are focused onto virtual sources at the new datum. Next, the receivers can be redatumed, either by multidimensional deconvolution (MDD) or by applying a second focusing step. From a theoretical point of view MDD is preferred over focusing, but the practical implementation is challenging and computationally expensive. When accurate redatumed data are required, applying MDD may be worth the effort, but when redatuming is combined with imaging at all depth levels of interest, the more straightforward focusing approach is preferred.