Validation of automatic dispersion curve picking in exploration data

In this thesis work, we use a surface wave tomographic approach on two 2D seismic lines acquired from the Ludvika mining area in central Sweden in the framework of the H2020 project Smart Exploration with the aim of testing a novel automatic processing method for the extraction of surface wave dispersion curves (DC). We tested the performance of an automatic dispersion curve picking method by implementing a tool for the automatic comparison of the DCs which were manually and the automatically picked corresponding to the same receiver-pair and source setting. The comparison tool is based on several QC parameters in frequency domain, as well as the time-consumption of the two methods. A similarity index was defined considering the common frequency band between the two DCs and the uncertainties on the phase velocity. From the comparison, it is possible to conclude that the automatic picking performs well in the picking the DCs. This opens to the effective and efficient application of surface wave tomography to large seismic datasets.