Twenty-four years have elapsed since the publication of Halbouty’s AAPG Memoir of 1982, The Deliberate Search for the Subtle Trap. Since then, the technologies employed in hydrocarbon exploration have become extraordinarily sophisticated, yet current exploration for stratigraphic traps is to some extent restricted to areas where seismic data simplifies exploration by allowing direct inference of fluid fill and reservoir development. This Special Publication draws upon contributions that examine current industry perceptions of stratigraphic trap exploration and the technologies, tools and philosophies employed in such exploration, given the changing industry environment.

This book contains a collection of papers examining a number of themes related to exploration for stratigraphic traps, ranging from play and risk assessment, through regional assessments of stratigraphic trapping potential, specific exploration programmes targeted at stratigraphic traps to specific working traps and plays where stratigraphic trapping is prevalent.