Abstract Sea cliff exposures, conventional and high resolution seismic profiles, conventional oil and gas field boreholes, and shallow behind-outcrop core holes along the west coast of the Taranaki Basin, North Island, New Zealand, afford an excellent opportunity to examine the inter-relationships of scales of heterogeneity within slope channel-levee-overbank and toe-of-slope deep water sediments. Here, the Taranaki sea cliffs, are up to 240 m high and exhibit over 25 km of nearly continuous exposure. Across the spectrum from seismic profile to microscopic and instrumental analysis, detectable features that affect reservoir heterogeneity range across at least 13 orders of magnitude from greater than 10 4 m to 10 -9 m. Using the exposures along the Taranaki Coast, it is possible to assess the extent and detectability of the various scales of lithologic heterogeneity and to estimate their effects on analogous intervals in the subsurface. Bed/bedset heterogeneity ratios (calculated as vertical distance divided by horizontal distance of a given parameter), as detected by the tools mentioned above, cluster in two domains. Because of their limited radius of investigation, borehole logs have ratios between 10 0 and 10 -1 , whereas outcrop, seismic, and log profiles, which are based on a horizontal arrangement of data, generally show ratios between 10 -1 to 10 -3 . Because of their design limitations and strengths, each of the tools sees a different scale of lithologic or bedform heterogeneity. Data sets such as that available from the Taranaki cliffs section are invaluable for constraining estimates of reservoir heterogeneity in subsurface models.

Abstract The Paleozoic stratigraphic succession of the Ouachita Basin is dominated by deepwater siliciclastics, carbonates, and chert. Within the Carboniferous, the Stanley fan complex is a thick shale interval, with upper and lower sandstone sections, that was deposited during an overall sea level highstand. The overlying Jackfork Formation is predominantly a sandstone section, with no shelf equivalent. The Johns Valley Formation, a unit of turbidite sandstone, shales, and unusual boulder beds, overlies the Jackfork. The 6100-m-thick Atoka Formation succeeds the Johns Valley. This thick sandstone and shale interval is divisible into a central basin (or axial) fan complex, a series of slope (or intraslope basin) fans, and thick shelf margin deltaic complex.

Abstract Economical production of hydrocarbons from submarine fan reservoirs requires a clear understanding of reservoir architecture and fluid flow properties. Seismic profiling has been used to delineate the extent of hydrocarbon-bearing reservoir architecture and associated flow heterogeneities. Outcrop study constrains the architectural interpretation options in field development plans. Seismic modeling of an outcrop of a submarine fan channel complex was undertaken to illustrate the acquisition and processing requirements and interpretation limits for a generic exploration seismic program. Unless appropriately designed, conventional, exploration-grade seismic data will not have the frequency content and resolution capability to image clearly submarine channel complexity of a detail commonly observed in outcrop.