Migration by the Kirchhoff, slant stack, and Gaussian beam methods

Gaussian beam migration offers features that are unmatched by any other single depth migration method. Unfortunately, computer algorithms for Gaussian beam migration are more complicated and difficult to understand that those for most other methods. One way to simplify Gaussian beam migration is to understand how it is related to other methods that may be more familiar. In particular, Gaussian beam migration is similar to Kirchhoff integral migration. It is also similar to the phase-shift (or slant stack) migration method. In a sense, the Gaussian beam approach to depth migration is to combine the best of these more familiar methods to obtain an efficient, robust, and flexible method for seismic imaging.