Sergey Fomel
Professor, Bureau of Economic Geology, Jackson School of Geosciences
Mailcode: E0620
Sergey Fomel is Wallace E. Pratt Professor of Geophysics at The University of Texas at Austin and the director of the Texas Consortium for Computational Seismology (TCCS). He is affiliated with the Bureau of Economic Geology, the Department of Geological Sciences, and the Oden Institute for Computational Engineering and Sciences. Sergey received a PhD in Geophysics from Stanford University in 2001. He is an honorary member of the Society of Exploration Geophysicists (SEG) and the Geophysical Society of Houston (GSH) and has served SEG as the Vice President, Publications (2017-2019) and the Distinguished Lecturer (Spring 2020.) Sergey devotes part of his time to developing "Madagascar," an open-source software project for geophysical data analysis.
Areas of Expertise
Computational and exploration geophysics; seismic imaging; wave propagation; seismic data analysis; inverse problems; geophysical estimation
Research Locations
Current Research Programs & Projects
Texas Consortium for Computational Seismology ( view )Best Paper, Interpretation - Society of Exploration Geophysicists (2023)
Honorary Member - Society of Exploration Geophysicists (2022)
Honorary Member - Geophysical Society of Houston (2020)
Distinguished Lecturer - Society of Exploration Geophysicists (2020)
Best Paper, Interpretation - Society of Exploration Geophysicists (2017)
Honorable Mention, Best Poster - Society of Exploration Geophysicists (2015)
Tinker Family BEG Publication Award - Bureau of Economic Geology, The University of Texas at Austin (2014)
Outstanding Educator Award - Jackson School of Geosciences, The University of Texas at Austin (2012)
Conrad Schlumberger Award - European Association of Geoscientists and Engineers (2011)
Best Poster presented at the SEG Annual Meeting - Society of Exploration Geophysicists (2010)
Lorand Eotvos Award - European Association of Geoscientists and Engineers (2007)
Honorable Mention, Best Poster - Society of Exploration Geophysicists (2007)
Best Poster presented at the SEG Annual Meeting - Society of Exploration Geophysicists (2006)
Honorable Mention, Best Paper - Geophysics (2003)
J. Clarence Karcher Award - Society of Exploration Geophysicists (2001)
Guest Associate Editor, Special section on Advances in Mathematical Geophysics, Geophysics (2021 - 2022)
Guest Associate Editor, Special section on Automated Approaches to Interpretation, Interpretation (2021 - 2022)
Member, North American Regional Advisory Committee, Society of Exploration Geophysicists (2021 - Present)
Associate Editor, IEEE Transactions on Geoscience and Remote Sensing, Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (2020 - Present)
Member, Education Committee, European Association of Geoscientists and Engineers (2020 - Present)
Chair, Publications Committee, Society of Exploration Geophysicists (2019 - 2021)
Vice President for Publications, Board of Directors, Society of Exploration Geophysicists (2017 - 2019)
Guest Editor, Special issue on Subsurface Exploration in the Information Age, IEEE Signal Processing Magazine (2017 - 2018)
Co-Chair, Technical Program Committee, Society of Exploration Geophysicists (2017)
Guest Associate Editor, Special section on Reproducible Research: Geophysics Papers of the Future, Geophysics (2016 - 2017)
Guest Associate Editor, Special section on Computer-Assisted Seismic Interpretation Methods, Interpretation (2016 - 2017)
Chair, Distinguished Lecturer Committee, Society of Exploration Geophysicists (2015 - 2017)
Guest Associate Editor, Special section on Thin Beds, Interpretation (2014 - 2015)
Guest Associate Editor, Special issue on Signal and Noise Separation, Geophysics (2014 - 2015)
Chair, Publications Committee, Society of Exploration Geophysicists (2013 - 2015)
Guest Associate Editor, Special section on Diffraction Imaging, Interpretation (2013 - 2015)
Member, Distinguished Lecturer Committee, Society of Exploration Geophysicists (2012 - Present)
Chair, Technical Program Committee, Society of Exploration Geophysicists (2011)
District Representative, Council, Society of Exploration Geophysicists (2011 - 2013)
Guest Editor, Special issue on Seismic Imaging, International Journal of Geophysics (2010 - 2011)
Guest Associate Editor, Special issue on Seismic Data Sampling, Geophysics (2009 - 2010)
Guest Editor, Special issue on Reproducible Research, Computing in Science and Engineering (2008 - 2009)
District Representative, Council, Society of Exploration Geophysicists (2008 - 2011)
Member, Publications Committee, Society of Exploration Geophysicists (2008 - 2021)
Member, Technical Program Committee, Society of Exploration Geophysicists (2007)
Chair, Translations Committee, Society of Exploration Geophysicists (2007 - 2010)
Associate Editor, Seismic Migration and Signal Processing, Geophysics (2004 - 2009)
Creator and Project Manager, Madagascar, an open-source software package for geophysical data analysis (2003 - Present)
Creator and Project Manager, SEGTeX, an open-source LaTeX package for geophysical publications (2001 - Present)
Postdocs
Xinming Wu, 2016 - 2019, Colorado School of Mines
Professor at the University of Science and Technology of China
Tieyuan Zhu, 2014 - 2016, Stanford University
Assistant Professor at the Pennsylvania State University
Mark Lai, 2014 - 2017, University of Maryland, College Park
Data Scientist at IntegraFEC
Hejun Zhu, 2013 - 2015, Princeton University
Associate Professor at the University of Texas at Dallas
Mehdi Far, 2013 - 2014, University of Houston
Principal Scientist at Halliburton
Alexander Klokov, 2011 - 2013, Gubkin University of Oil and Gas
Lead Scientific Developer at Factor Technology
Jingwei Hu, 2011 - 2014, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Associate Professor at Purdue University
Hesam Kazemeini, 2010 - 2011, Uppsala University
Geophysicist at ION
Roman Kazinnik, 2009 - 2010, Tel-Aviv University
Lead Data Scientist at Brighthouse Financial
Yang Liu, 2007 - 2010, Jilin University
Professor at Jilin University
Jules Browaeys, 2006 - 2009, Institut de Physique du Globe
Geophysicist at Total E&P
Graduate Students
Akshika Rohatgi , Ph.D., expected 2028 (Supervisor)
Shuhua Hu
, Ph.D., expected 2025
(Committee Member)
I am a PhD Candidate in computational geophysics, interested in using numerical methods, scientific computing and machine learning to solve large-scale geophysical inverse problems. My previous experience includes land seismic data processing, seismic imaging R&D for anisotropic media.
Ben Gremillion (Supervisor)
Héctor Antonio Corzo Pola (Supervisor)
Shirley T Mensah
(Supervisor)
Shirley Mensah completed her BS in Geology and Professional Science Master's in Geographic Information Science and Cartography from Eastern Illinois University. After her graduation, she worked with various companies like Apple and Nicor Gas as a GIS Technician and Geospatial Analyst. Currently, she is a Ph.D. student working with Professor Sergey Fomel, and her interest includes machine learning and its...
Sabrina A Reichert (Supervisor)
Zhicheng Geng, Ph.D., 2022
(Supervisor)
(Currently at Amazon) Deep learning for pattern recognition in seismic reflection data
Hapreet Kaur, Ph.D., 2022
(Supervisor)
(Currently at Amazon) Improving accuracy and efficiency of seismic data analysis using deep learning
Nam Pham, Ph.D., 2022
(Supervisor)
Jackson School of Geosciences
(Currently at Schlumberger): Deep learning for automatic geophysical interpretation with uncertainty quantification
Luke Decker, Ph.D., 2021
(Supervisor)
Computational Science, Engineering, and Mathematics
(Currently at Chevron) Parameter selection in seismic data analysis problems
Yunzhi Shi, Ph.D., 2020
(Supervisor)
(Currently at Amazon) Deep learning empowers the next generation of seismic interpretation
Zhiguang Xue, Ph.D., 2018
(Supervisor)
(Currently a CGG): Regularization strategies for increasing efficiency and robustness of least-squares RTM and FWI
Dmitrii Merzlikin, Ph.D., 2018
(Supervisor)
(Currently at Schlumberger): Diffraction imaging by path-summation migration
Yanadet Sripanich, Ph.D., 2017
(Supervisor)
(Currently at PTTEP): Seismic anisotropy analysis using Muir-Dellinger parameters
Mason Phillips, M.S., 2017
(Supervisor)
(Currently at DownUnder GeoSolutions): Geophysical data registration using modified plane-wave destruction filters
Junzhe Sun, Ph.D., 2016
(Supervisor)
(Currently at Meta): Seismic modeling and imaging in complex media with low-rank approximation
Kelly Regimbal, M.S., 2016
(Supervisor)
(Currently at ExxonMobil): Improving resolution of NMO stack using shaping regularization
Parvaneh Karimi, Ph.D., 2015
(Supervisor)
(Currently at Oxy): Seismic interpretation using predictive painting
Yangkang Chen, Ph.D., 2015
(Supervisor)
(Currently at UT Austin): Noise attenuation in seismic data from the simultaneous-source acquisition
Ryan Swindeman, M.S., 2015
(Supervisor)
(Currently at Enthought): Iterative seismic data interpolation using plane-wave shaping
Vladimir Bashkardin, Ph.D., 2014
(Supervisor)
(Currently at BP): Phase-space imaging of reflection seismic data
Siwei Li, Ph.D., 2014
(Supervisor)
(Currently at Chevron): Imaging and velocity model building with linearized eikonal equation and upwind finite-differences
Shaunak Ghosh, M.S., 2013
(Supervisor)
(Currently at CGG): Multiple suppression in the t-x-p domain
Xiaolei Song, Ph.D., 2012
(Supervisor)
(Currently at BP): Application of Fourier finite differences and lowrank approximation method for seismic modeling and subsalt imaging
Salah Al-Hadab, M.S., 2012
(Supervisor)
(currently at Saudi Aramco): Diffraction imaging of sediment drifts in Canterbury Basin
Yihua Cai, M.S., 2012
(Supervisor)
(currently at Shell): Spectral recomposition and multicomponent seismic image registration
William Burnett, Ph.D., 2011
(Supervisor)
(currently at ExxonMobil): Multiazimuth velocity analysis using velocity-independent seismic imaging
Undergraduate Students
Reem Alomar, B.S., 2022
(Currently at Saudi Aramco): Seismic data analysis by least-squares non-stationary triangle smoothing
Tharit Tangkijwanichaku, B.S., 2021
(Currently at PTTEP): Chain of operators for inverse Hessian estimation in least-squares migration
Sarah Greer, B.S., 2018
(Currently at MIT): A data matching algorithm and its applications in seismic data analysis
Lubna Barghouty, B.S., 2013
(Currently at MIT): Surface-related multiple elimination and velocity-independent imaging of a 2D seismic line from the Viking Graben dataset
Yanadet Sripanich, B.S., 2013
(Currently at PTTEP): An efficient algorithm for two-point seismic ray tracing
Year | Semester | Course | |
---|---|---|---|
2024 | Spring | GEO 398D | 2-App Data Anly/Vis/Mchn Lrng |
2024 | Spring | GEO 384S | Seismic Data Processing |
2024 | Spring | GEO 365N | Seismic Data Processing |
2023 | Fall | GEO 383D | Num Meth I: Comp Meth Geol Sci |
2023 | Fall | GEO 325K | Computational Methods |
2023 | Spring | GEO 391 | Machine Learning Applicatns |
2022 | Fall | GEO 384H | Multidimnsnl Data Anlys In Geo |
2022 | Spring | GEO 384S | Seismic Data Processing |
2022 | Spring | GEO 365N | Seismic Data Processing |
2022 | Spring | GEO 391 | Machine Learning Applicatns |
2021 | Spring | GEO 391 | Machine Learning Applicatns-Wb |
2021 | Spring | GEO 384S | Seismic Data Processing-Wb |
2021 | Spring | GEO 365N | Seismic Data Processing-Wb |
2020 | Fall | GEO 384H | Multidimnsnl Data Anlys-Wb |
2019 | Fall | GEO 384W | Seismic Imaging |
2019 | Fall | GEO 380J | Math Mthds In Geophys |
2019 | Fall | GEO 366M | Mathematical Meths In Geophys |
2018 | Fall | GEO 384H | Multidimnsnl Data Anlys In Geo |
2018 | Spring | GEO 394 | Rsch In Geological Sciences |
2018 | Spring | GEO 384S | Seismic Data Processing |
2018 | Spring | GEO 365N | Seismic Data Processing |
2017 | Fall | GEO 394 | Rsch In Geological Sciences |
2017 | Spring | GEO 394 | Rsch In Geological Sciences |
2017 | Spring | GEO 384S | Seismic Data Processing |
2017 | Spring | GEO 365N | Seismic Data Processing |
2016 | Fall | GEO 384H | Multidimnsnl Data Anlys In Geo |
2016 | Fall | GEO 394 | Rsch In Geological Sciences |
2016 | Spring | GEO 394 | Rsch In Geophysics |
2016 | Spring | GEO 384S | Seismic Reflection Processing |
2016 | Spring | GEO 365N | Seismic Data Processing |
2015 | Fall | GEO 394 | Rsch In Geological Sciences |
2015 | Spring | GEO 394 | Rsch In Geophysics |
2014 | Fall | GEO 394 | Rsch In Geophysics |
2014 | Fall | GEO 391 | Multidimensional Data Analysis |
2014 | Fall | GEO 366M | Mathematical Meths In Geophys |
2014 | Spring | GEO 394 | Rsch In Geophysics |
Graduate Positions
Graduate research opportunities in computational seismology
Texas Consortium for Computational Seismology is looking for Ph.D. students interested in computational research. Our group works on a broad range of topics in exploration geophysics, from wave-equation seismic imaging and inversion to computational algorithms for seismic data processing and seismic interpretation. The work is supported by industrial sponsors. We use open-source software tools and high-performace computing resources.
Undergraduate Positions
Analyzing seismic data using machine learning techniques
Seismic recordings are used to detect earthquakes and to create images of the Earth’s interior. Seismic data contain rich patterns that can be discovered for extracting detailed information. Newly developed machine learning techniques aid in the discovery process. Deep learning has been used to detect arrivals of seismic signals from earthquakes and volcano eruptions and to extract from subsurface images such features, as faults, channels, salt bodies, etc. In detecting geological features, computational algorithms prove to be as powerful or even more powerful than the human eye, especially in higher dimensions.
In this project, we are adopting the latest ideas from the field of machine learning and artificial intelligence to improve the resolution ability of seismic images. Our objective is to advance the state of the art in discovering seismic data patterns. The approaches include unsupervised learning for analyzing seismic waveforms and compressing data in the transformed domain and supervised learning for teaching the computer how to imitate the work of human interpreters.
We are seeking an enthusiastic student to participate in this project. The student will develop data-analysis skills and contribute to an open-source software project. Some prior familiarity with seismology and machine learning, as well as some prior experience with computer programming using Python are helpful but not required
Madagascar
Madagascar is an open-source software package for multidimensional data analysis and reproducible computational experiments. Its mission is to provide a convenient and powerful environment and a convenient technology transfer tool for researchers working with digital image and data processing in geophysics and related fields.
Texas Consortium for Computational Seismology
The Texas Consortium for Computational Seismology is a joint initiative of the Bureau of Economic Geology (BEG) and the Center for Numerical Analysis at the Institute for Computational Engineering and Science (ICES) at The University of Texas at Austin. Its mission is to address the most important and challenging research problems in computational geophysics as experienced by the energy industry while educating the next generation of research geophysicists and computational scientists.