A fast and global two point low storage optimization technique for tracing rays in 2D and 3D isotropic media

We present the problem of tracing rays in 2D and 3D heterogeneous isotropic media as a set of optimization problems. Each optimization problem is obtained by applying Fermat’s principle to an approximation of the travel time equation from a fixed source to a fixed receiver. We assume a piecewise linear ray path that simplifies the computations of the problem, in the same way Mao and Stuart suggested in a very recent paper. Here, instead, the reflector geometry and the velocity function are computed by using nonuniformly biharmonic splines. On the other hand, to solve the optimization problem we use the Global Spectral Gradient method. This recent developed optimization scheme is a low storage optimization technique that requires very few floating point operations. It only requires the gradient of the travel time function, and it is global because it converges independently of the initial guess, that is, it does not require a close initial ray path. These three properties of the optimization method and the assumption of piecewise linear rays make this ray tracing scheme a very fast, global and effective method when estimating velocities via tomography. Moreover, in a homogeneous stratified or dipped media, any solution of the optimization problem is the best solution, i.e., it is the global minimum, no matter what numerical approach is used. We present some numerical results that show the computational advantages and the performance of this ray tracing in homogeneous and heterogeneous media. q 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.