Applied seismology. A comprehensive guide to seismic theory and application / Прикладная сейсмология. Подробное руководство по теории и применению сейсмики

Until 1859, petroleum exploration was a rather simple and straightforward procedure. One simply looked for oil seepage at the surface—particularly near streams and from oil springs. Petroleum was used principally for medicinal purposes at that time, so the approach yielded a sufficient supply to meet demands.In 1859, Colonel E. L. Drake completed the first successful well, drilled specifically for oil (although wells drilled earlier for other purposes had yielded oil). Actually, Drake used the early method of petroleum exploration since his well was located near a known oil seep along Oil Creek in western Pennsylvania. Soon, there were many wells being drilled up and down Oil Creek.
These early successes led to an exploration method often called creekology in which accumulations of oil were associated with low spots along and near streams. Hills and plateaus were not considered suitable drilling sites. Trendology was another early exploration method arising from the observation that oil pools and fields frequently occurred along almost straight lines for many miles.
In other words, after early discovery of two or more fields, lines connecting these were extended in both directions and wells located along the line. Actually, this is a relatively sound procedure, which is still used under certain conditions. Locating wells near oil seeps is also a good method. <...>