Footnote Footnotes on Interpretation Bouguer Gravity Maps Identify Regional Basin Structure and Resultant Preferred Directions of Lateral Oil and Gas Migration Introduction All oil and gas accumulations are the result of oil and gas migration.
Hydrocarbons migrate vertically and laterally as far as sufficient permeability is present.
In map view, vertical migration has no or only minor map expression. The lateral migration components in a basin, however, can be defined and predicted. Regional structure, and therefore any regional map indicating regional structure, can be used to determine the preferred lateral hydrocarbon migration directions in a basin. The presence or absence of oil and gas in a specific area's traps can thus be predicted. Integration of well data, deep seismic data, and magnetic data, will of course improve any regional structure map.