Measuring ground movement with InSAR data at In Salah

Knowledge of the structure controlling the fluid/gas flow at the reservoir layer is critical in many activities, such as petroleum/gas extraction and carbon capture sequestration (CCS). To this end, timelapse geophysical observations are considered as an important instrument to better understand the fluid flow in the subsurface. In the last decade, a new remote-sensing technology called PSInSAR™ - based on the use of satellite radar data - is receiving an increasing attention, thanks to its capability to provide accurate, large-scale surface deformation measurements with millimetric precision. The utility of such data for reservoir monitoring and modeling, has been proved in the InSalah project, one of the three most famous CCS project. SAR data has been used to track the injected CO2 [1], to monitor possible fault reactivation and to estimate the effective permeability of a producing gas reservoir.