Originality

The Geomechanics Project has so far focused on ray trajectories and traveltimes within seismic ray theory rather than displacement amplitudes in the context of the transport equation or otherwise. While three-component displacement modelling is only one aspect of my research, it should complement other studies within the Geomechanics Project and extend recent results in the literature on amplitude modelling in fully elastic inhomogeneous media. The proposed application of FIOs to analyzing the equations of motion should extend the results of previous analyses of the transport equation. As well, it is a new approach that may reveal subtleties of modelling. With comparison to standard method of characteristics and principal symbol variant and to full numerical methods for at least one test case and real data over known geology for at least one test case it would form a substantial body of work sufficient for a Ph.D. This research ought to result in some primary publications and conference presentations during the degree years and immediately following degree completion.