Geosurface Context Menu
Commands available when right-clicking a Geosurface in the Interpretation Tree. Geosurfaces are interpreted geological surfaces (horizons, unconformities, intrusive contacts) created through interpolation or manual interpretation methods. They represent continuous 3D surfaces defining stratigraphic or structural boundaries.
Navigation & Display
Goto
Menu name: Goto
Tooltip Move the 3D view to frame the selected geosurface.
What it does Centres and zooms the 3D view on the selected geosurface, positioning the camera to provide a clear view of the entire surface extent. Similar to "Navigate To" for other object types.
When to use it
- Quickly locating specific surfaces in multi-horizon models
- Reviewing surface geometry after creation or modification
- Inspecting relationships between stratigraphic surfaces
Notes Particularly useful in models with many closely spaced horizons.
Make Active
Menu name: Make Active
Tooltip Set this geosurface as the active surface for operations.
What it does Designates the selected geosurface as the "active" surface. The active surface is used as a reference or target by various interpretation and modelling operations. Only one geosurface can be active at a time. Active status is indicated in the project tree and affects available operations.
When to use it
- Before operations requiring a reference surface
- When creating interpretations relative to a specific horizon
- For workflows that snap or attach to an active surface
Notes Active status persists until another surface is made active. Some operations (e.g., polyline snapping, thickness calculations) automatically reference the active surface.
Export
Nodes
Menu name: Nodes
Tooltip Export surface vertices and connectivity.
What it does Opens export dialogue to save geosurface node positions (vertices) and triangulation connectivity to external file formats. Formats typically include XYZ, ASCII grid, or mesh formats. Exports the complete 3D surface geometry including topology.
When to use it
- Exporting surfaces for use in external modelling software
- Creating GIS-compatible surface data
- Archiving interpreted geological surfaces
Notes Export includes 3D coordinates of all surface nodes. Connectivity (triangulation) may be included depending on format. Consider coordinate system compatibility for external software.
Attributes
Curvature
Menu name: Curvature
Tooltip Calculate surface curvature attribute.
What it does Calculates Gaussian curvature or mean curvature for each node on the geosurface. Curvature measures surface bending intensity - positive values indicate domes/anticlines, negative values indicate basins/synclines, zero indicates planar or cylindrical surfaces. Creates a new attribute channel visualised with false colour.
When to use it
- Identifying fold axes and culminations
- Highlighting structural anomalies on surfaces
- Analysing fold geometry and wavelength
- Detecting faults via curvature discontinuities
Notes Curvature values are in 1/length units (inverse metres typically). High curvature may indicate data artifacts or sharp folds. Smooth surfaces before calculating curvature if noise is present. Useful for automated structural feature detection.
Surface Quality & Refinement
Re-Converge
Menu name: Re-Converge
Tooltip Recompute surface interpolation with updated parameters.
What it does Re-runs the surface interpolation algorithm that originally created the geosurface, using current control points and updated interpolation parameters. This re-converges the surface solution, potentially improving fit to constraints or incorporating newly added control data.
When to use it
- After adding or editing control polylines
- When initial interpolation parameters were suboptimal
- To incorporate updated structural constraints
- After modifying fault relationships
Notes
This operation replaces the existing surface geometry. Consider duplicating first if you want to preserve the original.
Convergence parameters (smoothness, tension, fault relationships) can be adjusted before re-converging. Computation time depends on surface size and constraint density.
Refine Around Faults
Menu name: Refine Around Faults
Tooltip Increase mesh density near fault intersections.
What it does Opens dialogue to specify refinement distance and density. Adds vertices to the geosurface mesh in regions close to intersecting faults. This increases geometric resolution near fault cutoffs, improving representation of surface truncations and throw relationships.
When to use it
- Improving accuracy of fault-horizon intersections
- Preparing surfaces for fault offset analysis
- Creating high-resolution meshes near structural discontinuities
Notes Refinement is localised to fault-adjacent regions. Distance parameter controls how far from faults refinement extends. Higher density values create more triangles. Can significantly increase mesh size if many faults intersect the surface.
Refine Mesh
Menu name: Refine Mesh
Tooltip Increase mesh resolution uniformly across surface.
What it does Opens dialogue to specify refinement parameters. Subdivides existing surface triangles to create a higher-resolution mesh. This increases vertex density uniformly across the entire geosurface, improving representation of subtle geometric features.
When to use it
- Preparing surfaces for high-quality visualisation
- Increasing resolution before attribute calculations
- Improving geometric accuracy for structural analysis
Notes
Mesh size increases by approximately 4× per refinement iteration. Multiple iterations can create very large meshes that impact performance.
Refinement preserves surface shape whilst adding vertices. Does not change surface position, only resolution.
Smooth
Menu name: Smooth
Tooltip Apply Laplacian smoothing to surface.
What it does Opens dialogue to specify smoothing iterations and strength. Applies Laplacian smoothing that repositions surface nodes towards the average position of their neighbours. This reduces high-frequency roughness and noise whilst preserving large-scale geometry.
When to use it
- Removing gridding artifacts from interpolated surfaces
- Smoothing surfaces with noisy input data
- Creating more geologically plausible surface morphology
Notes
Excessive smoothing can alter surface geometry and stratigraphic relationships. Start with few iterations (1-3) and low strength (0.3-0.5).
Smoothing affects vertical position and can change stratigraphic thicknesses. Consider geological validity before smoothing structurally significant surfaces. Fault boundaries are typically preserved during smoothing.
Fault Interaction
Cut At Faults
Menu name: Cut At Faults
Tooltip Truncate surface at intersecting fault planes.
What it does Identifies all fault objects that intersect the geosurface and truncates (removes) surface geometry on the specified side of each fault. This creates realistic fault cutoffs where the surface terminates against fault planes, representing the effect of fault displacement.
When to use it
- Creating realistic structural models with faulted horizons
- Removing geologically invalid surface extent beyond faults
- Preparing surfaces for volume or thickness calculations
Notes
This operation permanently removes portions of the surface. Ensure fault geometries and throw directions are correct before applying.
Requires fault objects to be present and intersecting the surface. The side of the fault to remove is determined by fault throw direction or can be specified. Consider duplicating the surface before cutting if you may need the original extent.
Object Operations
Delete
Menu name: Delete
Tooltip Permanently remove geosurface from project.
What it does Permanently removes the selected geosurface from the project database, including all surface geometry, attributes, and associated data. The deletion cannot be undone.
When to use it
- Removing incorrect or obsolete surface interpretations
- Cleaning up test or trial surfaces
- Simplifying projects with redundant horizons
Notes
Operation is permanent. Ensure you have backups if needed. Consider exporting important surfaces before deletion.
Deleting a surface does not affect polylines or other control data used to create it - only the interpolated surface itself is removed.
Group Operations
When right-clicking a Geosurface Group (folder), additional commands are available:
Structure Surface
Menu name: Structure Surface
Tooltip Create new geosurface from interpretation data.
What it does Opens the geosurface creation dialogue to build a new geological surface. Allows selection of control polylines, interpolation method, structural constraints (faults, fold axes), and interpolation parameters. Creates a new geosurface object through gridding or triangulation algorithms.
When to use it
- Creating stratigraphic horizons from mapped contacts
- Interpolating surfaces from scattered control data
- Building structural models from interpretation polylines
Notes Requires control data (polylines, points, or other constraints). Interpolation algorithm options typically include minimum curvature, kriging, or triangulation methods. Surface quality depends on control data density and distribution. Computation time scales with extent and resolution.
Import
Menu name: Import
Tooltip Import geosurface from external file.
What it does Opens file dialogue to import surface geometry from external file formats. Supported formats typically include grid formats, XYZ point clouds that will be triangulated, or mesh formats. Imported surfaces are added to the project as geosurface objects.
When to use it
- Importing surfaces from other interpretation software
- Loading reference horizons from regional models
- Bringing in surfaces from GIS or geological databases
Notes Format support varies. Grid formats are converted to triangulated surfaces. Coordinate system should be specified during import. Large surfaces may take time to import and process.
Export
Menu name: Export
Tooltip Batch export all geosurfaces in group.
What it does Opens export dialogue to batch export all geosurfaces in the selected group. Can export to individual files per surface or combined formats where supported. Options include various grid and mesh formats.
When to use it
- Exporting complete structural models
- Creating deliverables of all interpreted horizons
- Archiving surface interpretation projects
Notes Export options vary by format. Large groups may take significant time to export. Consider coordinate system conversion requirements for external software.
Empty List
Menu name: Empty List
Tooltip Remove all geosurfaces from this group.
What it does Removes all geosurface objects from the selected group. The surfaces are deleted from the project database and file system. This is a bulk delete operation affecting all group contents. The group container itself is preserved empty.
When to use it
- Removing all test or temporary surfaces
- Clearing groups before reimporting
- Resetting surface collections for new interpretations
Notes
This operation permanently deletes all geosurfaces in the group. Ensure you have backups or exports of needed surfaces before clearing.
Does not affect control data (polylines, measurements) used to create the surfaces - only the interpolated surfaces themselves are removed.