compression is used to help design surveys and mitigate the computational costs of data set inversion the source receiver compression is based on data redundancy and sensitivity more particularly a compressed source array is produced for minimum redundancy and maximum sensitivity to reservoir model parameters the synthesized transmitter array has a reduced number of sources thereby reducing the number of forward model simulations needed to carry out the inversion furthermore the data collected at the receivers employed in the survey can be compressed this has the implication of reducing the computational cost of constructing the jacobian matrix and inverting the corresponding hessian matrix application_number US 75118810 A description fig1 illustrates apparatus for surveying a subterranean formation to facilitate recovery of natural resources an analyzer and control unit 104 is placed in communication with at least one array of excitation sources transmitters 106 and at least one array of receivers 108 the invention is not limited to any particular type of excitation source and may be used with excitation sources including but not limited to electromagnetic em seismic sonic gravimetric and pressure depending on how the formation is to be surveyed boreholes 100 102 may be present in the formation however the invention is not limited to any particular transmitter receiver placement and may be used for measurements including but not limited to surface to surface surface to borehole borehole to surface cross well and single well consequently arrays transmitters and receivers may be disposed at the surface in one or more boreholes or wells or combinations thereof the analyzer and control unit may.