Enhanced Landsat and HCMM imagery for mineral exploration in contrasting areas of subtropical humid and semi-arid terrain

The role of multispectral and thermal imagery in mineral exploration is evaluated for two areas with favourable geological conditions within contrasting physical environments — one in the semi-arid low tree and shrub savannas of western Queensland and northern South Australia, the other in the humid subtropical forest zone of western Yunnan, China.For both areas Landsat imagery was used to identify structures and lithologies favourable for mineralization and locate ironstones/gossans indicative of mineralized bedrock. HCMM imagery was used alongside Landsat imagery to identify former and ephemeral drainage patterns important for the interpretation of geochemical data over covered ground in Australia. Interpretations were made of enhanced colour composites, outputs of MSS band ratios and colour rotated images generated from both NASA film products and CCTs. These were checked by field studies during which plant, soil and rock chip samples for subsequent metals analyses were collected from areas of anomalous vegetation and from barren ironstones. Some rock chip samples from Australia contained concentrations of copper or lead or small amounts of other metals. In China geobotanical anomalies over ironstones from which soil and rock samples yielded copper, lead, zinc, tin and silver suggest the presence of a major belt of potential multi-metal mineralization.