Satellite Imagery and its Extensive Use in Gold Exploration

Gold prices are steadily rising even as demand continues to increase. This trend is expected to continue as gold reserves all over the world are becoming exhausted day by day. This means that we should expect to see even higher gold prices in the near future.

The concern for shrinking gold reserves has prompted scientists, geologists, and mineral explorers to devise new strategies to make identifying new gold deposits fast and easy.

Use of Satellite Imagery in Gold Exploration

Besides being of high value, one of the reasons why gold is an exorbitantly expensive mineral is because it’s extremely rare, and this makes it very hard to find, more so in economically viable quantities.

Because of this, scientists, geologists, and mineral explorers have resorted to the use of highly advanced satellite imagery technology to collect large amounts of data on potential gold deposits.

The satellites are fitted with advanced imaging sensors which identify specific properties of materials like what wavelengths they absorb or reflect, so as to identify specific materials that cannot be easily identified by the human eye.

Unlike traditional sensors which were only capable of collecting simple data such as surface features to help identify potential gold deposits, these advanced sensors use infrared, near-infrared, short-wave, and thermal infrared to identify the differences in structural features of the earth’s surface, and then interpret the electromagnetic data.

The wavelengths help to analyze the differences in absorption and reflection of rocks (ore deposits), vegetation, and soils. Geologists are therefore able to interpret this data to pick out potential gold deposits as well as other subsurface deposits of oil, gas, groundwater, and other ore minerals based on their absorption and reflection properties.

Use of Satellite Imagery Compared to Aircraft Remote Sensors

Aircrafts are also widely used in the exploration of potential mineral deposits. The aircrafts are equipped with high resolution spectral remote sensors which collect and translate specific data on features of the earth’s surface.

The only difference between them is that satellite imaging technology allows the collection of more data and from vast areas, unlike aircrafts which have to be flown over the area of interest.

With this technology, gold explorers are able to collect a vast amount of data without having to visit the actual location. It also enables them to explore areas that would have otherwise been inaccessible by foot due to topography or harsh climate.

Without a doubt, satellite imagery has made gold exploration an easy task for geologists, scientists, and explorers. It has enabled many exploration companies to identify potentially viable deposits of gold with a greater amount of accuracy while saving a great deal of time.