Regolith Mapping with

Hyperspectral Techniques

Thomas Cudahy CSIRO Group Leader Minerals and Environmental Sensing

Director WA CoE for 3D Mineral Mapping (C3DMM)

Minerals Down Under

 Regolith Mapping with Hyperspectral Techniques

Common understanding/perceptions:
• 75% of Australia is covered by deep regolith
• All “exposed” areas have already been well explored (mapped)
• Next generation of mineral deposits are buried
• Remote sensing only measures the top few microns

Remote Sensing Regolith Opportunity

• Accurate maps of:
• Regolith stratigraphy/landform
• Transported versus in situ
• Weathered parent rock type
• Superimposed hydrothermal alteration
• Gossans?
• Better sampling, drilling and geochemical analysis

Spectral In-House Training 2010

 Regolith Mapping

primary minerals clays iron oxides

Cudahy (1992)
Example: Mineralogical keys/clues for transported material:
Lack of primary minerals + Poorly-ordered kaolin + Hematite-rich

Spectral In-House Training 2010

Kalgoorlie – Kanowna
geological map

Kalgoorlie

conglomerates
sediments
ultramafic rocks
mafic rocks
mafic rocks
felsic volcaniclastics
felsic volcaniclastics
felsic intrusives

Published
1:100,000 Kalgoorlie-Kanowna
special mapsheet geology
Spectral In-House Training 2010
 Published
Regolith
Mapping

Depositional

Erosional

1:100 000 scale coverage

From 1:250 000 scale GA
mapsheet by
Craig and Anand (1993)

Spectral In-House Training 2010

Kalgoorlie – surface
mineral mapping
regolith cover
kaolin disorder
• Cudahy et al. MERIWA (2005)
1.9 2.2

poorly ordered well ordered

kaolin kaolin

Depositional

Erosional
Spectral In-House Training 2010
 Kanowna : Kaolin Disorder

Poorly
ordered 500 m
Well ordered
Spectral In-House Training 2010
 Kanowna : Kaolin Disorder

2 m red alluvial cover

Kanowna Belle

depositional erosional
Poorly
ordered 500 m
Well ordered
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 Kanowna : Hematite-Goethite ratio

hematite  goethite
500 m
880 nm 920 nm
Spectral In-House Training 2010
 Kanowna : Hematite-Goethite ratio

depositional erosional

hematite  goethite
500 m
880 nm 920 nm
Spectral In-House Training 2010
 Regolith
(soil)
Mineral
Mapping
HyMap kaolin
mineral maps + DEMs

kaolin abundance
10% 50%

poorly
ordered kaolin
well ordered kaolin

Mapping between the trees!

Not a spot on the ground is missed! Spectral In-House Training 2010
FieldSpectra-XRD
Validation Results
Results

Spectral In-House Training 2010

 Spectral Sensing

• Can provide maps regolith minerals that enable

improved mapping of:

• Regolith stratigraphy/landforms
• Transported versus in situ materials
• Weathered parent rock type
• Gossans?

Spectral In-House Training 2010

 Alteration Mapping using
Hyperspectral Techniques

Thomas Cudahy CSIRO Group Leader Minerals and Environmental Sensing

Director WA CoE for 3D Mineral Mapping (C3DMM)

Minerals Down Under

SGA Townsville 2009: pres 7 - Kalgoorlie Regolith & Archean Au case study
 Alteration mineralogy
• Atlas of Alteration,
Editors AJB e.g. Volcanogenic massive sulphide
Thompson and JFH
Thompson, Special
Publication, sericite, quartz, sericitic Pervasive replacement of rocks in the
Geological pyrite, chlorite, footwall below massive sulphide lenses;
Association of andalusite, chloritoid concentrated in stockwork feeder zones
Canada, 119 pages, but may be laterally extensive both
1996.
deeper in the footwall and extending
into the hanging wall in some deposits.
Alteration styles: Most common in intermediate to felsic
volcanic rocks but may also replace the
• Intrusion related - more mafic units in lower temperature
porphyry style systems. Andalusite and chloritoid occur
in metamorphosed alteration zones.
  • Intrusion-related – High-
chlorite, quartz, chloritic Pervasive replacement of rocks in the
sulphidation epithermal
sericite, pyrite, footwall below massive sulphide
• Low-sulphidation cordierite, biotite deposits. Fe-rich chlorite occurs in the
Epithermal – Geothermal core of stockwork feeder zones in mafic
footwall sequences (e.g. Archaean
• Mesothermal deposits) whereas Mg-rich chlorite has a
more erratic distribution, generally
• Sediment-hosted massive around the periphery or upper parts of
sulphide stockwork zones. Cordierite ± biotite is
common in metamorphosed Mg-Fe-rich
• Volcanogenic massive alteration zones.
sulphide
Spectral In-House Training 2010
 Mapping Alteration Footprints –
Eastern Goldfields (P435 Project, 1997)

Archaean Au alteration – Mafic/UM Rocks

distal proximal
Archaean Au alteration – Felsic Rocks

Spectral In-House Training 2010

 Archaean Au Open Pit RAB Bench Plan
Au caunter lode
S

chlorite abundance chlorite chemistry e

s
-i n crea
Mg#

Spectral In-House Training 2010

 Archaean Au Open Pit RAB Bench Plan
Au content Log Au content

white mica abundance white mica chemistry

Spectral In-House Training 2010

 Hyperspectral Measurement of White Mica Composition

(Mg,Fe)oct Sitet = Aloct Al tet

Muscovite

Phengite

paragonite

4.00
muscovite
3.80

3.60
RIII (mol)

3.40

3.20

phengite
3.00
R = Aloct + V + Cr
III

2190 2195 2200 2205 2210 2215

Wavelength (nm) Spectral In-House Training 2010
 White mica
chemistry

Kanowan Belle Red Hill

4.0 3.0

mica RIII(oct)(mol)

Mt Percy

Superpit

Note: All pixels

containing kaolin Binduli
(green vegetation,
water, low albedo, Golden Ridge
and no Al-OH)
have been Hannans
stripped out South

Spectral In-House Training 2010

 Kanowna : Mica chemistry

Mica chemistry
Al-rich 4.0 3.0 Al-poor 500 m
mica RIII(oct)(mol)
Spectral In-House Training 2010
 Archaean Au Exploration : REDOX fluid Model
Oxidised
• Anhydrous (H2 - CH4 - H2S - N2), highly Alkaline
acidic, reduced fluid K-feldspar
• Na, Cl and F? Albite
Biotite
• transports a wide range of elements of Amphibole
metallogenic interest (e.g. Ti, V, Cr, Co, Mo, W, Phengite
U, Th, Au, PGEs) Epidote
• large scale alteration footprints Muscovite
• pyrophyllite, chloritoid, paragonite Tourmaline
• Interaction with neutral/alkaline, oxidised Chlorite
Paragonite
rocks/fluids
Andalusite
• precipitate Au and other metals Chloritoid
• albite, phengite, biotite, amphiboles alteration Pyrophyllite
• Exploration Message
“map the REDOX gradients” Reduced
Acid
Spectral In-House Training 2010
 Kalgoorlie – surface mineral mapping Archaean alteration
Cudahy et al. MERIWA (2005)

muscovite-phengite
Kalgoorlie
oxidised

paragonite
conglomerates acid/reduced
Laboratory XRD
muscovite sediments alkaline/oxidised
paragonite+muscovite K-feldspar
ultramafic rocks
paragonite Albite
mafic
no mica detected rocks Biotite
Amphibole
mafic rocks Phengite
Epidote
felsic volcaniclasticsMuscovite
Tourmaline
felsic volcaniclasticsChlorite
Paragonite
felsic intrusives Andalusite
Chloritoid
Pyrophyllite
Pyrophyllite
Published
acid/reduced
1:100,000 Kalgoorlie-Kanowna
special mapsheet geology
Spectral In-House Training 2010
 Kalgoorlie – mineral mapping : Au deposits + fluid cells
PIMA bottom of RAB hole

oxidised

acid/reduced

Courtesy Scott Halley and

Barrick Gold Australian

Laboratory XRD
muscovite
paragonite+muscovite
Au deposits
paragonite
no mica detected

Spectral In-House Training 2010

Hyperspectral Mineral Mapping –
Applicable for various alteration styles


• Archean Au
• Intrusion related - Porphyry style
• Intrusion-related – High-sulphidation Epithermal
• Low-sulphidation Epithermal – Geothermal
• Mesothermal
• Sediment-hosted massive sulphide
• Volcanogenic massive sulphide
• …
Spectral In-House Training 2010
Epithermal-Porphyry Type Alteration

(From Agar, 1996)

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 Porphyry Systems

High Sulphidation

Spectral In-House Training 2010

 Porphyry systems

Advanced Argillic Alteration

Phyllic

From Huntington et al (1997)

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IOCG systems

P435 Project (1997)

Spectral In-House Training 2010
Volcanic Massive Sulphide Deposits

P435 Project
Spectral(1996)
In-House Training 2010
 Ultramafic-hosted Ni sulphides,
Eastern Goldfields

Thomas Cudahy CSIRO Group Leader Minerals and Environmental Sensing

Director WA CoE for 3D Mineral Mapping (C3DMM)

Minerals Down Under

SGA Townsville 2009: pres 7 - Kalgoorlie Regolith & Archean Au case study
 Ultramafic Rock Mineral Mapping

• Fresh rock
Possible reasons why magnetite not present because:
• serpentine (+ magnetite) • not formed originally during serpentisation
• talc (+ carbonate) • prograde metamorphism “dehydration” reactions
• destruction via superimposed talc-carbonate alteration

•Weathered profiles
• iron oxides
• clays
• nontronite
• garnierite

from INCO PDAC 2004

Spectral In-House Training 2010
Exploration Significance

•Possible ultramafic host rocks for nickel sulphide

mineralisation missed using regional magnetics surveys
because of talc-carbonate alteration (destruction) of
magnetite.

•These rocks could possibly be detected through

spectral mapping of talc.

Spectral In-House Training 2010

 Kalgoorlie-Kanowna Published Geology
Published
1:100 000 scale
(Hunter 1988, Ahmat, 1995)

conglomerates

sediments

ultramafic rocks

mafic rocks

mafic rocks

felsic volcaniclastics

felsic volcaniclastics

felsic intrusives

Spectral In-House Training 2010

M370 : Kalgoorlie-Kanowna : HyMap Talc

Talc
Abundance

Spectral In-House Training 2010

 Kanowna East : Ultramafic Rock Mapping

500 m

sediments
Airborne magnetics (TMI)
HyMap-derived
100 multramafic rocks
line spacing
Talc Abundance
(60 chlorite-rich
m cell size) rocks

Kindly provided
felsic by
volcaniclastics
Fugro Airborne Surveys
Field
felsic sample locality
volcaniclastics

Spectral In-House Training 2010

Kanowna East : Ultramafic Rock Mapping

sediments

ultramafic rocks

chlorite-rich rocks

felsic volcaniclastics

felsic volcaniclastics

Spectral In-House Training 2010

 Acknowledgements
• CSIRO
• Jon Huntington, Mike Caccetta, Rob Hewson, Andrew Rodger, Mike Verrall, Peter Caccetta, Xiaoling
Wu, John Walshe, James Cleverley, Robert Woodcock, Ryan Fraser
• Geological Survey of Queensland
• Mal Jones, Dave Mason, John Tuttle and Jim Beeston
• Geological Survey of Western Australia
• Ian Tyler, Paul Morris
• Geoscience Australia
• Matilda Thomas, Andy Barnicoat
• HyVista Corporation
• Terry Cocks, Peter Cocks, Mike Hussey
• James Cook University
• Nick Oliver
• Curtin University
• Fitri Augustini, Mehrooz Aspendar, Matt Wyatt
• Murchsion Metals
• Sean Gregory
• Goldfields at St Ives
• Janet Tunjic, Damien Keys
• Auscope Grid

Spectral In-House Training 2010

Tom Cudahy
CSIRO Exploration and Mining

Geologist
Group Leader Minerals and Environmental Sensing
Director WA CoE 3DMM

Phone: +61 8 6436 8630

Email: [email protected]
Web: www.em.csiro.au/NGMM; www.c3dmm.csiro.au

Thank you
Contact Us
Phone: 1300 363 400 or +61 3 9545 2176
Email: [email protected] Web: www.csiro.au