Temporal merging of remote sensing data to enhance spectral regolith, lithological and alteration patterns for regional mineral exploration

• Temporal merging of Landsat data is a new technique.
• Capitalises on the extensive, high quality Landsat data available from the USGS
• Maximises geological terrain information in the resulting imagery
• Improved identification of spectral exploration targets and dispersion pathways

Remote sensing has been widely used to map geological structure, regolith materials and hydrothermal alteration minerals in different regions of the world, based largely on the spectral characteristics of clay/carbonate and iron oxide minerals. Given that features related to minerals may form very subtle patterns in Landsat imagery, finding suitable methods for enhancing the spectral information due to alteration minerals has been the subject of much research since the satellites were launched. Although multispectral sensors such as Landsat do not have enough spectral resolution to distinguish between specific minerals, effective processing of the data does yield useful images for regional exploration and targeting when combined with a good understanding of the associated landforms. ASTER and various airborne systems can now provide useful, high-resolution mineral information. However, the cost and time taken to acquire and process good resolution spectral data should now be balanced against the enhanced spectral discrimination possible using temporal merging, or data stacking, from the existing Landsat data archive dating back to 1972. One critical characteristic of the spectra related to surface mineral composition is its persistence over time. This study proposes a further enhancement to the data using temporal merging to create images that are both easier to interpret, and more reliable indicators of lithology and alteration. The new approach is to select a large number of scenes, typically separated by two or more years, and to merge the data for each band to give a cumulative spectral signature. The technique of stacking Landsat data to create a new dataset with much greater spectral depth is termed Landsat TM3, or Landsat TM Temporal Merge for Terrain Mapping. This emphasises not only the process used to create the dataset, but also the dominant use to which these data are ideally suited, namely mapping geological and mineral-related terrains.