Can NASA Find Rare Minerals From Miles Above the Earth?

"Earlier this month, NASA announced a new initiative in partnership with the U.S. Geological Survey, which makes use of a device called Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer-5, or AVIRIS-5. The technology that AVIRIS-5 uses to detect mineral deposits on Earth is based on the same principles that NASA probes have used to better understand the solar system. (Spectrometers have been used by NASA to analyze the surface of the Moon, for instance.)"

"(Spectrometers have been used by NASA to analyze the surface of the Moon, for instance.) As Dana Chadwick of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory pointed out, this technology has a host of applications. "The breadth of different questions you can take on with this technology is really exciting, from land management to snowpack water resources to wildfire risk," Chadwick said."

Governments and corporations will continue prioritizing identification of important mineral deposits. NASA and the U.S. Geological Survey are deploying AVIRIS-5, an Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer, flown above 10 miles to map surface mineralogy using hyperspectral techniques derived from planetary probes. The instrument can detect minerals and inform resource decisions such as lithium exploration, mining planning, and potential Greenland prospects. The Geological Earth Mapping Experiment (GEMx) targets mineral mapping across the western United States and has produced airborne hyperspectral datasets described as some of the highest fidelity for mineral exploration. The same technology also supports land management, snowpack water assessment, and wildfire-risk analyses.

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