Contribution of Aerospace Remote Sensing and Geophysical Measurements in Mineral Exploration (Western Hoggar, Algeria).
Chaouche, Ismahane
University, ALGERIA

The natural resource exploration in areas as wide as the Hoggar inevitably goes through mapping geological formations. Complementarity of traditional prospecting methods, the use of aerospace remote sensing techniques combined with geophysical magnetic type has established various thematic maps relating to areas vein gold and delineate the boundaries of different geological formations present in the study area. The potential of these tools has been tested on gold showings Tesnou region (southwest of Algeria).
Landsat ETM + images were used to identify the different lithological units and structures on the basis of their spectral signatures. Due to their high sensitivity to surface roughness and their ability to detect buried objects, Radar images have allowed us to obtain important structural information (trajectories of schistosity). The magnetic anomaly map prepared after processing of geophysical data shows the presence of high magnetic susceptibility formations. And the superposition of these maps shows that the auriferous quartz veins into place preferentially at major accidents and in contact with gabbros and granites "Taourirt."
In conclusion, the combination of these data shows that it is possible to refine litho-structural mapping and optimizing mineral exploration in areas as large as the Hoggar.