Integration of diverse remote sensing data sets for geologic mapping and resource exploration

High-quality multispectral images in the visible, near-infrared, shortwave infrared, thermal infrared, and microwave regions of the electromagnetic spectrum were acquired of the extreme north end of Death Valley, California/Nevada, during a multisensor aircraft campaign called the Geologic Remote Sensing Field Experiment (GRSFE) conducted during 1989. The airborne data sets include the airborne visible/infrared imaging spectrometer (AVIRIS) (0.4 - 2.5 micrometers , 224 bands), the thermal infrared multispectral scanner (TIMS) (8-12 micrometers , 6 bands) and the airborne synthetic aperture radar (AIRSAR) (P, L, and C band, quad polarization, multiple incidence angles). Ancillary data include Landsat multispectral scanner (MSSS), Landsat thematic mapper (TM, 7 bands), a digital elevation model (DEM), laboratory and field spectral measurements, and traditional geologic mapping. The image data sets were used to produce thematic image-maps showing details of the surface geology. Landsat TM images were used to map the distribution of the broad mineral groups of clays/carbonates and iron oxides. AVIRIS data permitted identification and mapping of specific minerals (calcite, dolomite, sericite, hematite, and goethite) and some mixtures. TIMS data were used to map the distribution of igneous rock phases based on their silica contents, and carbonates. AIRSAR data were used to identify and map the scale of surface roughness. The AIRSAR data also allowed identification of previously unmapped fault segments and structural control of lithology and alteration mineralogy. Because all of the above data sets were geographically referenced, they could be easily used for integrated analysis and results from the different sensors could be directly compared.