Comparison of Landsat Thematic Mapper and Geophysical and Environmental Research Imaging Spectrometer data for the Cuprite mining district, Esmeralda, and Nye counties, Nevada

Landsat TM images and Geophysical and Environmental Research Imaging Spectrometer (GERIS) data were analyzed for the Cuprite mining district and compared to available geologic and alteration maps of the area. The TM data, with 30 m resolution and 6 broadbands, allowed discrimination of general mineral groups. Clay minerals, playa deposits, and unaltered rocks were mapped as discrete spectral units using the TM data, but specific minerals were not determined, and definition of the individual alteration zones was not possible. The GERIS, with 15 m spatial resolution and 63 spectral bands, permitted construction of complete spectra and identification of specific minerals. Detailed spectra extracted from the images provided the ability to identify the minerals alunite, kaolinite, hematite, and buddingtonite by their spectral characteristics. The GERIS data show a roughly concentrically zoned hydrothermal system. The mineralogy mapped with the aircraft system conforms to previous field and multispectral image mapping. However, identification of individual minerals and spatial display of the dominant mineralogy add information that can be used to help determine the morphology and genetic origin of the hydrothermal system.