ANALYSIS OF HYPERSPECTRAL DATA FROM DRONE-BASED MONITORING IN PERRY CANYON, NV

Remotely operated aerial systems (drones) are effective for monitoring temporal change at remediated acid mine drainage sites (Cramer et al. "Mapping Potentially Acid Generating Material on Abandoned Mine Lands Using Remotely Piloted Aerial Systems". Minerals, 2021, 11, 365). In June of 2021, spectrometer data of Perry Canyon, NV was acquired in 271 spectral channels in the visible and near-infrared and 270 spectral channels in the short-wave infrared. These data resulted in imagery called “hyperspectral” due to the numerous wavelength channels. The hyperspectral images were analyzed using Environment for Visualizing Images (ENVI) software to map different spectral signatures throughout the site. This analysis has provided evidence of four unique spectral signatures that could be associated with potentially acid generating material (PAGM). Three of these four unique spectra were previously classified as Yellow Soil (Jarosite), White and Blue Soil (Efflorescent Mineral Salts), and Red Soil (iron oxides and other secondary iron-rich coatings indicative of acid mine drainage). Jarosite is an iron-bearing sulfate used to locate areas of PAGM, and red soils can isolate heavy metals that generate more acidic water. Both have a diagnostic spectral reflectance which makes them useful at locating PAGM. Classification models such as Spectral Angle Mapper (SAM), Maximum Likelihood (ML), and Band Math Ratios (BMR) were used to delineate areas where these different spectra are observed. These new surface compositional maps will allow the comparison of our results to those of the previous 5-channel data. It is expected that the increased spectral fidelity will offer more information, and greater detail, of PAGM at this site.