CSIRO and NASA are working on programs that will see the exchange of technologies used in space and mineral exploration.
Dr Brent McInness, CSIRO’s Exploration and Mining scientist is involved in the exchange. He hopes to apply NASA’s ChemCam laser devices to the Australian mining industry. In return CSIRO’s Alphacron mineral dating technology will be used on future missions to Mars and the Moon.
The ChemCam was developed for the Mars Rover program. It uses laser spectroscopy to remotely determine the geochemistry of rocks and minerals. The high-powered laser beam heats a rock sample until it produces plasma. The light from the plasma is then analysed through spectroscopy to determine the sample’s mineral composition.
According to McInnes, the mining industry has no way of remotely analysing rock composition. This technology would be useful for collecting data in isolated or hazardous sites. The data is also collected in real-time.
The technology would need to be altered to use multiple laser shots to remove exterior dust and layers from the minerals underneath. MacInnes claims both Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton are interested in the technology.
The mining industry uses the Alphacron technology to record the age of iron oxide deposits. NASA could use it to determine the ages of minerals on Mars and if liquid water was ever present on the planet.
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