Using remote sensing and gis for gold exploration, a case study: mubende district

Abstract

Gold exploration in Mubende has not been very effective due to the use of ground-based methods which seem time consuming and costly for a wide area. Therefore, in this study integration of GIS tools, remote sensing data and geological datasets offers less costly and effective techniques to come up with new and existing gold mineralized areas. Image processing and enhancement techniques improve the various data sets of Mubende area for better visual interpretation though the amount of geological information that could be obtained from multispectral data analysis is greatly hindered by various factors like complex topographic setting, vegetation cover and less variability in reflectance of the different lithological units. Correlation between density of lineaments and lithologies helps to assess the geology of the area. The geological map obtained shows the structural setting and analysis is made on the geology of the area to explore gold deposits. The gold potential map obtained shows existing and new mineralized areas and interpretation is made in areas of both existing and identified areas to check if the location is the same. Most of the gold occurrences are found in pelite and gravel units and show an intimate association with interpreted structure of the area.