ARTÍCULO
Processing methodology based on ASTER data for mapping mine waste dumps in a semiarid polysulfide mine district
Rodriguez-Hernandez Alejandro, Briones-Gallardo Roberto, Razo Israel, Noyola-Medrano Cristina y Lazaro Isabel
Canadian Journal of Remote Sensing, 42(6), 643-655, 2016.
ABSTRACT:
The aim of this work is to present a simple, economic and efficient methodology based on the use of ASTER data to map areas of mining waste composed of heterogeneous mineral mixtures. This methodology has been applied to the District of Santa Mar�a de la Paz, Mexico, to detect different mineral phases that have been previously characterized. The methodology consists of techniques such as band rationing, Normalized Difference Tailings Index (NDTI) and Spectral Angle Mapper (SAM) classification. Experimentation with the SAM classification has established a minimum threshold of 0.08 radians for the mapping of mining waste and tailings impoundments. The results of this analysis indicate that the different techniques applied to ASTER images do not show the same level of accuracy for all waste dumps. In this study, the best technique for mapping the different mine wastes is the ferrous iron ratio, which features an overall accuracy of 93.25% and a kappa coefficient of 0.86. The accuracy of the results suggest that the proposed methodology can be used in the detection of mine waste in mining districts that have not been fully characterized, especially in countries with a large amount of abandoned mining waste.