Fleet Space Technologies, Australia’s leading space exploration company, has deployed its end-to-end mineral exploration solution, ExoSphere, to enhance Eagle Mountain’s data-driven copper exploration at its Silver Mountain project in Arizona, USA.
Leveraging ExoSphere’s real-time 3D subsurface mapping capabilities, powered by space technology and artificial intelligence, Eagle Mountain uncovered new insights that underscore the potential for large mineralised systems and identified multiple unknown targets at Silver Mountain, according to ExoSphere.
“We’re proud to deploy ExoSphere to accelerate the geological understanding of the United States’ premiere copper producing region and drive more sustainable outcomes across the exploration value chain,” Flavia Tata Nardini, Co-Founder & CEO of Fleet Space, said. “Space, 3D multiphysics, and AI are vital technologies that can make US efforts to strengthen its domestic critical mineral supply chain faster and more scalable, while minimising environmental footprint. We’re thrilled to bring the latest advances in these technologies and Fleet Space’s deep expertise from the forefront of copper exploration globally to deliver unparalleled geological insights that further America’s ambitions in AI, electrification, and clean energy technologies.”
Eagle Mountain is a leading copper explorer committed to building its Oracle Ridge copper mine and Silver Mountain project into low-emission sources of high-grade copper production to supply the demand for green energy, Fleet Space saya. Located in the second largest copper porphyry province on Earth, its Silver Mountain project sits on the Laramide Arc, a geological feature connected to the eastern half of the Pacific Ring of Fire that includes several of the world’s largest copper discoveries such as Bagdad, Miami and Resolution.
Due to complications resulting from complex sediment cover, several geophysical techniques were unable to reliably pinpoint deeper targets at the Silver Mountain project. This led Eagle Mountain to deploy Fleet Space’s ExoSphere solution, to generate high-resolution 3D imaging of their target zones up to 2.5 km in depth. The subsurface insights delivered by ExoSphere revealed new indicators of large-scale mineralised systems – identifying deep porphyry-style targets and surrounding alteration zones, vital features for defining potential mineralising fluid and heat sources deep undercover.
The survey also enhanced Eagle Mountain’s understanding of regional structures, such as the Breakaway Fault system running NNW-SSE in the Scarlett area, delivering new findings about structures thought to be controlling mineralisation in the region. Velocity zones consistent with porphyry-style intrusions were also found, identifying previously unknown large-scale targets in the project’s unexplored western target zone. As a result of the new findings, Eagle Mountain shifted Silver Mountain to a top priority, accelerating its exploration activities at the site.
“The real-time 3D imaging capabilities of Fleet Space’s end-to-end solution, ExoSphere, helped us rapidly enhance our geological understanding of the Silver Mountain project, reduce uncertainty and deliver multiple high-priority targets for further exploration,” Tim Mason, CEO of Eagle Mountain, said. “The insights we gained from the ExoSphere survey have unlocked the geological potential of our Silver Mountain project, solidifying its place in our exploration strategy moving forward.”
Fleet Space’s first deployment of ExoSphere in America’s leading copper producing region in Arizona builds on the soaring global adoption of the end-to-end solution among leading copper producers and exploration companies. Barrick Gold recently used ExoSphere to generate 3D subsurface maps of copper porphyry complexes for multiple zones of interest across 1,150 sq.km of its Reko Diq project in Pakistan.
Fleet Space also conducted the world’s largest real-time Ambient Noise Tomography survey across Australia’s premiere copper-porphyry province – the Macquarie Arc – encompassing over 1,818 sq.km of Inflection Resource’s projects in the region.
Powered by Fleet Space’s proprietary satellite constellation, smart seismic sensors and AI, ExoSphere radically streamlines data acquisition, processing, integration and insight delivery into a single end-to-end solution, it says.