27 Geological Surveys and Resource Mapping/Evaluation Studies (Posters)

This session highlights studies from state geologic surveys and the U.S. Geological Survey regarding natural resource evaluations. We welcome submissions with relevance to critical minerals, rare earth elements, various energy sectors, and the construction industry.

Tuesday, 10 March 2026
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
RCC, Lower Level Hall

Mapping Critical Mineral Resources with New Airborne Geophysical Data in the South-Central United States

Paper number: 27-1
Program: Technical Sessions
Time: 9:00 AM – 9:00 AM

Authors

Abstract

The U.S. is dependent on imports of mineral resources that are vital to its economy and national security. Despite the increasing demand for these critical minerals and the potential for supply chain disruptions, a thorough understanding of the Nation’s domestic mineral resource potential remains unclear. To modernize the Nation’s geologic mapping and improve understanding of its resource potential, a series of high-resolution airborne magnetic, radiometric, and electromagnetic surveys have been conducted across the country as part of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Earth Mapping Resources Initiative (Earth MRI). Earth MRI has also promoted collaboration between the USGS and state geological survey partners, as well as academia and industry, to guide new projects and survey designs. In the South-Central U.S., recent airborne surveys have been completed over at least 11 mineral systems with known or potential critical mineral occurrences, providing continuous high-resolution data coverage across parts of seven states. Airborne magnetic data from the Ozark Plateau survey (flown 2024-2025) reveal detailed geologic structures not visible in legacy data, tracking and extending mapped faults across Missouri and Kansas, where Mississippi Valley-Type zinc-lead deposits comprise world-renowned mineral districts. In Missouri, the Pea Ridge iron-oxide-apatite and rare earth element (REE) deposit and surrounding area were flown to augment the previous (2014) airborne magnetic and gravity gradiometry survey with radiometric data. The new data show the heterogeneity of thorium related to REE-bearing minerals across the extensive mine tailings present at the surface. In Kentucky and Tennessee (flown 2023-2024), thorium anomalies similarly map the extent of the REE-enriched McNairy sand placer deposits and reflect alteration associated with mineralization of barite, zinc, and REEs in multiple other mineral districts. Airborne electromagnetic (AEM) data acquired in 2025 over the Hicks Dome alkaline intrusive complex in Illinois correlate with mapped geology and show a strong contrast between the resistive lithologies within the dome and the conductive lithologies around it. Cross sections of the AEM data provide unique perspectives into the subsurface structures that facilitated fluorspar mineralization and potentially the heavy-REE-enriched regolith that sits atop the dome. Through Earth MRI, a wealth of high-resolution airborne geophysical data have been collected to improve geologic mapping and advance understanding of resource potential within the U.S., while fostering productive collaborations between the USGS and state geological survey partners.

Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs. Vol. 58, No. 1

doi: 10.1130/abs/2026SE-411674

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