3-D magnetotelluric study across the Capricorn Orogen (Western Australia) and its implications for mineral exploration

What have conventionally been seen as ‘academic’ geophysical methods used to study the deep crust are now increasingly finding applications in mineral exploration (Dentith et al., 2018). This is largely due to the adoption of the mineral systems concept, which is seen as a basis for future mineral exploration which will increasingly seek deeper targets and under cover. A mineral system comprises all the geological processes that lead to the creation of a mineral deposit. Conventionally, geophysical exploration has sought to map the near-surface geology and/or detect the mineralisation itself and the immediately surrounding geological environment.