Links between basin evolution, crustal-scale architecture, and mineral systems development: an example from the Bresnahan Basin, Capricorn Orogen, Western Australia

The Late Paleoproterozoic Bresnahan Basin, filled by the Bresnahan Group, was studied to understand basin evolution and its impact on mineral systems analysis. A novel approach used to highlight lithology changes in the siliciclastic succession involved field mapping in combination with airborne hyperspectral data. The succession was deposited in a continental setting, with a provenance study indicating a localised detritus source. In combination with a geophysical study, the results indicate a link between the Bresnahan Basin and the Mangaroon Orogeny, the latter interpreted here to be a dominantly strike-slip event. Knowledge of the basin evolution helped constrain mineral systems elements.