Evaluation of ASTER TIR data-based lithological indices in Malanjkhand Copper Mines of Madhya Pradesh, India

This study focuses on the Malanjkhand Copper Mines area of Madhya Pradesh, India and compares different types of quartz, feldspar and mafic remote sensing indices used for the detection of quartz, feldspar and mafic minerals using Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) thermal infrared (TIR) bands. Our data indicate that these lithological indices are useful for delineating quartz, feldspar or mafic minerals. Correlation matrices generated for various lithological indices indicate that both Guha's (GMI) and Ninomiya's (NMI) mafic indices yield nearly identical results. In addition, Guha's quartz index (GQI) yields significantly better results than Ninomiya's quartz index (NQI) during the identification of the quartz content. This study also shows that GQI is comparable with the Rockwall and Hofstra's quartz index (RHQI) for the identification of the quartz content. Hence, ASTER TIR data-based remote sensing indices play a key role in lithological mapping.