Ninomiya, Y.; Fu, B. Regional Lithological Mapping Using ASTER-TIR Data: Case Study for the Tibetan Plateau and the Surrounding Area. Geosciences2016, 6, 39.
Ninomiya, Y.; Fu, B. Regional Lithological Mapping Using ASTER-TIR Data: Case Study for the Tibetan Plateau and the Surrounding Area. Geosciences 2016, 6, 39.
Ninomiya, Y.; Fu, B. Regional Lithological Mapping Using ASTER-TIR Data: Case Study for the Tibetan Plateau and the Surrounding Area. Geosciences2016, 6, 39.
Ninomiya, Y.; Fu, B. Regional Lithological Mapping Using ASTER-TIR Data: Case Study for the Tibetan Plateau and the Surrounding Area. Geosciences 2016, 6, 39.
Abstract
The mineralogical indices, e.g., Quartz Index (QI), Carbonate Index (CI), Mafic Index (MI) for ASTER multispectral thermal infrared (TIR) data have been applied to various geological materials. The indices are proved to be robust in extracting geological information at the local scale. Considering the relatively narrow spatial coverage of each ASTER scene compared to LANDSAT, many scenes are needed when mosaicking the images to be mapped at regional scales. We develop a system to search ASTER data for a target area given the vast and expanding ASTER data archive. The data is then conditioned, prioritized, and the indices are calculated before finally mosaicking the imagery. The maps of the indices covering the very wide region of the central Tibetan Plateau are produced with this system. The characteristic features of the indices relating to their geology in the study area are analyzed and discussed. Many interesting lithological and structural information that are not currently well understood in the central Tibetan Plateau, the highest and most extensive plateau in the world, with an average elevation of over 4,500 meters above sea level, for example, distributions of the mafic-ultramafic rocks along the suture zones, the quarzitic and marine sedimentology accreted to the Eurasian continent and sulfate layers related to the Tethys and neo-Tethys geological setting can be retrieved from the processed ASTER images.
Environmental and Earth Sciences, Geophysics and Geology
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