Mineral exploration

EMIT L2B is the only operational satellite-distributed per-pixel mineral identification product (Tetracorder fitting against USGS Spectral Library v7) for ten mineral classes (kaolinite, illite+muscovite, montmorillonite, vermiculite, chlorite, calcite, dolomite, gypsum, hematite, goethite) at 60 m GSD. Open via LP DAAC; non-orthocorrected (user must orthorectify).

EnMAP L2A delivers 228 bands 420-2450 nm at 30 m GSD with full SWIR coverage to 2450 nm. Standard input for regional alteration mineral mapping (clay, carbonate, sulphate, phyllosilicate). CARD4L certified; open registered access via DLR EOWEB; ATCOR-based atmospheric correction.

PRISMA L2D delivers 239 bands 400-2505 nm at 30 m GSD with full SWIR coverage. Earliest of the three operational civilian full-VNIR-SWIR hyperspectral missions. Buyers should handle the 920-1010 nm VNIR-SWIR detector-join per Vangi 2021 retain-VNIR convention. Open registered access via prisma.asi.it.

ASTER GED 100 m global emissivity is the canonical spaceborne TIR mineralogy dataset, complementary to SWIR alteration mapping. Five TIR bands span the 8.125-11.65 um silicate reststrahlen region; quartz reststrahlen at 9.1 um (Band 12) is the diagnostic feature. Static 2000-2008 climatology; not time-resolved.

ASTER L2 AST_07XT is the foundational 30 m spaceborne SWIR mineral mapping dataset; SWIR archive 2000-2008 (cryocooler failure approximately April 2008, full failure January 2009) is the most-cited mineral-mapping multispectral SWIR archive globally. VNIR continues to acquire. Adequate for new work (SWIR archive frozen) but well-suited for archival/historical mapping.

DESIS L2A is VNIR-only (402-1000 nm) so it cannot resolve the diagnostic SWIR clay/carbonate/sulphate alteration features. Useful for iron-oxide mapping near 870 nm and broad lithological context. Archive fixed November 2018 to December 2023; no new tasking. Restricted-access scientific use via DLR EOWEB.

HISUI L1G is spectrally well-suited for minerals (185 bands 400-2500 nm at 20 m cross-track / 30 m along-track; METI funded the programme explicitly for mineral and resource exploration). Rated adequate rather than well-suited because access is restricted to individuals affiliated with Japanese companies, organisations, and universities via Tellus; non-Japanese-affiliated users cannot register through the public portal as of 2026-05-19. Spectral capability alone is well-suited; effective buyer accessibility is the limiting factor.

EMIT L3 is a 0.5-degree global gridded mineral abundance product aimed at Earth system model boundary conditions, not exploration. Cell size precludes deposit-scale or outcrop-scale work. Useful as a global open-access reference baseline for arid-region mineral abundance.

from Pixxel Firefly hyperspectral imager on Pixxel Firefly-1

HySpex Mjolnir VS-620 is the airborne / UAV-class reference instrument for hyperspectral mineral mapping; widely used as the calibration anchor for spaceborne hyperspectral cal/val campaigns (NASA, ESA, DLR, USGS). Full VNIR+SWIR coverage at sub-metre GSD over UAV / light-aircraft platforms. Airborne deployment only; outside the orbital catalogue but a load-bearing reference instrument for ground-truth in space-mineral workflows.

Orbital Sidekick SIGMA delivers commercial hyperspectral analytics on the GHOSt constellation (512 bands 400-2500 nm at approximately 8 m GSD). Full SWIR coverage supports alteration mineral mapping for mining and exploration targeting at commercial subscription tier. Most rigorous public commercial cal/val documentation in the hyperspectral peer group (SPIE 2024).

WV-3 Imager SWIR subsystem at 3.7 m GSD is the only operational commercial sensor that resolves alteration mineral assemblages at outcrop and drill-target scale. 8 SWIR bands positioned at the diagnostic absorption features (Al-OH 2200 nm, Mg-OH 2300 nm, carbonate 2300-2340 nm, alunite 1760 nm). Commercial tasked acquisition only; no open archive.

Simera Sense HyperScape100 is VNIR-only (460-860 nm) with CVOF architecture (32 bands per acquisition from 400 filter positions). Does not reach the SWIR diagnostic mineralogy range. Useful for iron-oxide context and broad multispectral overview, not for clay/carbonate/sulphate alteration identification.

Honeybee Zero is Pixxel's first VSWIR hyperspectral instrument, covering 400 to 2550 nm at approximately 8 m GSD with approximately 450 contiguous bands. Spectrally well-suited in principle for mineral exploration: full VNIR plus SWIR coverage exposes the diagnostic absorption features used for clay, carbonate, sulphate, and phyllosilicate alteration mineralogy. Quality grade is marginal as of May 2026 because HB0 has not launched (planned 2026; launch vehicle unconfirmed) and no commissioning data, on-orbit calibration characterisation, or user imagery are available. Upgrades to well-suited once the satellite is flying and data quality is independently verified.

WorldView Legion delivers VHR 9-band VNIR multispectral (no SWIR). Useful for high-resolution geological structural mapping and outcrop characterisation but cannot resolve diagnostic SWIR alteration mineralogy. WV-3 SWIR remains the Vantor option for drill-target-scale mineralogy.