The MinEx CRC Project 5 team at Curtin University has recently completed a field experiment investigating new borehole seismic imaging technologies using fibre optic sensing in hard rock environments.

The research aims to improve how geological features between drillholes are imaged, providing clearer subsurface information while reducing the amount of drilling required during mineral exploration. By enhancing the quality of subsurface imaging, the project has the potential to reduce exploration time, costs and environmental impacts associated with additional drilling.

The recent field campaign forms part of the team’s ongoing research into high-resolution seismic imaging and distributed acoustic sensing technologies for mineral exploration.

Image: MinEx CRC Project 5 research team during recent field trials investigating borehole seismic imaging technologies using fibre optic sensing. Black-and-white photographs captured by Roman Isaenkov (Curtin University) on a vintage film camera.