Dear Colleagues: Only 67 more days until Calgary-are you getting ready! By now most of you (who are SEG members) will have received your initial information packet from the SEG. You can as well get this information on the SEG's web site; http://www.seg.org. As the meeting draws closer, the web site is the best source of new information as it will be updated right up the time and during the meeting. The critical item now is to get your hotel registration in. Forms are attached to the Annual Meeting Announcement or can be downloaded off the web site. Payment can also be made through the web site or can be faxed in with your registration form. I apologize in advance that much of the cost structure is given in US$ even though the meeting is in Canada. Please be aware that the Mining/Geothermal Committee has tried to get as good a deal as we could where we could for our constituents. I sincerely believe however, that the quality of the program we are able to offer the mining community will make the Calgary meeting well worth attending. Summary of Key Points 1) Get your hotel booking asap! 2) Aug 5/6 Short Courses: Register by July 6 to save some $$! 3) Technical Sessions; start Monday AM running through Thursday PM; all in the Husky Room 4) Mining Committee Functions: -Monday PM ~5:30-8PM; general Committee meeting; beverages & food provided. Special talk by IAGSA representative on aviation safety. -Wednesday PM: ~5:30-7:30PM; Mining and Geothermal Committee Meeting; come out if you want to join the Committee and make a difference to your profession! 5)Tuesday PM Cowboy Bar Pub Crawl; Al King will show us all what he did the years he lived in Calgary 6)Wednesday Lunch ($US30): Speaker: Mr Tom Eadie, Executive General Manager Exploration Pasminco Limited Title of talk: "Budgets, Success, Innovation & Cooperation - A Lunchtime Perspective on Mining Exploration" 7) Wednesday PM: Janus Special Session: Where we look back and forward at our profession: Chaired by Joe Inman 8) Thursday PM: Airborne EM Special Session: Catch all the latest developments in AEM, including a look at the OGS's Treasure Hunt data. Chaired by Peter Diorio and Chris Vaughan. 9) Friday (all day) Ore Deposits Seminar: A getting back to the basics in exploration geophysics; Co-chairs Dick West and Ken Witherly 10) Saturday Bus tour to the Tyrell Museum-one of the world's best dinosaur museums, with real dinosaur bones out back! (Pls contact K Witherly directly if of interest). Est. cost ~$35 (excluding meals). ---------------------------------------------- Detailed Outline of Calgary Program: The first part of the program are the Short Courses. They are listed in the Annual Meeting Announcement but are not yet on the web site. Detailed information, including registration forms can be found at the SEG Continuing Education web site: http://seg.org/services/ce/registration This is one place you can save a few dollars by registering before July 6. I have attached the two course outlines below (they also appear on the web site noted above). We had these two excellent courses scheduled on consecutive days in order that those interested could attend both. Please note if so chose to attend one or both, you should make sure you book your hotel arrangements so according. ---------------------------------------------- Inversion of DC resistivity, IP and Magnetic Data for Mineral Exploration Doug Oldenburg-UBC, Yaoguo Li-CSM Duration: one day Saturday August 5, 2000 The recent introduction of rigorous methods for inverting geophysical data has created a demand for increasingly quantitative interpretations of subsurface physical property distributions. In this one-day course we show how DC resistivity, IP and magnetic data can be inverted to recover two- and three-dimensional images of subsurface properties. The emphasis is on understanding the fundamentals of inversion procedures and showing how to obtain good inversions of practical field data sets. Case histories from mineral exploration data sets will be used throughout the workshop to illustrate the application of inversion techniques to practical problems. Mathematical details are kept to a minimum. The first portion of the day is devoted to discussing basic elements of geophysical inversion. The realities of non-uniqueness are confronted by investigating the two fundamental questions of inversion: "What type of model do I want to construct?" and "How well should I fit the data?" This understanding is essential for those geoscientists carrying out the inversions and for those who are making geologic interpretations of the images. A major portion of the day focuses upon specific aspects that are required to invert practical data sets acquired in DC/IP and magnetic surveys. Notes, examples and other educational material will be provided on CD-ROM. Course Outline Examples of data and inversion results Why inversion is needed Linear inverse theory. Data, model, kernels. Casting the inverse problem as an optimization problem. Designing the model objective function and data misfit. Solving the problem. 3-D magnetic inversion. Background on magnetic surveys. What are the data and how they relate to magnetic susceptibility. It seems like a linear inverse problem, but there is a fundamental difficulty with non-uniqueness. The crucial importance of a depth weighting in the objective function and positively. Synthetic and fields examples. Real-time demos of the inversion. Basics of non-linear inversion. 2-D inversion of DC resistivity and IP data. Synthetic examples. Field data examples and practical issues of inverting field data. Real-time demos of the inversion. Case Histories for Mineral Exploration Course Tuition: (members/non-members) $US155/$CAN225 $US190/$CAN260 (if received after July 5) --------------------------------------------- The Application of Airborne EM to Minerals Exploration Richard Smith-Fugro Airborne Surveys Duration: one day Sunday August 6, 2000 Airborne electromagnetic (EM) methods are one of the most useful tools available to explorationists in the search for minerals. The electromagnetic method has been used successfully in the search for massive sulfides, predominantly in resistive terrain. However, the applications of airborne EM methods is expanding. The technique is now being used for direct detection and geological mapping in more conductive terrain. Following the diamonds boom of the early 1990s, it is now an established tool in identifying kimberlites. Interesting results have also been obtained in mapping the conductivity of the regolith, which could have application in the search for lateritic nickel and gold deposits. Further success has been achieved in mapping the alteration zones associated with gold deposits. This course will begin with a basic discussion of the physical properties of the ground to which EM are sensitive. The fundamental principles of EM will be introduced, leading to an outline of the different types of available systems. The course will then focus on recent improvements in system hardware and the advantages these improvements provide. In the last part of the course, case history examples will be emphasized, illustrating new technology and providing explorationists with illustrations of how airborne EM has been used to solve specific exploration problems. Those who are unfamiliar with EM and airborne EM methods will be introduced to the technology and its capabilities. For explorationists who have some exposure to these methods, this course will introduce the latest developments in airborne electromagnetic methods. For those with some experience, the case history examples will illustrate how airborne EM could help solve particular exploration problems. Course Outline Basic principles: Physical properties, physics of induction, time and frequency domain, waveforms, skin depth, diffusion depth, uses of EM. Planning a survey: Logistics, line spacing, cost, navigation, processing, interpretation. System specifications: Frequency of operation, geometric configuration, calibration. Technological developments: Digital acquisition, new coil geometries, system geometry monitoring and correction, B-field acquisition. Massive Sulphide Case histories: Examples from fixed wing and helicopter EM systems. Geological mapping principles. Geological mapping examples: Asymmetry effects in fixed-wing data, on time data, IP effects, hydrocarbon alteration mapping, resistivity, permittivity and permeability mapping, hydrogeological mapping, salinity mapping. Kimberlite exploration case histories Course Tuition: (members/non-members) $US155/$CAN225 $US190/$CAN260 (if received after July 5) ---------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------- Next are the technical sessions. This is the core of the meeting and we have got an excellent selection of papers and posters from around the world. There will be four oral sessions each of EM and Mining papers, all of which will be scheduled sequentially so that no one need miss any paper in the meeting! I have listed the various session titles below. Please go to the meeting schedule on the SEG web site for the papers being presented in each session along with the speaker & co-authors. We as well have been able to organize all the talks in the same room for the week; the Husky Room. Please note, that does not mean however, that the back of the room can used as defacto sleeping quarters. (NS, you know that means you!). Technical Sessions Husky Room Monday AM: EM 1 Electromagnetics: Innovative Technologies Tuesday AM: EM 2 Electromagnetics: Inversion Wednesday AM: EM 3 Electromagnetics: 3-D/Inversion Thursday AM: EM 4 Electromagnetics: New Technology/Modeling Husky Room Monday PM: Mining I: New Techniques and Case Histories MIN 2 Tuesday PM: Mining II: Mine Scale Exploration Wednesday PM: Mining: JANUS Special Session 3 Thursday PM: Mining: Airborne EM Special Session 4 ------------------------------- During the week, there will be a number of special events planned. Monday PM: SEG Mining & Geothermal Committee Function Monday PM (right after the technical talks end);est 5:30PM to 8PM Opportunity to share opinions about what the Committee can or should do for its constituents. Beverages/food will be provided. Immediately following the meeting, there will be a special presentation by IAGSA (http://www.iagsa.ca) on a subject relating to aviation safety. Tuesday PM: Cowboy Bar Pub crawl: Al King will show us all why he was thrown out of cowboy school (geophysics was his second choice). Wednesday Mining and Geothermal Lunch 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. Cost: U.S. $30 per person Speaker: Mr Tom Eadie, Executive General Manager Exploration Pasminco Limited Title of talk: "Budgets, Success, Innovation & Cooperation - A Lunchtime Perspective on Mining Exploration" Tom's talk will be a lead into the Janus session which starts immediately after lunch is finished. Space will be limited, so book early. Wednesday PM Special Session: Janus: Where from and Where to for Mining Geophysics? Chair: Joe Inman Geophysics has been an integral part of mineral exploration for the last fifty years. While having made significant contributions in this period, many challenges are now apparent at the societal, industrial, professional and personal level looking into the next decade. This session will first look at the past fifty years to better understand the successes (and failures) that have resulted as a result of mining geophysics. With these lessons in hand, we will then try and extrapolate as to how mining geophysics will look in the decades ahead. The session will lead off with a Key Note luncheon talk by Mr Tom Eadie, Executive General Manager Exploration for Pasminco Limited, entitled "Budgets, Success, Innovation & Cooperation�. This will then lead into the main afternoon session, which will start off with several invited papers by prominent members of the mining geophysical community. This in turn will be followed by a panel-led discussion focusing on the road ahead. Topics will include role of tomorrow�s geophysicists in mineral exploration, education, research, the role of government agencies, the role of consultants and contractors, and the effect of technologies such as the Web. The panel will consist of representatives from various groups within the mineral exploration community including mining companies, contractors, consultants, government agencies, and research consortiums. Thursday PM: Special Session on Airborne EM: Chairs Peter Diorio, Chris Vaughan The past few years have seen many developments in airborne EM systems, with both rapid improvement of existing systems and the introduction of innovative configurations employing helicopter and fixed wing platforms. Developers, operators and users of the systems will discuss the impact of the innovations on minerals exploration, in terms of field results and environments newly opened to AEM. Where possible, direct comparisons over the same test site will be presented Friday Workshop (all day): Ore Deposits Seminar Chairs: Dick West, Ken Witherly The successful application of geophysics in minerals exploration requires the matching-up of the appropriate petrophysical model for a given mineral deposit with the most suitable geophysical techniques. Usually, the petrophysical model is developed based on empirical 'rules of thumb' or 'First Stage' models which are based on early successes. This oftentimes retards the on-going evolution and the development of a more rigorous mode. First Stage models may seem robust and in the short term be able to drive discovery success, particularly in the original environment where the model was first developed. However, First Stage models are almost always too simplistic to allow them to be successfully moved to new environments or to sustain discovery success in the original setting where the model was first developed. The Ore Deposits Seminar will examine two cases where these First Stage models have been developed but then have been expanded upon through systematic study and field validation. The deposit types to be examined are the Athabaska Unconformity Uranium style and the Copper Porphyry style. The seminar will be broken into three main parts; first, for each deposit style, the current physical property models will be examined. In order to have the needed rigor, such models typically need to be based on measurements at three scales; the micro (rock samples), the meso (borehole logging) and macro (standard field surveys). Following the development of the models, field observations from a range of geological conditions will be presented and discussed so as to assess how well the existing deposit model agrees with the field observations. The final part of the seminar will work to broaden the exploration model to include other geoscience data which is used in the exploration discovery process, primarily geological and geochemical information. Finally, we can close off the week by a trip down memory lane, about 120 million years worth, with a visit to the world class Tyrell Museum located at Drumheller, about 1 1/2 hours north east of Calgary. This event is being organized by the Mining Committee and will be undertaken only if enough interest is shown. This would be a day trip, with the planned means of transport being charter bus. Estimated cost (numbers dependent) would be ~$35 (w/o meals). Please contact K Witherly directly is you are interested. You can get more information about Tyrell from their site: http://www.tyrrellmuseum.com/; it beats Jurassic Park hands down! See you in Calgary... Ken Condor Consulting, Inc. St. 206, 4860 Robb Street Wheat Ridge CO 80033 Tel: 303-423-8475 Fax: 303-423-9729 www.condorconsult.com _______________________________________________________ List archive: http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]
