Open Journal of Geology, 2018, 8, 1195-1216
http://www.scirp.org/journal/ojg
ISSN Online: 2161-7589
ISSN Print: 2161-7570
Mineral Exploration in Rough Mountainous
Area Using Geospatial Technology
(Case Study of Al Hajar Area)
Ali H. Jebril, Mohamed Hafedh M. M. Hamza, Mohamed A. Al-Amri
Department of Geography and Geographic Information Systems, Faculty of Arts, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, KSA
Abstract
As acknowledged that the exploration is the first step before reaching the
discovery of profitable economic raw materials. However, it is also representing
a high risk financially because it is possible that the areas discovered is not
economically worthwhile, at that time the stakeholder will confront difficult
return their exploration expenses. Therefore, the exploration process ex-
ecuted in multiple stages before increasing expenses for the detection. The
business of mineral exploration, one of high cost investment especially if it
was in rugged mountain areas, which is difficult to reach and has a very
high cost of access, consequentially increased the exploration costs. The
reasons for doing this research in rough mountainous area using geospatial
technology, can be justified to be valuable, time-saving and cost-reducing.
Therefore, we can see that one of the solid factors that helped the study is
using of GIS technology in the rough terrain area, which strongly and effec-
tively contributes to the display of spatial information and linking the
study, and analysis of the information collected by using GIS programs.
Subsequently, its benefits minimizing exploration costs, and selecting tar-
gets with confidence and effective field work. Most of the data related to the
operations of mineral exploration have a spatial nature. So, GIS has the ca-
pability for storage, updating, revising, displaying, retrieving, processing,
manipulating and integrating of different geo-spatial data. By ending of this
study, we will be able to save time and money and increase profitability and
efficacy.
Keywords
Mineral Exploration, Geochemistry, Geophysics, GIS, Risk, Decision Making,
Soil, Al Hajar-Bishah-KSA
How to cite this paper: Jebril, A.H.,
Hamza, M.H.M.M. and Al-Amri, M.A.
(2018) Mineral Exploration in Rough
Mountainous Area Using Geospatial
Technology (Case Study of Al Hajar Area).
Open Journal of Geology, 8, 1195-1216.
https://doi.org/10.4236/ojg.2018.813072
Received: December 1, 2018
Accepted: December 26, 2018
Published: December 29, 2018
Copyright © 2018 by author(s) and
Scientific Research Publishing Inc.
This work is licensed under the Creative
Commons Attribution International
License (CC BY 4.0).
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Open Access
DOI: 10.4236/ojg.2018.813072 Dec. 29, 2018 1195 Open Journal of Geology