McArthur River

Imaged a compact high-grade uranium deposit at ~600 m depth

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PROJECT OVERVIEW

Muon geotomography successfully imaged a compact high-grade uranium deposit under 600 m of sandstone at the McArthur River uranium mine. These deposits are virtually impossible to detect with conventional geophysical exploration techniques.

SITUATION

Canada’s Athabasca Basin hosts the highest-grade uranium deposits yet found. This ore body at the McArthur River mine in Saskatchewan, Canada, is near an unconformity, above the basement rock, but under almost 600 m of sandstone. In addition to the depth, other challenges include complex geology and naturally occurring radiation.

IDEON SOLUTION

Muon detectors were placed at a depth of 600 m providing a large field of view (over 1 km across on the surface) with sufficient locations to enable good 3D imaging of the deposit despite complex geology.

OUTCOME

Muon geotomography successfully imaged this high-grade uranium deposit with high statistical significance, demonstrating a new technique for discovering hard these hard-to-detect deep compact high-grade deposits.