Locating Mineral Exploration Targets using a Geographical Information System

This paper outlines the research and development of a complete open source geographic information system (GIS) that offers real-time geoprocessing over the Internet. The premise of the geoprocessing is to locate mineral exploration targets that have high potential for success based on parameters chosen by the end-user of the system. Components integrated in the system include a spatial database PostGIS, a GIS processing engine GRASS, a GIS server GeoServer, a web server Apache, and front-end technologies OpenLayers and GeoExt. Appropriate data was sourced from the Geological Survey of Ireland to be used for the geoprocessing. With all the components of the GIS integrated, an individual not specialised in the use of a GIS can interact with and interrogate the data through a web browser. The GIS then provides a vital role as a decision support system for locating mineral exploration targets