Use What is There: What can Sentinel-2 do for Geological Remote Sensing?

Sentinel-2 MSI (MultiSpectral Instrument) is the Landsat-like spatial resolution (10-60 m) super-spectral instrument of the European Space Agency (ESA), aimed at additional data continuity for global land surface monitoring with Landsat and Satellite Pour l'Observation de la Terre (SPOT) missions. Several studies with simulated and real data have been conducted in the last several years to show the potential of Sentinel-2 MSI, including its use for geological remote sensing. An aspect of Sentinel-2 MSI that has not yet been evaluated for geological remote sensing is the 5-10 days revisiting time. This paper shows the first results of a multi-temporal study performed in a hydro-thermal alteration system in southern Spain. Several band ratios for mapping mineral alteration have been calculated in more than 200 Sentinel-2 MSI images that cover a period of two years. Results show the effect of seasonality, illumination and weather on ground cover and the stability of the geological indices.