Resolution Analysis of Airborne Electromagnetic Survey Using Helicopter Platform and UAV

The paper considers the possibilities of time-domain airborne electromagnetic exploration technologies using both standard helicopter platforms and unmanned aerial vehicles with a source in the form of a long grounded electrical line when prospecting ore deposits. The analysis is carried out using finite element modeling programs and the results of field experiments, which made it possible to obtain the noise level. A geoelectric model obtained as a result of processing data from airborne electromagnetic prospecting in the Ural region is considered. The influence of the tilt of the target object and its position relative to the transmitter line are analyzed. The simulation takes into account topography, the curved surface of the target, and heterogeneities in the overburden layers. Numerical modeling makes it possible to clarify the noise level of the measuring equipment and establish the requirements for the minimum measurement accuracy for solving electromagnetic exploration problems of the class under consideration. Computational experiments have shown that when searching for ore objects lying at depths of up to 200 m, both technologies make it possible to recover the location and shape of the target objects in plan and in depth.