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Rewriting the Lithium Playbook: Archean roots, greenstone belts, and giant pegmatites

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  • Archean lithium-rich pegmatites formed from crustal sources refertilised by hydrous, mantle-derived sanukitoid magmas beneath greenstone belts.
  • The leucogranites evolve from metaluminous, juvenile, parental magmas through melting igneous—not sedimentary—sources, challenging traditional Li-pegmatite models.
  • Major crustal-scale faults and greenstone-granite contacts enabled upward melt transfer and Li-enrichment at craton margins.

Smithies, R.H., Lu, Y., Champion, D.C., Sweetapple, M.T., Lowrey, J.R., Bowman, N.H., Cassidy, K.F., Ivanic, T.J., Kemp, A.I.S., Turnbull, R.E., Gessner, K. & Korhonen, F.J. (2025). Giant lithium-rich pegmatites in Archean cratons form by remelting refertilised roots of greenstone belts. Communications Earth & Environment, 6, 630. https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-025-02622-5. 

Geochronology
Resource Geoscience
Geochemistry

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Rethinking CubeSat Navigation: High-precision, low-cost orbit & attitude control with antenna arrays

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  • An orbital accuracy of 4.1 cm was achieved using a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) antenna array—nearly three times better than traditional single-antenna CubeSat methods.
  • Accurate satellite orientation with antenna arrays emphasizes the cost‑effectiveness of this approach compared with expensive star trackers.
  • The observation residuals in orbit estimations were halved, demonstrating smoother and more reliable GNSS observation residuals.

Allahvirdi-Zadeh, A. & El-Mowafy, A. (2024). Array-aided precise orbit and attitude determination of CubeSats using GNSS. NAVIGATION, 71(3). https://doi.org/10.33012/navi.651.

Geoinformatics and Geocomputing
Geomatic Engineering

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Positioning and Navigation Solutions
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Satellite Systems Engineering
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Zircon Signals: Tracing sediment pathways to high-grade mineral sands

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  • Zircon diversity correlates with mineral grades, suggesting higher resistant heavy mineral enrichment from prolonged sediment mixing and recycling.
  • Two distinct sediment systems identified, with richer eastern Eucla sands sourced predominantly from multi-cycle reworking of Musgrave, Madura, and Coompana provinces.
  • Novel proxies of sediment maturity form part of an array of relevant tools for heavy mineral prospectivity.

Gartmair, G., Barham, M. & Kirkland, C.L. (2022). Detrital Zircon Perspectives on Heavy Mineral Sand Systems, Eucla Basin, Australia. Economic Geology, 117(2), 383–399. https://doi.org/10.5382/econgeo.4871.

Also see: https://heavymineralsandtoolbox.github.io/

Geochronology
Regolith and Sedimentology
Resource Geoscience

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Particle Analysis
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Unlocking Carbonate Complexity: Digital imaging powers accurate rock property prediction

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  • A robust velocity-porosity relationship provides upper-bound estimates of carbonate elastic properties across scales.
  • Unresolved micritic phases critically influence permeability and stiffness — digital segmentation must integrate this heterogeneity.
  • Combining lab measurements with digital rock physics improves permeability and velocity predictions, despite imaging resolution limits.

Saenger, E.H., Vialle, S., Lebedev, M., Uribe, D., Osorno, M., Duda, M. & Steeb, H. (2016). Digital carbonate rock physics. Solid Earth, 7(4), 1185–1197. https://doi.org/10.5194/se-7-1185-2016.

Geophysics

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Microstructural analysis
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Diamonds from a Broken Supercontinent: Argyle’s rift-driven origins revealed

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  • Argyle formed during lithospheric extension linked to the breakup of supercontinent Nuna, enabling deep mantle melts to reach the surface through ancient rift zones.
  • New geochronology reveals the Argyle lamproite was emplaced between 1311 ± 9 Ma and 1257 ± 15 Ma—older than previously thought.
  • Argyle’s location in a Paleoproterozoic orogen—not an Archean craton—reshapes where and how we explore for economic diamond deposits.

Olierook, H.K.H., Fougerouse, D., Doucet, L.S., Liu, Y., Rayner, M.J., Danišík, M., Condon, D.J., McInnes, B.I.A., Lynton Jaques, A., Evans, N.J., McDonald, B.J., Li, Z.-X., Kirkland, C.L., Mayers, C. & Wingate, M.T.D. (2023). Emplacement of the Argyle diamond deposit into an ancient rift zone triggered by supercontinent breakup. Nature Communications, 14, 5274. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-40904-8.

Geochronology
Resource Geoscience

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Mapping what matters: Pinpointing groundwater-dependent vegetation for smarter water management

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  • Sentinel-2 satellite imagery analysis accurately identifies groundwater-dependent vegetation (GDV) by capturing year-round greenness patterns.
  • GDV thrives in valleys and river floodplains, identified by negative topographic position and land system classifications.
  • 13% of the area is suitable for GDV but unconfirmed—prioritising these zones for field validation enhances protection strategies.

Robinson, T.P., Trotter, L. & Wardell-Johnson, G.W. (2024). Uncertainty Modelling of Groundwater-Dependent Vegetation. Land, 13(12), 2208. https://doi.org/10.3390/land13122208

Environmental Geoscience

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Bioclimate Envelope Modelling
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