Capabilities of the Landsat 8 and Harmonized Landsat Sentinel-2 Remote Sensing Spacecraft for Mapping Metasomatic Changes Using the Example of the Territory of the Eastern Slope of the Polar Urals

For the first time, the potential of using data from the Landsat 8 and Harmonized Landsat Sentinel-2 (HLS-2) remote sensing satellites to map metasomatic changed minerals was assessed for the eastern slope of the Polar Urals (Toupugol-Khanmeyshorsky ore district and Shchuchya zone). Analysis of results obtained showed that data from both satellites has high potential for mapping metasomatic changes. Moreover, the Landsat 8 sensor better identifies oxides of ferrous oxide and ferric oxide (hematite), while the HLS-2 sensor better identifies hydroxyl-(Al–OH, Mg–OH) and carbonate-containing minerals, as well as iron oxides and hydroxides. Thus, when mapping metasomatic changes, it is necessary to apply and consider data obtained from each of the sensors separately, since the combination of data from both spacecraft contains more mineralogical information and complements each other.