A UH geology professor has started a new project to find gold in the mountains of Pakistan.
Shuhab Khan decided to start this investigation because people have found small specks of gold in sand from the rivers of this region.
However, no one has investigated the area where the actual gold deposit is.
“People have been doing this for 2,000 years. But still we do not have any known location where the actual motherlode is,” Khan said.
“If you are finding specks of gold, what does this mean? There is gold.”
This zone is in the north of Pakistan, where the Hindu Kush, the Karakoram and the Himalayan mountains meet. Because this is one of the most remote regions in the world, Khan is using remote sensing technology, which allows him to get data from the mountains through his lab.
“We will be identifying the areas that we want, and then we will be using hyper-spectral remote sensing,” he said.
The characteristics of gold and other minerals, such as copper, can be identified through satellite pictures. The images can be seen in 3D and with many different colors, which indicate the minerals that are in the mountains.
The project, which started in November, received a grant of $370,000 from the National Academies of Sciences. Khan’s project was among 271 other proposals to research in Pakistan; only 14 were selected.
This project also includes participation from the University of Peshawar, Khan’s Alma mater. He will be going to Pakistan during the summer to do research in the area.
Working with Khan at UH is graduate student Kivanc Biber, who will also be going to Pakistan.
Biber took a class with Khan last semester and decided to get involved in this project’s research because of his interest in the subject.
Biber, who is originally from Turkey, is not scared of the violence that has erupted during the last few years.
“We have some dangerous areas in Turkey, and I have worked in those areas doing explorations. I think I’m used to it, it doesn’t scare me,” Biber said.
According to Khan, the region in Pakistan that they will visit is safe.
“We do not take a risk,” Khan said. “I know this area, we know this area is very stable, very settled.”
If gold is discovered, the Pakistani government will keep all of it. Neither Khan nor his team members will be getting the gold, but that doesn’t worry them.
“This gold is flashy for the public, but at the end of the day we are there for the academics. We want to understand what made the gold be there,” Khan said.
The project is expected to last three years.
Cool! Good luck!