I am a PhD geologist and university lecturer in the Oulu Mining School (University of Oulu), working in the MinExTarget-project. My background is in the applied mineralogy and geochemistry. I am especially interested how mineralogical and geochemical information can be used to study and understand mineral deposits and their formational processes.

My role in the MinExTarget project is to supervise MSc and PhD-students with subjects focusing of trace element and isotopic signatures of sulfides and other minerals (e.g. tourmaline) in the surficial heavy mineral fractions that can be used potentially for fingerprinting mineral deposits under cover. In order to use advanced fingerprinting techniques, it is crucial to understand the characteristics of different types of mineral deposits. To address this issue within the context of MinExTarget project, our research group in the Oulu Mining School are currently testing the fingerprinting capabilities of the heavy minerals from surficial sediments (till) from reference sites in northern Finland by comparing the trace element signatures of specific minerals from till against trace element signatures of known gold deposits within the same areas.

Currently PhD researcher Atte Taivalkoski is studying the fingerprinting capabilities of pyrite from till heavy mineral fractions collected on top of the known Petäjäselkä gold occurrences in the Central Lapland area. Trace element signatures of the heavy mineral pyrite is compared to the pyrite trace element data from the Petäjäselkä gold occurrences, studied by MSc student Charmee Kalubowila. Multivariate statistical analyses reveal internal structures of the datasets and their similarities/dissimilarities. These studies will give highly valuable information of the challenges and possibilities of these advanced exploration methods.