Western Star Resources Inc. (CSE: WSR) (OTC: WSRIF) has announced the results of a high-resolution UAV magnetic geophysical survey completed across the White Star Tungsten Project in Elko County, Nevada. The survey, the first modern geophysical dataset acquired over the property, was designed to identify prospective targets and improve understanding of structural controls on mineralization.
The survey data, processed to produce Total Magnetic Intensity, First Vertical Derivative, Second Vertical Derivative, and Analytical Signal products, revealed several key features. The historical Batholith mine and adit are situated along a northwest-southeast-trending magnetic lineament within a subtle magnetic low. Multiple comparable geophysical features have been identified elsewhere on the property, suggesting additional mineralization potential.
Notably, a broad magnetic high in the western portion of the property may represent a previously unmapped extension of intrusive granite (quartz monzonite) associated with tungsten-bearing skarn mineralization. This interpreted intrusive body is adjacent to mapped carbonate units, defining a new area prospective for contact skarn-hosted tungsten. Multiple magnetic lineaments interpreted as fault and fracture zones may have acted as pathways for hydrothermal fluids.
CEO Blake Morgan stated, "The interpreted intrusive body identified in the high-resolution magnetic data has generated a significant new area of interest, where the contact between the granite and surrounding carbonate rocks may provide a favorable setting for tungsten skarn mineralization."
The survey data has been integrated with historical geological mapping. Four target zones have been defined for follow-up: the central Kqm–Pzt contact north of the Batholith Mine, a northern Pzt body within the northern Kqm, a southern limestone corridor, and the historical open pit area. These targets represent extensions of known mineralization or new areas with similar geophysical signatures.
The White Star survey was flown to the same specifications as the recently completed Rowland UAV magnetic survey, enabling the two datasets to be processed as a single contiguous district-scale magnetic product covering the consolidated Jarbidge–Charleston tungsten footprint. The combined dataset is undergoing geophysical inversion and will support integrated targeting between the White Star workings and the Rowland Tungsten Property.
The geophysical results will be integrated with pending rock-chip and soil geochemistry to guide follow-up exploration and refine potential drill targets. The company emphasizes that this work is critical to revitalizing North America's tungsten supply, given the growing need for secure domestic critical mineral supply.
