Space age radar now used in mines

The European Space Agency says advanced ground penetration radar created to operate on the moon, Mars and other planets is being used in Canadian mines.

The radar called GINGER -- Guidance and Into-the-Ground Exploration Radar -- was developed for the ESA to mount on a moon or Mars rover to investigate soil structure. Now the German-Swiss company RST has developed the radar to detect invisible separations in the roofs and walls of mines -- the Crack Identification System, or CRIS, for hard rock mines and the Potash Roof Inspection System, or PRIS, for potash mines.

CRIS and PRIS are based directly on the GINGER radar technology which we started to develop with ESA in 1994, said RST Project Manager Yvonne Krellmann. During test campaigns with our two radars (in Ontario, Canada) we have verified that this technology is very successful in spotting horizontal cracks in the roofs of mine drifts; cracks which are difficult to identify with the human eye and which, in time, could cause a roof to fall down.

Scientists say not only could ground penetration radar become part of routine mine safety inspections, but it also holds promise for street and tunnel maintenance procedures.

(UPI)

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