A group of Chinese scientists has discovered the world’s deepest sandstone-type uranium deposit, located 1,820 meters beneath the surface in the Tarim Basin, Xinjiang, according to the China Atomic Energy Authority (CAEA). This record-setting find highlights China’s leadership in deep-earth uranium exploration and offers new theoretical and technical pathways for global uranium prospecting.
The goal of uranium exploration is to identify deposits with commercial potential and assess their feasibility for development. The discovery of industrial-grade uranium mineralization serves as a reliable marker for locating economically viable uranium sources, the CAEA explained.
This recent find marks the first significant thick uranium deposit in the red variegated strata of the remote, uninhabited Tarim Basin. It closes a major geological gap in China’s largest desert area, representing a milestone in mineral exploration, the CAEA said.
Qin Mingkuan, chief scientist at China National Nuclear Corporation, told Global Times that the discovery not only identified uranium but also led to the development of a specialized technological system for exploring sandstone uranium in desert environments worldwide.
Qin noted that the exploration team faced formidable conditions, including difficult terrain, poor construction environments, limited uranium detection technology, and a lack of prior examples. Success was achieved, he said, by rejecting conventional methods and embracing innovative thinking.
In 2020, Qin and his team revisited decades of exploration data and detected unusual radioactivity in red sediment layers far from the basin’s edge. Recognizing the potential of these red variegated formations under specific geological conditions, they refocused their efforts on the basin’s remote, desert interior, previously thought unsuitable for mineral discovery.
This strategic shift led to numerous field expeditions and the proposal of a new predictive model, “exfiltration-infiltration composite genetic regional prediction.” The team refined uranium formation theories for sandstone settings and advanced deep drilling methods for the challenging strata in Tarim, significantly supporting the recent breakthrough.
This discovery demonstrates that China has cracked major theoretical barriers in sandstone-type uranium formation. Through an integrated system using satellite imaging, aerial surveys, surface testing, and deep-earth exploration, China has built an eco-friendly and efficient 3D detection framework tailored for desert uranium deposits. This sets a new standard for similar global efforts, the CAEA said.
Looking ahead, Qin emphasized that the Tarim Basin will remain a focal point for scientific research and technological progress. While the recent discovery is a key step forward, he added that much work remains before extraction can begin, requiring further exploration and verification. Despite the long road, Qin expressed confidence in a promising future.
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