Tucson startup demonstrates airborne system to image 2 km underground; touts mining and defense uses

A Tucson‑based startup told the Science and Technology Committee it has developed an airborne subsurface imaging system the founder said can map as deep as two kilometers at roughly 10‑meter resolution.

Jeremiah Pate, founder and chief technology officer of LUNISOUND, described the company’s georadio tomography (GRT) system as a form of low‑frequency ground‑penetrating radar that can be flown from helicopters and fixed‑wing aircraft. "We can image up to 2 kilometers underground at 10 meter resolution, all from airborne platforms," Pate said, and added the system can accelerate mineral discovery and help identify buried infrastructure relevant to defense planning.

Pate showed examples he said include a copper porphyry ore body mapped beneath 800 meters of loose alluvium and an abandoned Titan II missile silo visible in his data where standard satellite imagery showed only empty desert. He described active demonstrations with a large Department of Defense prime and partnerships with Gunnison Copper and other mining companies.

Members asked technical questions about the ability to identify specific mineral types and to detect aquifers. Pate said mineral discrimination is a capability the company is working on and expects progress within about 18 months. He confirmed the system detected an aquifer outside Oracle, Arizona, and said aquifer detection is straightforward for the platform but the company is still testing market models for that data.

Pate said the company's advisory board includes former leaders from commercial remote‑sensing companies and that the firm is exploring defense and space applications, including a partnership cited with Blue Origin for space‑based applications.

Committee members did not take legislative action on the demonstration; the session moved to closing remarks afterward.