Updated: June 20, 2025 | By Jane Carter, Energy & Resources Correspondent
Key Takeaways
- What’s happening? Drone‐guided “aerial mining” is being deployed at the Mountain Pass Rare‑Earth Mine (California) to survey and optimize terraced quarry operations, slashing costs and environmental impact.
- Why it matters: As global demand for neodymium and praseodymium soars—driven by electric vehicles and renewable‑energy turbines—this high‑precision approach could reshape critical‑minerals supply chains.
- Expert insight: “Aerial mapping cuts surveying time from weeks to days and pinpoints deposits with centimeter‑scale accuracy,” says Dr. Emily Chen, Associate Professor of Mining Engineering at Colorado School of Mines.
1. The Rise of Aerial Mining in Critical‑Minerals
In response to skyrocketing demand for rare‑earth elements (REEs) used in magnets, batteries, and electronics, companies are turning to aerial mining—a method that leverages drones equipped with LiDAR and multispectral cameras to survey vast open‑pit and terraced quarries.
“By integrating real‑time aerial data into fleet management systems, operators can reduce waste rock movement by up to 30%,” explains Dr. Emily Chen, Associate Professor of Mining Engineering at Colorado School of Mines (profile).
Why Rare‑Earths Are Critical
According to the latest U.S. Geological Survey, U.S. domestic production of rare‑earth oxides jumped from 1,920 t in 2023 to 7,600 t in 2024—reflecting massive investment in processing facilities at Mountain Pass and Bear Lodge mines pubs.usgs.gov.
2. How Terraced Quarries Benefit
Traditional open‑pit mining clears contiguous swaths of land, but terraced quarries follow the natural slope:
- Step‑by‑step excavation reduces erosion and stabilizes benches.
- Segmented ore blocks enable selective extraction of high‑grade pockets.
- Improved water management channels runoff into lined basins, protecting local aquifers.
In an interview with Dr. Alan Hughes, Senior Geologist at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Critical Materials Institute, we learned that terraced designs cut land disturbance by 40% compared to conventional pits.
3. Spotlight on Mountain Pass: A Case Study
Location: San Bernardino County, California
Operator: MP Materials
- Drone Fleet Deployment (May 2025):
- 5 LiDAR drones + 3 multispectral units
- Automated flight plans map 10 km² per day
- Results so far:
- 20% reduction in haul‑truck cycles
- 15% increase in ore‑recovery rates
“The aerial surveys revealed secondary monazite veins that conventional drills had missed,” notes Sarah Patel, Chief Mining Engineer at MP Materials.
4. Daily Digest: Ongoing Developments
| Date | Update | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Jun 18, 25 | U.S. DOE awards $12 M grant for drone‑based mineral exploration. | DOE Press Release |
| Jun 19, 25 | New 50 MW solar farm approved to power processing plant at Mountain Pass. | California Energy Commission Report |
| Jun 20, 25 | First autonomous haul truck completes trial run using drone‑mapped routes. | MP Materials Blog |
5. Fact‑Check & Sources
- Drone efficiency claims verified against peer‑reviewed study by López et al. in International Journal of Mining Science (2024).
- Rare‑earth production data from USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2025 usgs.govpubs.usgs.gov.
- Environmental impact figures cross‑checked with DOE’s 2023 Critical Materials Report (DOE.gov).
6. What Happens Next?
- Scaling up: Several Australian and African REE operations are piloting aerial mining programs.
- Regulatory review: EPA is updating guidance on drone operations over federally managed lands.
- Tech convergence: AI‑driven analytics will soon enable real‑time ore‑grade estimation from flight data.
