Kwekwe partners block

A ~150 ha six-peg block near Kwekwe, north-west of Kwekwe block 2. The corner order was supplied as survey-grade decimal coordinates and used exactly as given (simple polygon, no reordering needed). This is a where-to-walk assessment on free satellite data, not a claim that gold is present.

Walk the central-north interior first. The block as a whole sits at the 43rd percentile of the regional model against local background: mid-table, not a standout. The terrain association is the main positive signal (82nd percentile), meaning the block occupies the kind of terrain where local mines cluster. The ferric ratio (42nd percentile), however, is below background: at 1.488 vs a background median of 1.512, the surface lacks the iron-oxide staining that marks gossan or laterite at comparable blocks. With the block fully bare (0% vegetation, 100% valid pixels), there is no masking artifact: the signal is simply not there. The fused block median P(gold) is 0.229 at 10 m. All six model spots cluster in the northern interior; the south is blank. The tightest pair sits at 778416 E / 7914491 N and 778576 E / 7914421 N (UTM 35S), roughly 400–500 m south-west of peg E. A surface inspection of that north corridor, continuing to the NW arc toward peg D, is the logical first pass.

Every 10 m pixel over the block is inspectable: the heatmap is the fused P(gold) surface (dark = low, bright = high), and tapping anywhere shows the score, its rank against the local background and within the block, and every layer behind it, with the coordinate in peg format. The low ground is as visible as the high ground on purpose: control samples from dark pixels are what calibrate this model. Scores read surface geology, not grade.

The best-ground spots (UTM 35S). Spots 1–2 are the north cluster (purple), the highest ground and the first target to walk. Spots 3–5 form a NW arc (indigo) and are a logical continuation. Spot 6 (slate) sits in isolation at the eastern edge and is a low-confidence scatter point:

The five checks behind that

Each is scored over the block against the ground immediately around it.

Check	This block	What it means
Terrain match	82nd percentile	the block sits on mine-like terrain, the strongest signal here; terrain model calibrated on 52 local mines, LOO AUC 0.927, spatial CV at 8 km 0.810
Red-oxide (ferric)	42nd percentile	ferric ratio 1.488 vs background 1.512, below background median with zero vegetation cover; the surface simply lacks elevated gossan or laterite staining; mine separability sigma is only 0.196, so the ferric arm is a weak discriminator here regardless
Structure / lineaments	52nd percentile	block-wide lineament density is near the background mean; dominant trend 135–150 deg; farmed flat terrain means roads and field edges are the dominant false positive
ASTER alteration (SWIR)	Al-OH 47th, carbonate/Mg-OH 50th percentile	hydrothermal-alteration mapping on a pre-2008 archive day scene (2004-07-30, 0% cloud), the sericite and carbonate features orogenic gold produces. Indistinguishable from background, and the decisive test is the 52 local mines: they carry no alteration signal beyond chance. Checked twice, a crude band ratio and a stronger method (scene-relative reflectance, continuum-removed absorption depth, nearest-pixel and halo-peak sampling against a random-point control); both agree the mines sit at background. At ASTER's 30 m the narrow orogenic alteration selvages here are sub-pixel, so this instrument has no useful discriminating power in this district
Regional P(gold)	0.229 whole-block median (43rd percentile), max 0.548	the combined estimate; mid-table overall, all model spots confined to the northern interior

Compared to all blocks assessed

Same model run over each block:

Block	Whole-block P(gold)	Percentile vs local background
Belingwe-West	0.394	n/a
Zvishavane	0.282	67th
Kwekwe block 2, NW corner	0.65-0.70	n/a
Kwekwe block 2, whole block	0.254	45th
Kwekwe partners block (this), whole block	0.229	43rd
Kwekwe block 3	n/a	n/a
Kwekwe block 1	0.129	8th

This block sits just below kwekwe block 2 by percentile (43rd vs 45th) and well above kwekwe block 1 (8th), but below zvishavane (67th) and well below belingwe-west. The terrain arm is stronger here than most blocks; the ferric deficit is the clear drag. The block-wide max of 0.548 and compressed P(gold) distribution contrast with kwekwe block 2, where the NW corner reached 0.65-0.70; this block has no equivalent concentrated high-end patch.

Data used

Red-oxide (ferric): Sentinel-2, scene 2025-09-27, 10 m pixels, 0% cloud cover, 0% vegetation cover
Hydrothermal alteration: ASTER SWIR band ratios (Al-OH b5/b6, carbonate/Mg-OH (b6+b9)/(b7+b8)), 30 m, archive scene 2004-07-30 at 0% cloud. ASTER's SWIR detectors failed in April 2008, so only pre-2008 archive scenes carry usable SWIR; night acquisitions are also unusable (dark SWIR) and are filtered out
Structure and terrain: Copernicus GLO-30 elevation, 30 m pixels; 52 calibration mines within 25 km
Regional P(gold) estimate: AlphaEarth surface data, 10 m pixels (native); also computed at 80 m for cross-block comparison
Known mines reference: 84 gold mines within 40 km of the block

The P(gold) grid reads surface geology at 10 m. It tells you where to look on foot, not where a vein is. The most useful next step is a surface inspection of the north cluster, starting at 778416 E / 7914491 N (UTM 35S), and walking east-southeast roughly 170 m to 778576 E / 7914421 N before looping toward the NW arc near peg D. Bring a handheld pXRF if one is available, or do pan-and-grab sampling of surface material at each spot; even two or three real readings wire straight back into the model calibration.