Regional Three‐Dimensional Magnetotelluric Electrical Resistivity Model of the Manica Greenstone Belt, Western Mozambique

Abstract Magnetotelluric (MT) survey results from the Late Archean Manica greenstone belt, an extension of the Odzi‐Mutare greenstone belt of the Zimbabwe Craton, are presented. A total of 33 MT stations were acquired on an irregular grid with an average station spacing of approximately 5 km. This data set represents the first MT survey in Mozambique. The results from the 3‐D modeling indicate a conductive mid‐crustal structure in the central part of the surveyed greenstone belt and the presence of narrow sub‐vertical conductive structures connecting the mid‐crustal conductor with shallow structures. These sub‐vertical conductive structures are tentatively interpreted as marking the location of fluid pathways for mineralizing fluids associated with gold occurrences. The modeled mid‐crustal conductor mapped in the Manica greenstone belt does not have a western continuation toward the adjacent Odzi‐Mutare greenstone belt in Zimbabwe.