To search for gold back in Ye Olde days, you’d have to pick up your pan and start sifting. Thankfully, we’ve now got a suite of fancy tools to help us find minerals deep underground.

It might sound like science fiction, but we’re using super-charged metal detectors that beam electromagnetic pulses from the sky. We’ve even got satellites in space helping us search for new deposits.

But it’s not all high tech – nature is still giving us plenty of clues. When it comes to gold, termites, ants and even leaves point us in the right direction.

For more fun facts on exploration check out this infographic – the final in our rockin’ series on Australian minerals.

Find out more about CSIRO’s minerals research.