Arcturus

Producer in Itasca county in Minnesota, United States with commodities Iron, Silica
Sections on this page
  1. Identification information
  2. Geographic coordinates
  3. Site location context
  4. Geographic areas
  5. Public Land Survey System information
  6. Commodities
  7. Materials information
  8. Nearby scientific data
  9. Ore body information
  10. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  11. Mining district
  12. Mineral rights holdings
  13. Land status
  14. Ownership information
  15. Production statistics
  16. Workings at the site
  17. Links to other databases
  18. Bibliographic references
  19. General comments
  20. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10122514
MRDS ID W018307
MAS/MILS ID 0270610020
Record type Site
Current site name Arcturus
Related records 10072669

Geographic coordinates

Point of reference Ore Body
Geographic coordinates: -93.32213, 47.32829 (WGS84)
Elevation 433
Location accuracy 10(meters)

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Itasca(county)

Minnesota(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Calumet(quadrangle 1:24,000 scale)

Pokegama Lake(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Hibbing(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

Prairie-Willow(hydrologic unit)

Mississippi Headwaters(hydrologic accounting unit)

Mississippi Headwaters(hydrologic subregion)

Upper Mississippi(hydrologic region)

Geographic areas

Country State County
United States Minnesota Itasca

Public Land Survey System information

Meridian Township Range Section Fraction State
4th Principal 056 N 024 W 13 C SESE Minnesota

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Iron Primary
Silica Tertiary

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Chert Unknown
Goethite Unknown
Hematite Unknown
Kaolinite Unknown
Martite Unknown
Quartz Unknown

Nearby scientific data

Ore Body (1) -93.32213, 47.32829

Economic information

Ore body information

  • Strike N75E
    Dip 07S
    Thickness 41.5M
    Length 1067M
    Width 760M
    Depth to top 30.5M
    Field Value
    MAS Matrix # 1
    MAS Column # 1
    Shape of Orebody #1 UNKNOWN
    Primary mode of Origin OXIDATION
    Secondary mode of Origin RESIDUAL CONCENT
    Primary Ore Control LITHOLOGY
    Secondary Ore Control FRACTURING
    Degree of Wallrock Alter. UNKNOWN
    Type of Wallrock Alter. #1 UNKNOWN
    Strike And Dip N75E:07S
    Minimum Depth to Top 15.2
    Avg. Thick. Unconsol. Mat. 25
    Min. Thick. Unconsol. Mat. 15.2
    Date of Last Modification 810828
  • Area 130HA
    Field Value
    Total Surface Area (HA) 130
    Date of Last Modification 910418

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Operation type Surface
Development status Producer
Commodity type Metallic
Significant Yes
Year of first production 1917

Mining district

District name Mesabi District

Mineral rights holdings

Type of mineral rights Fee Ownership

Land status

Ownership category Mixed

Ownership information

  • Type Owner-Operator
    Owner U.S. Steel Corp.
    ID 2100279
    Interest 100
    Home office Pennsylvania
    Year 1980

Comments on the ownership information

  • THE MINING OPERATION IS 100% OWNED BY U.S. STEEL, BUT THE PROPERTY IS OWNED BY VARIOUS INTERESTS.

Production statistics

  • Year 1977
    Description Beneficiated Iron Ore (Hematite) Shipped 500113 Metric Tons For The Year
    Importance Item Commodity Group Amount recovered Grade Recovery percentage
    Major Iron Iron 500113mt
  • Year 1978
    Description Beneficiated Iron Ore (Hematite) Shipped 1142450 Metric Tons For The Year
    Importance Item Commodity Group Amount recovered Grade Recovery percentage
    Major Iron Iron 1142450mt
  • Year 1979
    Description Beneficiated Iron Ore (Hematite) Shipped 767875 Metric Tons For The Year
    Importance Item Commodity Group Amount recovered Grade Recovery percentage
    Major Iron Iron 767875mt
  • Year 1980
    Description Beneficiated Iron Ore (Hematite) Shipped 394480 Metric Tons For The Year
    Importance Item Commodity Group Amount recovered Grade Recovery percentage
    Major Iron Iron 394480mt

Comments on the production information

  • THE PRODUCTION DATA INCLUDES ORE FROM BOTH THE ARCTURUS AND WALKER HILL NO. 4 PROPERTIES.
  • THE RECOVERY IS SHOWN AS 54% BUT THE ACTUAL RECOVERY IS 54.1489%.

Comments on the reserve resource information

  • ADIT UPDATE 1993: THE PROPERTY LAST OPERATED IN 1981. SEE Q-MATRIX 2 FOR REMAINING RESERVES.
  • THE QUANTITY INTEGERS WERE DERIVED FROM 1981 RESERVE DATA PROVIDED BY U.S. STEEL AND 1980 PRODUCTION INFORMATION FROM THE MINNESOTA MINING DIRECTORY. THE RESERVE SHOWN IN THE Q MATRIX WAS CALCULATED BY ADDING 1980 CRUDE ORE PRODUCTION TO THE KNOWN 1981 RESERVE. THE ASSAY GRADES ARE AVERAGES OBTAINED FROM THE MINNESOTA DEPT OF REVENUE. RESERVES IN MATRIX 2 WERE COMPILED FOR THE ADIT UPDATE 1993 AND ARE FROM THE MINNESOTA MINING DIRECTORY 1992. THE GRADE WAS ASSUMED THE SAME AS THE MATRIX 1 GRADE.
  • A 1977 RESERVE FIGURE IN TERMS OF CONCENTRATE IS AVAILABLE FOR THE PROPERTY, OPEN FILE REPORT 109-80 SHOWS ARCTURUS RESERVES AS OF 1977 TO BE 5024120 MT OF CONCENTRATED ORE. SINCE THE MAS DATA BASE WILL NOT LIST RESERVES IN TERMS OF CONCENTRATE, THIS RESERVE FIGURE HAS NOT BEEN SHOWN.

Workings at the site

  • Type of workings Surface
    Area 80.9HA
    Field Value
    MAS Development Schedule # 1
    Mining Record # 1
    Status of Mining Method ACTUAL
    Mining Method OPEN PIT
    Swell Factor .61
    Percent Waste Rock 34
    Avg. Overburden Thickness 30.5
    Primary Material Cover SAND, GRAVEL
    Secondary Material Cover M-HARD ROCKS
    Hardness of Ore M-HARD ROCKS
    Avg. Bench Height (meters) 9.1
    Max. Pit Slope (degrees) 68
    Capacity 21649
    Capacity Units MT ORE/DAY
    Unit Production Cost 1.39
    Units of Production $/MT ORE
    Operating Days per Year 50
    Operating Shifts per Day 3
    Year of Information 1981

Comments on the workings information

  • THE AVERAGE MINING SEASON IS EARLY MAY THROUGH MID-OCTOBER. THIS IS BECAUSE THE BENEFICIATED ORE CONTAINS CONSIDERABLE MOISTURE WHICH CAUSES PROBLEMS UPON FREEZING.

Comments on other economic factors

  • THE MINE WILL END IN OCTOBER OF 1981. BEGAN OPERATION IN 1952.

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    SKILLINGS MINING REVIEW, 1980 U.S. STEEL IRON ORE

  • Deposit

    SHIPMENTS FROM MINNESOTA, JANUARY 2, 1980, P. 6.

  • Deposit

    SKILLINGS MINING REVIEW, U.S. STEEL IRON ORE SHIPMENTS

  • Deposit

    FROM MINNESOTA JANUARY 19, 1980, P. 10.

  • Production

    WALLER, P. OF U.S. STEEL CORP.,PERSONAL COMMUNICATION, JULY,

  • Production

    1981.

  • Geology

    MARSDEN, R.W. THE MESABI RANGE, MINNESOTA, ORE DEPOSITS OF

  • Geology

    THE U.S. 1933-1967, PP. 518-537.

  • Geology

    MOREY, G.B. MESABI RANGE, GEOLOGY OF MINNESOTA: A CENTENNIAL

  • Geology

    VOLUME, 1972, PP. 204-217.

  • Reserve-Resource

    OPEN FILE REPORT 109-80, IRON ORE RESERVES OF THE MESABI

  • Reserve-Resource

    RANGE MINNESOTA, JAN 23, 1980, PP 12 AND 70.

  • Reserve-Resource

    LAMPRECHT, J. OF U.S. STEEL CORP. PERSONAL COMMUNICATION,

  • Reserve-Resource

    MAY 8, 1981.

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit THE PLANT CAPACITY WAS 1100000 MTPY. ORE BODY DIMENSIONS HAVE BEEN ASSUMED TO BE AT LEAST AS LARGE AS THE PIT DIMENSIONS. IT IS LIKELY THAT THEY ARE LARGER. ACTUAL STRIKE AND DIP OF THE ORE BODY IS UNKNOWN. AVERAGES FOR THE BIWABIK IRON FORMATION HAVE BEEN GIVEN.

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 09-MAR-1995 Dolzani, Roger L. U.S. Bureau of Mines

Beyond USGS

Supplemental information added by qvyshift.com. Not part of the original USGS MRDS record.

Current status (per MSHA)

StatusAbandoned since 06/27/1983
MSHA mine ID2100279
Mine name (MSHA)Arcturus Mine
Current operatorUnited States Steel Corp
Current controller (parent)USX Corp (United States Steel Corp)
Mine typeSurface (Metal / non-metal)

MSHA cross-reference per the original MRDS record. Mine status and operator reflect MSHA's last published Mines export (February 2025); MSHA's public bulk feed has been unavailable since, so this may be out of date. See the Mine Data Retrieval System for current status.

Open MSHA's Mine Data Retrieval System for inspections, accidents, and violations for this mine.

Operator history (post-MRDS)

MRDS records operators as of each record's last update (≤ 2019). Some of the operators listed here have since changed hands or dissolved:

Curated by qvyshift.com from publicly-reported M&A activity (SEC filings, press releases, USGS Mineral Yearbooks). Not authoritative — verify against primary sources before relying on it. The MSHA panel above is the current authoritative source for actively-permitted mines.

External references