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Unnamed (northwest of Smith Lake)

Occurrence in Alaska, United States with commodities Copper, Cobalt, Lead, Zinc
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Sections on this page
  1. Identification information
  2. Geographic coordinates
  3. Site location context
  4. Geographic areas
  5. Commodities
  6. Materials information
  7. Alteration
  8. Mineral occurrence model information
  9. Nearby scientific data
  10. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  11. Mining district
  12. Links to other databases
  13. Bibliographic references
  14. General comments
  15. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10307857
Record type Site
Current site name Unnamed (northwest of Smith Lake)

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -153.88184, 62.36048 (WGS84)
Relative position The unnamed occurrence is located at the divide between the West Fork and Main Fork of Sheep creek, 8 kilometers northwest of Smith Lake, at an elevation of 5,100 feet (1,555 m) in the NE1/4 sec. 10, T. 26 N., R. 25 W., of the Seward Meridian. The reporter investigated the site in 1981.

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Yukon-Koyukuk(Census area)

Alaska(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

McGrath B-2(quadrangle 1:63,360 scale)

McGrath SE(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

McGrath(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

Upper Kuskokwim River(hydrologic accounting unit)

Southwest(hydrologic subregion)

Alaska(hydrologic region)

Geographic areas

Country State
United States Alaska

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Copper Primary
Cobalt Critical Secondary
Lead Secondary
Zinc Critical Secondary

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Chalcopyrite Ore
Pyrrhotite Ore
Amphibole Gangue
Olivine Gangue
Clinopyroxene Gangue

Alteration

  • (Local) None.

Mineral occurrence model information

Model code 10
USGS model code 5b
Deposit model name Noril'sk Cu-Ni-PGE
Model code 85
USGS model code 22c
Deposit model name Polymetallic veins
Mark3 model number 46

Nearby scientific data

(1) -153.88184, 62.36048
ListMap

Economic information

Comments on the geologic information

  • Geologic Description = This unnamed occurrence consists of disseminated chalcopyrite and pyrrhotite in a medium grained, phaneritic, gabbro sill thought to be a feeding system for Triassic volcanism in the Tatina River Volcanics, a unit of the Mystic subterrane (Bundtzen, Kline, and Clough, 1982). An alternative hypothesis offered by Foley (1987) is that the mafic igneous rocks that host the occurrence are flows or feeders of the Paleocene to Eocene Sheep Creek Volcanic Field as defined by Bundtzen, Harris, and Gilbert (1997). Bundtzen, Harris, and Gilbert (1997) believe that unnamed and related occurrences constitute magmatic-disseminated sulfide Cu-Ni-Co-Fe mineralization similar to deposit model 5b of Cox and Singer (1986). Selected samples of the gabbro sills in the prospect area contain up to 540 ppm copper, 190 ppm nickel, 63 ppm cobalt, and 450 ppm zinc (Foley, 1987).
  • Age = Undated; inferred to be either Late Triassic or early Tertiary, based on isotopic age dates of Tatina River Volcanics and Sheep Creek Volcanic Field respectively (Bundtzen, Harris, and Gilbert, 1997).

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Occurrence

Comments on exploration

  • Status = Inactive

Mining district

District name McGrath

Comments on the workings information

  • Workings / Exploration = The gabbro feeders were mapped by the reporter in 1981 (Bundtzen, Kline, and Clough, 1982). Selected samples of the gabbro sills in the prospect area contain up to 540 ppm copper, 190 ppm nickel, and 450 ppm zinc (Foley, 1987).

Reference information

Comments on the references

  • Primary Reference = Foley, 1987

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit Model Name = Magmatic sulfide Cu-Ni-Co or polymetallic replacement (Cox and Singer, 1986; models 5b or 22c).
Deposit Other Comments = See also Roberts PGM (MG030), Unnamed (MG045), and Chip-Loy (MG032) prospects and deposits.

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 08-DEC-98 T.K. Bundtzen Pacific Rim Geological Consulting

Beyond USGS

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

Maps centered on this site

Authoritative Alaska resources

These are landing pages for further research — the state agencies don't currently expose per-mine deep links.