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Frost

Prospect in Alaska, United States with commodities Barium-Barite, Copper, Zinc, Silver, Lead
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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. Host and associated rocks
  10. Nearby scientific data
  11. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  12. Mining district
  13. Links to other databases
  14. Bibliographic references
  15. General comments
  16. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10003089
MRDS ID A015618
Record type Site
Current site name Frost
Related records 10112097

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -160.67359, 67.47947 (WGS84)
Relative position The Frost prospect is located along both sides of Frost Creek, an east-flowing branch of a northwest tributary of the Omar River. It is in sections 15, 16, and 22, T. 24 N., R. 9 W., of the Kateel River Meridian. The coordinates are for the approximate center of deposit. Schmidt and Allegro (1988), location 156 and Grybeck (1977), location 9.

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Northwest Arctic(Borough)

Alaska(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Baird Mountains B-4(quadrangle 1:63,360 scale)

Baird Mountains S(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Baird Mountains C(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

Lower Kobuk River(hydrologic unit)

Kobuk-Selawik Rivers(hydrologic accounting unit)

Northwest(hydrologic subregion)

Alaska(hydrologic region)

Geographic areas

Country State
United States Alaska

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Barium-Barite Critical Primary
Copper Primary
Zinc Critical Primary
Silver Secondary
Lead Secondary

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Barite Ore
Chalcopyrite Ore
Galena Ore
Sphalerite Ore
Calcite Gangue
Fluorite Gangue
Limonite Gangue
Quartz Gangue

Alteration

  • (Local) Silicification.

Mineral occurrence model information

Model code 233
USGS model code 32c
Deposit model name Kipushi Cu-Pb-Zn (BC name is Carbonate-hosted Cu)
Mark3 model number none

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Sedimentary Rock > Carbonate > Dolomite
    Rock unit name Skajit Limestone
    Rock description Skajit Limestone
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Late Devonian
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Late Devonian

Nearby scientific data

(1) -160.67359, 67.47947
ListMap

Economic information

Comments on the geologic information

  • Geologic Description = The Frost prospect consists of discontinuous pods or lenses of barite in a zone 30 feet wide and 5,000 long. An iron-stained silicified zone surrounds the barite and is weakly mineralized. The silicified zone dips 25 to 45 degrees W and contains disseminated sphalerite and chalcopyrite, and sulfide-bearing quartz-calcite-barite veins. These veins trend N. 70 E. Bedrock consists entirely of Devonian, light- to dark-gray limestone and medium- to coarse-grained, stratified dolomite and marble (Degenhart and others, 1978).? An 8-pound sample of barite assayed 96% BaSO4 and 0.5% Zn. A sample from an 8-foot-wide, quartz-calcite-barite-sulfide vein assayed 0.49% Cu, 13.2% Zn and 20.7% Ba. This vein could only be traced for about 10 feet along strike before disappearing under talus (Degenhart and others, 1978). ? Analytical results from three rock samples (Schmidt and Allegro, 1988) follow: 1) sample T, a limestone boulder with disseminated sulfides contains 110 ppm As, greater than 100 ppm Cd, 230 ppm Sb, greater than 2000 ppm Zn, 1 ppm Ag, 1000 ppm Ba, 500 ppm Cu and 3000 ppm Pb; 2) sample V, a boulder with quartz-fluorite-sphalerite-galena-bornite contains 40 ppm As, greater than 100 ppm Cd, 130 ppm Sb, greater than 2000 ppm Zn, 0.7 ppm Ag, greater than 5000 ppm Ba, 500 ppm Cu, 200 ppm Pb and 5000 ppm Sr; 3) sample X, a boulder containing vein galena and fine-grained pyrite and sphalerite contains 80 ppm As, 70 ppm Cd, 170 ppm Sb, greater than 2000 ppm Zn, 5 ppm Ag, 1000 ppm Ba, 700 ppm Cu, 5 ppm Mo and 7000 ppm Pb.
  • Age = Devonian.

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Prospect
Commodity type Both

Comments on exploration

  • Status = Inactive

Mining district

District name Kiana

Comments on the reserve resource information

  • Reserves = Possible reserves estimated to be from 1 to 10 million tons of barite (Walters, 1969).

Comments on the workings information

  • Workings / Exploration = The Frost deposit was discovered in 1963 by Bear Creek Exploration during a regional stream and soil sampling program. Exposure in the area is poor. Preliminary geologic mapping and sampling have been done on the occurrence. An IP survey was done in 1965 (Walters, 1969). During an investigation of the prospect by the U.S. Bureau of Mines in 1978, over 140 soil, silt and rock samples were collected and analyzed (Degenhart and others, 1978). Detailed mapping and sampling were done by the U. S. Geological Survey during the AMRAP program in the late 1980's (Schmidt and Allegro, 1988; Zayatz and others, 1988).

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    Walters, R.R., 1969, Bear Creek Exploration Annual Progress Report, December 31, 1969: Bear Creek Exploration, Spokane, Washington, unpublished report, 22 p. (Report held by NANA Regional Corporation, Anchorage, Alaska).

  • Deposit

    Grybeck, D.J., 1977, Known mineral deposits of the Brooks Range, Alaska: US Geological Survey Open-File Report 77-166C, 41 p., 1 sheet, scale 1:1,000,000.

  • Deposit

    Degenhart, C.E., Griffis, R.J., McQuat, J.F., and Bigelow, C.G., 1978, Mineral studies of the western Brooks Range performed under contract to the U.S. Bureau of Mines, Contract #JO155089: U.S. Bureau of Mines Open-File Report 103-78, 529 p., 11 sheets.

  • Deposit

    Grybeck, D.J., and De Young, J.H., 1978, Map and tables describing mineral resource potential of the Brooks Range, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 78-1-B, 19 p., 1 sheet, scale 1:1,000,000.

  • Deposit

    Schmidt, J.M., and Folger, P.F., 1986, Lead-zinc-silver mineralization in Paleozoic dolostones, Powdermilk prospect, Baird Mountains B-4 quadrangle: in Bartsch-Winkler, S., and Reed, K.M., eds., Geologic studies in Alaska by the USGS during 1985: U.S. Geological Survey Circular 978, p. 19-21.

  • Deposit

    Schmidt, J.M., and Allegro, G.L., 1988, Map showing mineral occurrences and indicators in the Baird Mountains quadrangle, northwestern Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Miscellaneous Field Studies Map MF-1992, 1 sheet, scale 1:250,000.

  • Deposit

    Zayatz, M.R., Thompson, W.B., Bailey, E.A., Sutley, S.J., Folger, P.F., Karl, S.M., and Schmidt, J.M., 1988, Analytical results and sample locality maps of mineralized and unmineralized rock samples from the Baird Mountains quadrangle, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 88-256-A, 159 p., 2 plates, scale 1:250,000.

  • Deposit

    Cobb, E.H., Mayfield, C.F., and Brosge, W.P., 1981, Summaries of data on and lists of references to metallic and selected nonmetallic mineral occurrences in eleven quadrangles in northern Alaska (Arctic, Baird Mountains, Chandler Lake, DeLong Mountains, Demarcation Point, Howard Pass, Misheguk Mountain, Mount Michelson, Noatak, Point Lay, and Table Mountain); Supplement to Open-File Report 75-628; Part A, Summaries of data to January 1, 1981: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 81-767-A, 25 p.

Comments on the references

  • Primary Reference = Degenhart and others, 1978

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit Model Name = Kipushi Cu-Pb-Zn (Cox and Singer, 1986; model 32c).
Deposit Other Comments = Trenching followed by drilling is recommended to determine the extent and grade of the sulfide-bearing vein both along strike and down dip (Degenhart and others, 1978).

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 29-DEC-99 Williams, Anita U.S. Geological Survey

Beyond USGS

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

Maps centered on this site

Authoritative Alaska resources

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