Ptarmigan

Prospect in Alaska, United States with commodities Uranium, Semiprecious Gemstone
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. Nearby scientific data
  9. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  10. Mining district
  11. Links to other databases
  12. Bibliographic references
  13. General comments
  14. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10308198
Record type Site
Current site name Ptarmigan

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -159.23187, 61.63135 (WGS84)
Relative position The Ptarmigan prospect is on the southwest flank of the Russian Mountains. It is on the low ridge along the west side of Mission Creek, opposite the mouth of Ptarmigan Gulch. The map site is at an elevation of about 1,050 feet and about 0.25 mile south-southeast of the center of sec. 22, T. 18 N., R. 55 W., of the Seward Meridian. This is sample locality 19 of Bundtzen and Laird (1991).

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Bethel(Census area)

Alaska(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Russian Mission C-1(quadrangle 1:63,360 scale)

Russian Mission NE(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Russian Mission(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

Aniak(hydrologic unit)

Lower Kuskokwim River(hydrologic accounting unit)

Southwest(hydrologic subregion)

Alaska(hydrologic region)

Federal lands

Kuskokwim Corporation(ANCSA Village)

ANCSA Village NTVPIC(Type of land area)

NTVPIC(Federal land areas administered by NTVPIC)

Geographic areas

Country State
United States Alaska

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Uranium Primary
Semiprecious Gemstone Secondary

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Quartz Gangue

Alteration

  • (Local) Silicification.

Nearby scientific data

(1) -159.23187, 61.63135

Economic information

Comments on the geologic information

  • Geologic Description = Bundtzen and Laird (1991) report that a brecciated and quartz-flooded zone in hornfels contains small vugs lined with euhedral, even doubly terminated, amethyst crystals to 5 centimeters long. A sample of this material contained 38 ppm uranium. The hornfels is developed in Cretaceous clastic sedimentary rocks peripheral to the intrusive complex of the Russian Mountains (Bundtzen and Laird, 1991).
  • Age = Late Cretaceous or Tertiary. Veins post-date hornfels developed around the intrusive complex of the Russian Mountains. Quartz monzonite from this complex has yielded a K/Ar age of 70.3 +/- 2.1 Ma (Bundtzen and Laird, 1991).

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Prospect

Mining district

District name Aniak

Comments on the workings information

  • Workings / Exploration = Some small surface pits may be present.

Reference information

Comments on the references

  • Primary Reference = Bundtzen and Laird, 1991

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit Model Name = Silicified zone in hornfels

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 10-JUN-01 Travis L. Hudson Applied Geology
Reporter 10-JUN-01 Madelyn A. Millholland Millholland & Associates

Beyond USGS

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

Authoritative Alaska resources

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