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USGS2007

Geologic Map of the Big Delta B-1 Quadrangle, East-Central Alaska

Geologic mapping and U-Pb age dating of rocks from the Big Delta B-1 quadrangle, east-central Alaska, have yielded new insights into the geology and gold mineral resource for the headwater region of the Goodpaster River, northeast of Delta, Alaska. The area lies within the Yukon-Tanana Upland and is underlain by Paleozoic and Cretaceous crystalline bedrock and contains several gold mines and prospects. The Paleozoic units include biotite gneiss, quartzite interlayered with metapelite, and amphibolite gneiss. The Paleozoic units were intruded during the Devonian by tonalitic to granitic plutons, which, as a result of regional Mesozoic metamorphism and tectonism, are now augen gneiss and biotite orthogneiss. The Mesozoic regional metamorphism and ductile deformation of the entire Yukon-Tanana Upland culminated by the Late Cretaceous (about 116 Ma) as a result of northwest-directed regional transpression along the southern margin of the North American craton. This dynamothermal episode was followed by invasion of syn- to post-tectonic granodioritic to granitic batholiths during the Late Cretaceous (about 113-107 Ma), followed by a pulse of 100-95 Ma quartz feldspar porphyry intrusions. Gold mineralization is spatially associated with various post-tectonic Late Cretaceous granitic dikes and batholiths throughout the quadrangle. A northeast-trending structural corridor, described herein as the Black Mountain tectonic zone, both controlled the emplacement of some of the Cretaceous intrusive rocks, gold deposits, and prospects, as well as formed a deep-seated crustal conduit along which a subsequent rhyolite flow-dome complex erupted during the Paleocene. Tertiary uplift and erosion resulted in the development of extensive erosional pediments. Quaternary alpine glaciation carved beautiful, broad valleys in the eastern part of the quadrangle, leaving behind terminal moraines in the headwater region of the Goodpaster river drainage. Continued Holocene to Recent deformation along the Black Mountain tectonic zone has offset Tertiary terraces, as well as Quaternary fluvial and alluvial deposits, indicating that the area has a long, complex, and ongoing tectonic history.

Scientific Investigations Map↗

USGS2013

Comparative mineral mapping in the Colorado Mineral Belt using AVIRIS and ASTER remote sensing data

This report presents results of interpretation of spectral remote sensing data covering the eastern Colorado Mineral Belt in central Colorado, USA, acquired by the Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS) and Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) sensors. This study was part of a multidisciplinary mapping and data integration project at the U.S. Geological Survey that focused on long-term resource planning by land-managing entities in Colorado. The map products were designed primarily for the regional mapping and characterization of exposed surface mineralogy, including that related to hydrothermal alteration and supergene weathering of pyritic rocks. Alteration type was modeled from identified minerals based on standard definitions of alteration mineral assemblages. Vegetation was identified using the ASTER data and subdivided based on per-pixel chlorophyll content (depth of 0.68 micrometer absorption band) and dryness (fit and depth of leaf biochemical absorptions in the shortwave infrared spectral region). The vegetation results can be used to estimate the abundance of fire fuels at the time of data acquisition (2002 and 2003). The AVIRIS- and ASTER-derived mineral mapping results can be readily compared using the toggleable layers in the GeoPDF file, and by using the provided GIS-ready raster datasets. The results relating to mineral occurrence and distribution were an important source of data for studies documenting the effects of mining and un-mined, altered rocks on aquatic ecosystems at the watershed level. These studies demonstrated a high correlation between metal concentrations in streams and the presence of hydrothermal alteration and (or) pyritic mine waste as determined by analysis of the map products presented herein. The mineral mapping results were also used to delineate permissive areas for various mineral deposit types.

Colorado↗

USGS2025

Airborne geophysics for geologic mapping of critical mineral systems in the United States southern midcontinent

The increased demand for clean energy technology and a significant reliance on foreign supply chains have given impetus to understanding critical mineral systems and locating potential resources within the United States. At least thirteen critical mineral-bearing systems have been identified throughout the U.S. southern Midcontinent (Hofstra and Kreiner, 2020) but much of the region’s geologic framework is concealed by vegetation and sedimentary cover that hinder traditional geologic mapping efforts. Airborne geophysical data provide an effective way to overcome these obstacles and to provide additional insight into the deeper structures that underlie shallow mineralization. However, legacy airborne magnetic and radiometric data were collected using now-outdated instruments and methods, inconsistent survey parameters, and large flight-line spacings resulting in low-resolution data that present challenges to regional-scale study and interpretation. Over the last decade, the U.S. Geological Survey Earth Mapping Resources Initiative (EMRI) and National Cooperative Geologic Mapping Program have conducted a series of high-resolution airborne magnetic and radiometric surveys across the southern Midcontinent (Fig. 1) as part of an effort to improve understanding of the geophysical framework and natural resource potential in the region. These surveys are designed using modern survey methods and instruments with consistent parameters for flight-line spacing and flight height relative to magnetic sources. The EMRI airborne surveys are planned in collaboration with State geological surveys based on focus areas (Dicken et al., 2022) according to the presence of or potential for critical mineral deposits. High-resolution airborne magnetic and radiometric data cover focus areas such as the southeast Missouri iron metallogenic province and South-Central iron-oxide-apatite (IOA) – iron-oxide-copper-gold (IOCG) province, the Magnet Cove alkaline-carbonatite complex, the Midwest Permian ultramafic dike district, the Illinois-Kentucky fluorspar district, and several Mississippi Valley-type lead-zinc deposits and districts (Fig. 1). These focus areas represent known deposits or prospective host systems of critical minerals including rare earth elements (REEs), platinum-group elements (PGEs), cobalt, lithium, fluorspar, niobium, titanium, vanadium, lead, zinc, gallium, germanium, and many more. Other significant geologic and geophysical features covered include the Reelfoot rift, the New Madrid seismic zone, the Illinois basin, the Arkoma basin, the South-Central magnetic lineament, and the Kentucky-Tennessee magnetic anomaly (Fig. 1). This presentation focuses on new airborne magnetic and radiometric data with continuous coverage across parts of six states, preliminary interpretations, examples of geologic mapping applications, and discussion of newly discovered magnetic anomalies and follow-up investigations.

Conference Paper↗

USGS2014

Porphyry copper assessment of western Central Asia

The U.S. Geological Survey conducted an assessment of resources associated with porphyry copper deposits in the western Central Asia countries of Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, and Tajikistan and the southern Urals of Kazakhstan and Russia as part of a global mineral resource assessment. The purpose of the study was to (1) delineate permissive areas (tracts) for undiscovered porphyry copper deposits; (2) compile a database of known porphyry copper deposits and significant prospects; (3) where data permit, estimate numbers of undiscovered deposits within those permissive tracts; and (4) provide probabilistic estimates the amounts of copper (Cu), molybdenum (Mo), gold (Au), and silver (Ag) that could be contained in those undiscovered deposits. Western Central Asia, a region diverse in its geologic complexity, is situated north of the Tarim and North China tectonic blocks and sandwiched between the East European and Siberian cratons. The Ural Mountains form the western margin of the region; the southern margin is formed by the high-standing ranges that make up the Tian Shan mountain range in the border regions of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and western China, where the effects of collisional tectonics are well displayed. The tectonic collage that makes up the core of western Central Asia is perhaps the geologically least understood part of the region. There is broad agreement that the early Paleozoic is made up of tectonically juxtaposed blocks that vary from Precambrian-cored microcontinents to magmatic arc and related complexes to subduction-related accretionary complexes. The rudiments of an incipient, contiguous single Kazakhstan block were formed by the end of the Silurian. In the middle to late Paleozoic, the block was unconformably superposed by two large, nested magmatic-arc belts, one Devonian, the other Carboniferous. Both magmatic-arc complexes were folded into a horseshoe-shaped, southeast-opening orocline in response to the final collisions of the various surrounding cratonic blocks with the Kazakhstan block. Additional deformation in the upper Cenozoic derived from the collision of India and China significantly redistributed fragments of the various mosaicked blocks, particularly in the central and southern parts of the western Central Asian region. Porphyry copper deposits are associated with many of the magmatic-arc fragments and belts throughout the geologically complex region, and economically important deposits are found in arc sequences of all Paleozoic Periods. The economically most productive arcs are Carboniferous. The assessment includes a discussion of the tectonic and geologic setting of porphyry copper deposits in western Central Asia (chapter 1), an application of remote sensing data for hydrothermal alteration mapping as a tool for porphyry copper assessment in the region (chapter 2), and a probabilistic assessment of undiscovered porphyry copper resources in four areas that represent Ordovician and Late Paleozoic (Carboniferous-Permian) magmatic arcs (chapter 3). The principal litho-tectonic terrane concept used to delineate permissive tracts was that of a magmatic arc that formed in the subduction boundary zone above a subducting plate. Eight permissive tracts are delineated on the basis of mapped and inferred subsurface distributions of igneous rocks assigned to magmatic arcs of specified age ranges that define areas where the occurrence of porphyry copper deposits within 1 kilometer of the Earth’s surface is possible. These tracts range in area from about 8,000 to 200,000 square kilometers and host 18 known porphyry copper deposits that contain about 54 million metric tons of copper. Available data included geologic maps, the distribution of significant porphyry copper occurrences and potentially related deposit types, the distribution of hydrothermal alteration patterns that are consistent with porphyry copper mineralization, and information on possible subsurface extensions of permissive rocks. On the basis of analyses of these data, the assessment team estimated a mean of 25 undiscovered porphyry copper deposits for the study area. Estimates of numbers of undiscovered deposits were combined with grade and tonnage models in a Monte Carlo simulation to yield a mean estimate of 95 million metric tons of copper in undiscovered porphyry copper deposits; this represents about twice the amount of identified porphyry copper resources (54 million metric tons). Detailed descriptions of each permissive tract, including the rationales for delineation and assessment, are given in appendixes, along with a geographic information system (GIS) that includes permissive tract boundaries, point locations of known porphyry copper deposits and significant occurrences, and hydrothermal alteration data based on analysis of remote sensing data.

Ural Mountains↗

USGS2010

Rock Geochemistry and Mineralogy from Fault Zones and Polymetallic Fault Veins of the Central Front Range, Colorado

During the 2004 to 2008 field seasons, approximately 200 hand samples of fault and polymetallic vein-related rocks were collected for geochemical and mineralogical analyses. The samples were collected by the U.S. Geological Survey as part of the Evolution of Brittle Structures Task under the Central Colorado Assessment Project (CCAP) of the Mineral Resources Program (http://minerals.cr.usgs.gov/projects/colorado_assessment/index.html). The purpose of this work has been to characterize the relation between epithermal, polymetallic mineral deposits, paleostress, and the geological structures that hosted fluid flow and localization of the deposits. The data in this report will be used to document and better understand the processes that control epithermal mineral-deposit formation by attempting to relate the geochemistry of the primary structures that hosted hydrothermal fluid flow to their heat and fluid sources. This includes processes from the scale of the structures themselves to the far field scale, inclusive of the intrusive bodies that have been thought to be the sources for the hydrothermal fluid flow. The data presented in this report are part of a larger assessment effort on public lands. The larger study area spans the region of the southern Rocky Mountains in Colorado from the Wyoming to New Mexico borders and from the eastern boundary of the Front Range to approximately the longitude of Vail and Leadville, Colorado. Although the study area has had an extensive history of geological mapping, the mapping has resulted in a number of hypotheses that are still in their infancy of being tested. For example, the proximity of polymetallic veins to intrusive bodies has been thought to reflect a genetic relation between the two features; however, this idea has not been well tested with geochemical indicators. Recent knowledge regarding the coupled nature of stress, strain, fluid flow, and geochemistry warrant new investigations and approaches to test a variety of ideas regarding the genetic processes associated with ore-deposit formation. The central part of the eastern Front Range has excellent exposures of fault zones and polymetallic fault veins, subsequently resulting in some of the most detailed mapping and associated data sets in the region. Thus, the area was chosen for detailed data compilation, new sample and data collection, and a variety of structural and geochemical analyses. The data presented in this report come from samples of fault-related exposures in the Front Range and include elemental chemistry and mineralogy from the outcrop-scale study localities within the larger CCAP study area.

Data Series↗

USGS1958

Geology and ore deposits of the Monument Valley area, Apache and Navajo counties, Arizona: Part II

In 1951 and 1952, the U.S. Geological Survey conducted a program of uranium investigations and geologic mapping in the Monument Valley area, Apache and Navajo Counties, Ariz. About 700 square miles were mapped on the Navajo Indian Reservation. A resource appraisal of the area was an inherent part of the program, and is detailed in this report. Production of vanadium and uranium is from two areas, the Monument No. 1 mine area in Navajo County, and the Monument No. 2 mine area in Apache County. In the period 1942-53 about 200,300 tons of ore was produced from these two areas. This ore yielded about 1,700,000 pounds of U 3 O 8 and about 6,500,000 pounds of V 2 O 5 . The grade ranged from 0.15 percent U 3 O 8 to 0.60 percent U 3 O 8 , and from 0.38 percent V 2 O 5 to 3.02 percent V 2 O 5 . The vanadium-uranium ratio is about 4:1. The ore deposits are composed principally of the hydrous calcium-uranium vanadate tyuyamunite in basal channel sediments of the Shinarump member off the Chinle formation. Four types of ore bodies are present: (1) rods, (2) tabular ore bodies, (3) corvusite-type ore bodies, and (4) rolls. The reserves of uranium- and vanadium-bearing material are classed as measured, indicated, inferred, and potential. The reserves are further divided into three grade classes for material 1 foot or more thick: (1) 0.10 percent U 3 O 8 and 1.00 percent V 2 O 5 and above; (2) 0.05 percent U 3 O 8 and 0.50 percent V 2 O 5 and less than 0.10 percent U 3 O 8 and 1.00 percent V 2 O 5 ; and (3) 0.01 percent U 3 O 8 and 0.10 percent V 2 O 5 and less than 0.05 percent U 3 O 8 and 0.05 percent V 2 O 5 . Measured reserves as of June 1953, in the Monument Valley area, Arizona, (all in the Monument No. 2 mine) total about 36,000 tons. Indicated reserves in the first grade class amount to about 62,000 tons. In this same grade class inferred reserves total about 3,000,000 tons. In the second grade class indicated and inferred reserves amount to about 2,000,000 tons. Inferred reserves in the third grade class total about 345,000 tons of mineralized material. Potential reserves in all grade classes for the Monument Valley area amount to about 13,000,000 tons. It is recommended that an extensive exploration program be carried out in the Monument Valley area, Arizona. This program would consist of two phases. The first phase would involve a geophysical survey of selected channels and would have at its principal objective the delineation of the trend, length, width, and depth of scour of the channels. The second phase would consist of a diamond-drilling program that would make use of the data secured by the geophysical survey. This drilling program would have as one of its principal objectives the determination of which channels are most likely to contain ore bodies. Once the favorable channels are discovered, the drilling program could be carried on most suitably by private operators.

Arizona↗

USGS2001

Lithodiversity and its spatial association with metallic mineral sites, Great Basin of Nevada

Geographical information system (GIS) techniques were used to investigate the spatial association between metallic mineral sites and lithodiversity in Nevada. Mineral site data sets include various size and type subsets of about 5,500 metal-bearing occurrences and deposits. Lithodiversity was calculated by counting the number of unique geological map units within four sizes of square-shaped sample neighborhoods (2.5-by-2.5, 5-by-5, 10-by-10, and 20-by-20 km) on three different scales of geological maps (national, 1:2,500,000; state, 1:500,000; county, 1:250,000). The spatial association between mineral sites and lithodiversity was observed to increase with increasing lithodiversity. This relationship is consistent for (1) both basin-range and range-only regions, (2) four sizes of sample neighborhoods, (3) various mineral site subsets, (4) the three scales of geological maps, and (5) areas not covered by large-scale maps. A map scale of 1:500,000 and lithodiversity sampling neighborhood of 5-by-5 km was determined to best describe the association. Positive associations occurred for areas having >3 geological map units per neighborhood, with the strongest observed at approximately >7 units. Areas in Nevada with more than three geological map units per 5-by-5 km neighborhood contain more mineral sites than would be expected resulting from chance. High lithodiversity likely reflects the occurrence of complex structural, stratigraphic, and intrusive relationships that are thought to control, focus, localize, or expose mineralization. The application of lithodiversity measurements to areas that are not well explored may help delineate regional-scale exploration targets and provide GIS-supported mineral resource assessment and exploration activity another method that makes use of widely available geological map data.

Nevada↗

USGS2007

USGS Digital Spectral Library splib06a

Introduction We have assembled a digital reflectance spectral library that covers the wavelength range from the ultraviolet to far infrared along with sample documentation. The library includes samples of minerals, rocks, soils, physically constructed as well as mathematically computed mixtures, plants, vegetation communities, microorganisms, and man-made materials. The samples and spectra collected were assembled for the purpose of using spectral features for the remote detection of these and similar materials. Analysis of spectroscopic data from laboratory, aircraft, and spacecraft instrumentation requires a knowledge base. The spectral library discussed here forms a knowledge base for the spectroscopy of minerals and related materials of importance to a variety of research programs being conducted at the U.S. Geological Survey. Much of this library grew out of the need for spectra to support imaging spectroscopy studies of the Earth and planets. Imaging spectrometers, such as the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Airborne Visible/Infra Red Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS) or the NASA Cassini Visual and Infrared Mapping Spectrometer (VIMS) which is currently orbiting Saturn, have narrow bandwidths in many contiguous spectral channels that permit accurate definition of absorption features in spectra from a variety of materials. Identification of materials from such data requires a comprehensive spectral library of minerals, vegetation, man-made materials, and other subjects in the scene. Our research involves the use of the spectral library to identify the components in a spectrum of an unknown. Therefore, the quality of the library must be very good. However, the quality required in a spectral library to successfully perform an investigation depends on the scientific questions to be answered and the type of algorithms to be used. For example, to map a mineral using imaging spectroscopy and the mapping algorithm of Clark and others (1990a, 2003b), one simply needs a diagnostic absorption band. The mapping system uses continuum-removed reference spectral features fitted to features in observed spectra. Spectral features for such algorithms can be obtained from a spectrum of a sample containing large amounts of contaminants, including those that add other spectral features, as long as the shape of the diagnostic feature of interest is not modified. If, however, the data are needed for radiative transfer models to derive mineral abundances from reflectance spectra, then completely uncontaminated spectra are required. This library contains spectra that span a range of quality, with purity indicators to flag spectra for (or against) particular uses. Acquiring spectral measurements and performing sample characterizations for this library has taken about 15 person-years of effort. Software to manage the library and provide scientific analysis capability is provided (Clark, 1980, 1993). A personal computer (PC) reader for the library is also available (Livo and others, 1993). The program reads specpr binary files (Clark, 1980, 1993) and plots spectra. Another program that reads the specpr format is written in IDL (Kokaly, 2005). In our view, an ideal spectral library consists of samples covering a very wide range of materials, has large wavelength range with very high precision, and has enough sample analyses and documentation to establish the quality of the spectra. Time and available resources limit what can be achieved. Ideally, for each mineral, the sample analysis would include X-ray diffraction (XRD), electron microprobe (EM) or X-ray fluorescence (XRF), and petrographic microscopic analyses. For some minerals, such as iron oxides, additional analyses such as Mossbauer would be helpful. We have found that to make the basic spectral measurements, provide XRD, EM or XRF analyses, and microscopic analyses, document the results, and complete an entry of one spectral library sample, all takes about

Data Series↗

USGS2024

Indications of preferential groundwater seepage feeding northern peatland pools

Groundwater seepage from underlying permeable glacial sedimentary structures, such as eskers, has been hypothesized to directly feed pools in northern peat bogs. These hypotheses directly contradict classical peat bog models for ombrogenous systems, wherein meteoric water is the sole water input to these systems. Variations in the underlying mineral sediment in contact with the peat imply that unrecognized hydrogeologic connectivity may exist with pools in northern peat bogs, particularly where high permeability materials are in contact with the peat. Seepage dynamics originating from these structural variations were investigated using a suite of thermal and hydrogeophysical methods deployed around pools in a peat bog of northeastern Maine, USA. Thermal characterization methods mapped anomalies that were confirmed as matrix seepage or preferential flow pathways (PFPs). Geochemical methods were employed at identified thermal anomalies to confirm upwelling of solute-rich groundwater. Conduits around pools were associated with surficial terminations of suspected peat pipes, based on the inference of pathways extending down into the peat, that focus flow through PFPs in the peat matrix. Discharge also occurred through the peat matrix adjacent to suspected pipe structures and matrix seepage rates were quantified using analysis of diurnal temperature signals recorded at multiple depths. Seepage rates, with a maximum of nearly 0.4 m/d, were measured at localized points around pools. Periods of synchronized temperatures paired with highly muted diurnal temperature signals, recorded in diurnal temperature with depth data, were interpreted qualitatively as activation of strong upward discharge rates through suspected peat pipes. These time periods correlated strongly with local precipitation events around the peatland. Ground-penetrating radar surveys revealed discontinuities in the low permeability glacio-marine clay at the mineral sediment-peat interface, interpreted to be regional glacial esker deposits, which were located beneath and around pools. Heat tracing, specific conductance contrasts, seepage rates, and trace metal concentrations all imply groundwater seepage originating from underlying permeable glacial esker deposits and directly sourcing pools. Preferential groundwater inputs into northern peat bogs may play a key role in developing and maintaining pool systems, with enhanced solute transport impacting peatland ecology, water resources, and carbon cycling.

Maine↗

USGS2014

Sandstone copper assessment of the Teniz Basin, Kazakhstan

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) conducts national and global resource assessments (mineral, energy, water, and biological) to provide data and scientific analyses to support decision making. Three-part mineral resource assessments result in informed, unbiased, quantitative, and probabilistic estimates of undiscovered mineral resources and deposits. In particular, mineral assessment results inform decisions concerning land-use and mineral-resource development. A probabilistic mineral resource assessment of the sandstone subtype of sediment-hosted stratabound copper deposits in the Teniz Basin, Kazakhstan, was undertaken by the USGS. The Teniz Basin is located in Akmola Oblast, central and western Kazakhstan. With an areal extent of almost 78,000 km 2 , the basin contains many sediment-hosted stratabound copper prospects, none of which are well described, and the majority of which may belong to the sandstone subtype of sediment-hosted copper deposits. There are no known locations within the Teniz Basin currently mined for copper. Within the basin, however, map units permissive for the sandstone subtype of sediment-hosted stratabound copper deposits include (from oldest to youngest): the Middle Carboniferous Kiery Suite; the Middle to Upper Carboniferous Vladimirov Suite (a stratigraphic equivalent of the Dzhezkazgan Suite, Chu-Sarysu Basin); and the Upper Carboniferous or lowest Permian Kayraktin Suite. The multicolored sedimentary rocks of the Vladimirov Suite, in which 14 potentially ore-bearing horizons of gray beds have been recorded, have the greatest potential for undiscovered, sandstone subtype, sediment-hosted stratabound copper deposits. A quantitative mineral resource assessment has been completed that (1) delineates one 49,714 km 2 tract permissive for undiscovered, sandstone subtype, sediment-hosted stratabound copper deposits, and (2) provides probabilistic estimates of numbers of undiscovered deposits and probable amounts of copper resource contained in those deposits. The permissive tract delineated in this assessment encompasses no previously known sandstone subtype, sediment-hosted stratabound copper deposits. However, this assessment estimates (with 30 percent probability) that a mean of nine undiscovered sandstone subtype copper deposits may be present in the Teniz Basin and could contain a mean total of 8.9 million metric tons of copper and 7,500 metric tons of silver.

Teniz Basin↗

USGS2006

Bedrock Geologic Map of New Hampshire, a Digital Representation of Lyons and Others 1997 Map and Ancillary Files

The New Hampshire Geological Survey collects data and performs research on the land, mineral, and water resources of the State, and disseminates the findings of such research to the public through maps, reports, and other publications. The Bedrock Geologic Map of New Hampshire, by John B. Lyons, Wallace A. Bothner, Robert H. Moench, and James B. Thompson, was published in paper format by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in 1997. The online version of this CD contains digital datasets of the State map that are intended to assist the professional geologist, land-use planners, water resource professionals, and engineers and to inform the interested layperson. In addition to the bedrock geology, the datasets include geopolitical and hydrologic information, such as political boundaries, quadrangle boundaries, hydrologic units, and water-well data. A more thorough explanation for each of these datasets may be found in the accompanying metadata files. The data are spatially referenced and may be used in a geographic information system (GIS). ArcExplorer, the Environmental Systems Research Institute's (ESRI) free GIS data viewer, is available at http://www.esri.com/software/arcexplorer. ArcExplorer provides basic functions that are needed to harness the power and versatility of the spatial datasets. Additional information on the viewer and other ESRI products may be found on the ArcExplorer website. Although extensive review and revisions of the data have been performed by the USGS and the New Hampshire Geological Survey, these data represent interpretations made by professional geologists using the best available data, and are intended to provide general geologic information. Use of these data at scales larger than 1:250,000 will not provide greater accuracy. The data are not intended to replace site-specific or specific-use investigations. The U.S. Geological Survey, New Hampshire Geological Survey, and State of New Hampshire make no representation or warranty, expressed or implied, regarding the use, accuracy, or completeness of the data presented herein, or from a map printed from these data; nor shall the act of distribution constitute any such warranty. The New Hampshire Geological Survey disclaims any legal responsibility or liability for interpretations made from the map, or decisions based thereon. For more information on New Hampshire Geological Survey programs please visit the State's website at http://des.nh.gov/Geology/. New Hampshire Geographically Referenced Analysis and Information Transfer System (NH GRANIT) provides access to statewide GIS (http://www.granit.unh.edu/). Questions about this CD or about other datasets should be directed to the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services.

Data Series↗

USGS2014

Assessment of undiscovered sandstone copper deposits of the Kodar-Udokan area, Russia

Mineral resource assessments integrate and synthesize available information as a basis for estimating the location, quality, and quantity of undiscovered mineral resources. This probabilistic mineral resource assessment of undiscovered sandstone copper deposits within Paleoproterozoic metasedimentary rocks of the Kodar-Udokan area in Russia is a contribution to a global assessment led by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). The purposes of this study are to (1) delineate permissive areas (tracts) to indicate where undiscovered sandstone-hosted copper deposits may occur within 2 km of the surface, (2) provide a database of known sandstone copper deposits and significant prospects, (3) estimate numbers of undiscovered deposits within these permissive tracts at several levels of confidence, and (4) provide probabilistic estimates of amounts of copper (Cu) and mineralized rock that could be contained in undiscovered deposits within each tract. The workshop for the assessment, held in October 2009, used a three-part form of mineral resource assessment as described by Singer (1993) and Singer and Menzie (2010). Permissive tracts were delineated by estimating the volume of rock that contains the stratigraphic section ranging from the Chitkanda to the Sakukan Formations of the Udokan Complex to a depth of 2 km and then projecting this rock volume to the surface. The six permissive tracts delineated in this assessment occur in several domains, referred to as troughs in Russian literature, which represent remnants of a much larger basin that likely covered the Kodar-Udokan region. Tracts range in size from about 100 km 2 to 800 km 2 . The mapped distributions of rocks as shown on 1:200,000-scale geologic maps, supplemented in some areas by prospect mapping and drilling, were used to delineate the tracts. In this study area, data are insufficient to constrain the original basin geometry or the structural or stratigraphic traps that would have localized copper mineralization. Some alteration is described, and the types of sandstone cements vary; however, no patterns are known that provide evidence for regional flow paths of metal-bearing brines that could localize deposits. This probabilistic assessment indicates that a significant amount of undiscovered copper is associated with sediment-hosted stratabound copper deposits in the Kodar-Udokan Trough. In the assessment, a mean of 21 undiscovered deposits is estimated to occur within the Kodar-Udokan area. There are two known deposits in the area that contain drill-identified resources of 19.6 million metric tons of copper. Using Monte Carlo simulation, probabilistic estimates of the numbers of undiscovered sandstone copper deposits for these tracts were combined with tonnage and grade distributions of sandstone copper deposits to forecast an arithmetic mean of 20.6 million metric tons of undiscovered copper. Significant value can be expected from associated metals, particularly silver.

Scientific Investigations Report↗

USGS2018

Titanium mineral resources in heavy-mineral sands in the Atlantic coastal plain of the southeastern United States

This study examined titanium distribution in the Atlantic Coastal Plain of the southeastern United States; the titanium is found in heavy-mineral sands that include the minerals ilmenite (Fe 2+ TiO 3 ), rutile (TiO 2 ), or leucoxene (an alteration product of ilmenite). Deposits of heavy-mineral sands in ancient and modern coastal plains are a significant feedstock source for the titanium dioxide pigments industry. Currently, two heavy-mineral sands mining and processing operations are active in the southeast United States producing concentrates of ilmenite-leucoxene, rutile, and zircon. The results of this study indicate the potential for similar deposits in many areas of the Atlantic Coastal Plain. This study used the titanium analyses of 3,457 stream sediment samples that were analyzed as part of the U.S. Geological Survey’s National Geochemical Survey program. This data set was analyzed by an integrated spatial modeling technique known as Bayesian hierarchical modeling to map the regional-scale, spatial distribution of titanium concentrations. In particular, clusters of anomalous concentrations of titanium occur: (1) along the Fall Zone, from Virginia to Alabama, where metamorphic and igneous rocks of the Piedmont region contact younger sediments of the Coastal Plain; (2) a paleovalley near the South Carolina and North Carolina border; (3) the upper and middle Atlantic Coastal Plain of North Carolina; (4) the majority of the Atlantic Coastal Plain of Virginia; and (5) barrier islands and stretches of the modern shoreline from South Carolina to northeast Florida. The areas mapped by this study could help mining companies delimit areas for exploration.

Scientific Investigations Report↗

USGS2023

A novel non-destructive workflow for examining germanium and co-substituents in ZnS

A suite of complementary techniques was used to examine germanium (Ge), a byproduct critical element, and co-substituent trace elements in ZnS and mine wastes from four mineral districts where germanium is, or has been, produced within the United States. This contribution establishes a comprehensive workflow for characterizing Ge and other trace elements, which captures the full heterogeneity of samples through extensive pre-characterization. This process proceeded from optical microscopy, to scanning electron microscopy and cathodoluminescence (CL) imaging, to electron microprobe analysis, prior to synchrotron-based investigations. Utilizing non-destructive techniques enabled reanalysis, which proved essential for verifying observations and validating unexpected results. In cases where the Fe content was <0.3 wt% in ZnS, cathodoluminescence imaging proved to be an efficient means to qualitatively identify trace element zonation that could then be further explored by other micro-focused techniques. Micro-focused X-ray diffraction was used to map the distribution of the non-cubic ZnS polymorph, whereas micro-focused X-ray fluorescence (μ-XRF) phase mapping distinguished between Ge 4+ hosted in primary ZnS and a weathering product, hemimorphite [Zn 4 Si 2 O 7 (OH) 2 ·H 2 O]. Microprobe data and μ-XRF maps identified spatial relationships among trace elements in ZnS and implied substitutional mechanisms, which were further explored using Ge and copper (Cu) X-ray absorption near-edge spectroscopy (XANES). Both oxidation states of Ge (4+ and 2+) were identified in ZnS along with, almost exclusively, monovalent Cu. However, the relative abundance of Ge oxidation states varied among mineral districts and, sometimes, within samples. Further, bulk XANES measurements typically agreed with micro-focused XANES (μ-XANES) spectra, but unique micro-environments were detected, highlighting the importance of complementary bulk and micro-focused measurements. Some Ge μ-XANES utilized a high energy resolution fluorescence detector, which improved spectral resolution and spectral signal-to-noise ratio. This detector opens new opportunities for exploring byproduct critical elements in complex matrices. Overall, the non-destructive workflow employed here can be extended to other byproduct critical elements to more fully understand fundamental ore enrichment processes, which have practical implications for critical element exploration, resource quantification, and extraction.

Frontiers in Earth Science↗

USGS2014

Porphyry copper assessment of Central America and the Caribbean Basin

Mineral resource assessments provide a synthesis of available information about distributions of mineral deposits in the Earth’s crust. The U.S. Geological Survey prepared a probabilistic mineral resource assessment of undiscovered resources in porphyry copper deposits in Central America and the Caribbean Basin in collaboration with geoscientists from academia and the minerals industry. The purpose of the study was to (1) delineate permissive areas (tracts) for undiscovered porphyry copper deposits within 1 kilometer of the surface at a scale of 1:1,000,000; (2) provide a database of known porphyry copper deposits and significant prospects; (3) estimate numbers of undiscovered deposits within the permissive tracts; and (4) provide probabilistic estimates of amounts of copper, molybdenum, gold, and silver that could be contained in undiscovered deposits. The assessment was done using a three-part mineral resource assessment based on established mineral deposit models. Permissive tracts were delineated based primarily on distributions of mapped igneous rocks related to magmatic arcs that formed in tectonic settings associated with convergent plate margins. Five permissive tracts were delineated: the Early Cretaceous through Eocene Santiago tract, the Late Cretaceous through Oligocene Chortis tract, the Paleocene through Oligocene Darién tract, the Miocene and Pliocene Cocos tract, and the Eocene to Holocene Lesser Antilles tract. These tracts range in size from about 3,000 to about 204,000 square kilometers. Probabilistic estimates of numbers of undiscovered deposits were made for all tracts. To estimate the number of undiscovered porphyry copper deposits, data on known mineral deposits, prospects, and occurrences were considered along with mapped alteration zones, local stream-sediment geochemistry, exploration history, descriptive deposit models, and grade and tonnage models. Most porphyry copper exploration in Central America and the Caribbean Basin has focused on Panama and on the exposed Cretaceous to Eocene central Cordilleran arc that extends from Cuba and Jamaica through Haiti and the Dominican Republic to Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. Interest in gold has prompted exploration of historical precious-metal prospects and small mines, some of which may represent high-sulfidation epithermal systems or skarns overlying, or adjacent to, porphyry copper systems. This assessment estimated a total mean of 37 undiscovered porphyry copper deposits within the assessed permissive tracts in Central America and the Caribbean Basin. This represents more than five times the seven known deposits. Predicted mean (arithmetic) resources that could be associated with these undiscovered deposits are about 130 million metric tons of copper and about 5,200 metric tons of gold, as well as byproduct molybdenum and silver. The reported identified resources for the seven known deposits total about 39 million metric tons of copper and about 930 metric tons of gold. The assessment area is estimated to contain nearly four times as much copper and six times as much gold in undiscovered porphyry copper deposits as has been identified to date.

Scientific Investigations Report↗

USGS1984

Map showing outcrops of granitic rocks, Basin and Range Province, Nevada

This map report is one of a series of geologic and hydrologic maps covering all or parts of States within the Basin and Range province of the western United States. The map reports contain information on subjects that characterize the geohydrology of the province, including the ground-water hydrology, ground-water quality, surface distribution of selected rock types, tectonic conditions, areal geophysics, Pleistocene lakes and marshes, and mineral and energy resources. This work is a part of the U.S. Geological Survey's program for geologic and hydrologic evaluation of the Basin and Range province to identify potentially suitable regions for further study relative to isolation of high-level nuclear waste (Bedinger, Sargent, and Reed, 1984). Data for this report were taken largely from Spengler and others (1979), supplemented by data from individual geologic maps and reports, following the project guidelines as defined in Sargent and Bedinger (1984). As used in this report, granitic rocks include granodiorite, quartz monzonite, and granite, and locally associated mafic rocks such as diorite and gabbro. In the Snake Range and Ruby Mountains, Stewart (1980) has recognized large areas as metamorphic core complexes, and in these complexes some plutonic masses may not extend to great depth because of lateral displacement along low-angle faults subsequent to intrusion. The Description of Map Units includes the sources of data, the geologic, and if available, the radiometric age, lithologic character, type of intrusive body and relation to rock units, where known, for the granitic rocks within outlined and numbered areas in each county of the study area. The radiometric ages of the rock units are only those which are available and do not necessarily represent the entire age range of the geologic units.

Nevada↗

USGS2015

Assessment of undiscovered copper resources associated with the Permian Kupferschiefer, Southern Permian Basin, Europe

This study synthesizes available information and estimates the location and quantity of undiscovered copper associated with a late Permian bituminous shale, the Kupferschiefer, of the Southern Permian Basin in Europe. The purpose of this study is to (1) delineate permissive areas (tracts) where undiscovered reduced-facies sediment-hosted stratabound copper deposits could occur within 2.5 kilometers of the surface, (2) provide a database of known reduced-facies-type sediment-hosted stratabound copper deposits and significant prospects, and (3) provide probabilistic estimates of amounts of undiscovered copper that could be present within each tract. This assessment is a contribution to a global assessment conducted by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). Permissive tracts are delineated by mapping the extent of the Kupferschiefer that overlies reservoir-facies red beds of the lower Permian Rotliegend Group. More than 78 million metric tons (Mt) of copper have been produced or delineated as resources in the assessed tracts, with more than 90 percent of the known mineral endowment located in Poland. Mines in Poland are developing the deposit at depths ranging from about 500 to 1,400 meters. Two approaches are used to estimate in-situ amounts of undiscovered copper. The three-part form of assessment was applied to the entire study area. In this approach, numbers of undiscovered deposits are estimated and combined with tonnage-grade models to probabilistically forecast the amount of undiscovered copper. For Poland, drill-hole data were available, and Gaussian geostatistical simulation techniques were used to probabilistically estimate the amount of undiscovered copper. The assessment was done in September 2010 using a three-part form of mineral resource assessment and in January 2012 using Gaussian geostatistical simulation. Using the three-part form of assessment, a mean of 126 Mt of undiscovered copper is predicted in 4 assessed permissive tracts. Seventy-five percent of the mean amount of undiscovered copper (96 Mt) is associated with a tract in southwest Poland. For this same permissive tract in Poland, Gaussian geostatistical simulation techniques indicate a mean of 62 Mt of copper based on copper surface-density data from drill holes.

Scientific Investigations Report↗

USGS2000

Geologic studies in Alaska by the U.S. Geological Survey, 1997

The eight papers that follow continue the series of U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) reports on investigations in the geologic sciences in Alaska. The series presents new and sometimes preliminary findings that are of interest to earth scientists in academia, government, and industry; to land and resource managers; and to the general public. Reports presented in Geologic Studies in Alaska cover a broad spectrum of topics from all parts of the State (fig. 1), which serves to emphasize the diversity of USGS efforts to meet the Nation's needs for earth-science information in Alaska. The papers in this volume are organized under the topics Resources, Geologic Framework, and Environment and Climate. Such an organization is intended to reflect the scope and objectives of USGS programs currently active in Alaska. Resource papers include one that presents detailed observations from a Mississippian Zn-Pb-Cu-Ag occurrence in the Brooks Range (Werdon). Mineralogic, chemical, and isotopic data provide the basis for a proposed relationship between this vein-breccia deposit and the shale-hosted massive sulfide deposit type, which includes the active Red Dog mine in the western Brooks Range. Also included under the topic of Resources is a paper that presents geochemical and isotopic data from the Greens Creek and Woewodski Island volcanogenic massive sulfide deposits in southeastern Alaska (Newberry and Brew). The depositional environment and sedimentological setting of Tertiary coal beds in the Matanuska and Susitna Valleys is the focus of a third paper under the topic of Resources (Flores and others). Geologic Framework studies provide background information that is the scientific basis for present and future studies of the environment, mineral and energy resources, paleoclimate, and hazards in Alaska. One paper presents the results of sedimentologic and paleontologic comparisons of lower Paleozoic, deep-water-facies rock units in central Alaska (Dumoulin and others). The authors show which of these units are likely to correlate with one another, suggest likely source regions, and provide a structural restoration of units that have been fragmented by large fault motions. A second framework paper provides a map, rock descriptions, and chemical compositions of volcanic rocks in a newly recognized, geologically young volcanic center in the Aleutian volcanic arc (Hildreth and others). A third paper presents an interesting summary of gravity changes that occurred in south-central Alaska during the great earthquake of 1964 and for the following 25 years (Barnes). Gravity changes correlate with land-elevation changes in some cases, but not in others, which means that different processes are responsible for the gravity changes.

Alaska↗