Unnamed (moraine on Fairweather Glacier)

The Unnamed (moraine on Fairweather Glacier) is a copper and nickel mine located in Alaska.

About the MRDS Data:

All mine locations were obtained from the USGS Mineral Resources Data System. The locations and other information in this database have not been verified for accuracy. It should be assumed that all mines are on private property.

Mine Info

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Site Name

Primary: Unnamed (moraine on Fairweather Glacier)

Commodity

Primary: Copper
Primary: Nickel
Secondary: Iron
Secondary: Vanadium
Secondary: Cobalt
Secondary: Chromium
Secondary: PGE
Secondary: Titanium
Secondary: Silver
Secondary: Gold

Location

State: Alaska
District: Yakutat

Land Status

Not available

Holdings

Not available

Workings

Not available

Ownership

Not available

Production

Not available

Deposit

Record Type: Site
Operation Category: Occurrence
Operation Type: Unknown
Years of Production:
Organization:
Significant:

Physiography

Not available

Mineral Deposit Model

Not available

Orebody

Not available

Structure

Not available

Alterations

Not available

Rocks

Not available

Analytical Data

Not available

Materials

Ore: Pyrrhotite
Ore: Pentlandite
Ore: Magnetite
Ore: Ilmenite
Ore: Cubanite
Ore: Chalcopyrite

Comments

Comment (Reference): Primary Reference = Kimball and others, 1978

Comment (Deposit): Model Name = Unconsolidated glacial moraine containing metalliferous detritus.

Comment (Geology): Age = Recent morainal accumulation of sulfide- and heavy metallic oxide-bearing detritus derived from the Mt. Fairweather intrusion.

Comment (Geology): Geologic Description = Cobbles of mafic rocks containing concentrations of magnetite-ilmenite or of disseminated sulfides, including chalcopyrite and pentlandite, occur in moraine adjacent to the Mt. Fairweather layered mafic intrusion and must have been derived from mineral deposits within the intrusion. Plafker and MacKevett (1970) found as much as 0.5 percent copper, also 0.5 percent nickel in the first sampling of the moraine occurrence. Kimball and others (1978) found as much as 0.64 percent copper and 0.2 percent nickel in samples collected from the moraine. Gold, platinum or palladium, cobalt, and chromium were also reported in assays from samples from the moraine.

Comment (Workings): Workings / Exploration = The mineralized rocks were collected from the moraine. No examination of the probable source area of the detritus was possible because of the extremely rugged terrane. Further investigations would call for trained mountaineers. The sites near Mt. Fairweather were first visited by Plafker and MacKevett (1970), who obtained materials estimated to contain as much as 0.5 percent each of copper and nickel. The sites were then resampled by the U.S. Bureau of Mines (Kimball and others, 1978, p. C108-C119). Samples 7K064 and 065 collected by the Bureau contained 0.03-0.05 ounce/ton gold, trace to 0.008 ounce/ton platinum or palladium, as much as 0.64 percent copper, 0.2 percent nickel, 200-300 ppm cobalt, and 2000-5000 ppm chromium.

Comment (Deposit): Other Comments = the site is in Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve. A search for the source of the metalliferous boulders would need mountaineering support.

References

Reference (Deposit): Plafker, George, and MacKevett, E. M., Jr., 1970, Mafic and ultramafic rocks from a layered pluton at Mount Fairweather, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 700-B, p. B21-B26.

Reference (Deposit): Kimball, A.L., Still, J.C., and Rataj, J.L., 1978, Mineral resources, in Brew, D. A., and others, Mineral resources of the Glacier Bay National Monument wilderness study area, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 78-494, p. C1-C375.

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