Unnamed (west of Mt. Fairweather)

The Unnamed (west of Mt. Fairweather) 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

Satelite View

MRDS mine locations are often very general, and in some cases are incorrect. Some mine remains have been covered or removed by modern industrial activity or by development of things like housing. The satellite view offers a quick glimpse as to whether the MRDS location corresponds to visible mine remains.

Site Name

Primary: Unnamed (west of Mt. Fairweather)

Commodity

Primary: Copper
Primary: Nickel
Secondary: Titanium
Secondary: Chromium
Secondary: Cobalt
Secondary: PGE

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

Alteration Type: L
Alteration Text: Local secondary alteration of copper-bearing minerals.

Rocks

Not available

Analytical Data

Not available

Materials

Ore: Pyrrhotite
Ore: Nickel
Ore: Pentlandite
Ore: Malachite
Ore: Cubanite
Ore: Chalcopyrite

Comments

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

Comment (Workings): Workings / Exploration = Helicopter reconnaissance reported in Kimball and others (1978, Fig. C-34, p. C117-C118) found conspicuous copper staining near the western contact of the Mt. Fairweather intrusion. No landings were possible.

Comment (Deposit): Model Name = Cumulate or sulfide segregations in layered-mafic intrusions. Contact deposits in schist. Partly oxidized.

Comment (Deposit): Other Comments = the site is in Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve. Further exploration would need mountaineering support.

Comment (Geology): Age = Tertiary.

Comment (Geology): Geologic Description = This occurrence, and the occurrence of detrital mineralized mafic rocks in nearby glacial moraine (MF016 and MF017), suggests that there may be (a) Brady Glacier-type nickel-copper deposits in the Mount Fairweather layered mafic-ultramafic intrusion and (b) contact-type copper deposits in the schist country rocks. The inferred mineral deposits are in or at the contact of the Mt. Fairweather layered mafic intrusion, the northern-most of four layered mafic complexes of the Fairweather Range (Brew and others, 1978). The primary copper sulfides exposed at or near the contact have locally been oxidized to malachite, forming copper-stained zones visible from aircraft fly-by. The sites have not been occupied.

References

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.

Reference (Deposit): Brew, D.A., Johnson, B.R., Grybeck, D., Griscom, A., Barnes, D.F., Kimball, A.L., Still, J.C., and Rataj, J.L., 1978, Mineral resources of the Glacier Bay National Monument Wilderness Study Area, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 78-494, 670 p.

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