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Unnamed (tributary to Clear Creek)

Occurrence in Alaska, United States with commodities REE, Tin, Uranium, Tungsten
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Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10309015
MRDS ID A012616
Record type Site
Current site name Unnamed (tributary to Clear Creek)
Related records 10001807

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -162.24627, 64.88136 (WGS84)
Relative position This occurrence is on the second north tributary to Clear Creek upstream from the confluence of Clear Creek and the Tubutuluk River. It is 1.2 miles upstream from the tributaries confluence with Clear Creek and at about 275 feet elevation. This is sample locality 2983 of West (1953, Plate 1) and locality 132 of Cobb (1972, MF 445; 1978, OF 78-181).
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Geographic areas

Country State
United States Alaska

Commodities

Commodity Importance
REE Primary
Tin Primary
Uranium Primary
Tungsten Primary

Comments on the commodity information

  • Ore Material = uraniferous titanium niobate

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Allanite Ore
Cassiterite Ore
Scheelite Ore
Garnet Gangue
Hematite Gangue
Ilmenite Gangue
Sphene Gangue
Topaz Gangue

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Associated
    Chronological age 88.3
    Uncertainty 1.5
    Dating method K-Ar
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Late Cretaceous
    Chronological age 92.8
    Uncertainty 2.6
    Dating method K-Ar
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Late Cretaceous
  • Host or associated Associated

Nearby scientific data

(1) -162.24627, 64.88136
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Comments on the geologic information

  • Geologic Description = Heavy-mineral concentrate (concentration ratio of 1,100:1) from stream gravels at this locality contain 0.086% equivalent uranium. Minerals identified in the heavy-mineral concentrates include hematite, ilmenite, garnet, topaz, allanite, sphene, an unidentified uraniferous titanium niobate, and trace cassiterite and scheelite. This is the farthest downstream sample in this drainage (West, 1953) and it is located near the eastern contact of the Darby pluton with metasedimentary rocks (Till and others, 1986). Clear Creek and its north tributaries have headwaters in the Darby pluton. Many of the heavy minerals in the concentrates from stream sediments in the area are known accessory minerals in the Darby pluton. The widespread elevated Nb values in stream sediments (Miller and Grybeck, 1973) and in heavy -mineral concentrates (West, 1953) of the Clear Creek-Vulcan Creek area may indicate specific mineralized zones of disseminations in late, felsic phases of the Darby pluton (Miller and Grybeck, 1973). The Darby pluton is a mid-Cretaceous granodiorite and granite that has elevated background levels of uranium and thorium (Miller and others, 1972; Miller and Bunker, 1976; Johnson and others, 1979). This pluton is considered the bedrock source of uranium that was mobilized and deposited in the Death Valley sandstone uranium deposit (in the Bendeleben quadrangle to the north) during the Eocene (Dickinson and others, 1987). K/Ar ages for the Darby pluton are 88.3 +/- 1.5 and 92.8 +/- 2.6 Ma (Berry and others, 1976).
  • Age = Chron age is for the Darby pluton.
  • Age = The heavy mineral concentrates are from Holocene surficial materials but these have been primarily derived from the nearby bedrock of the Darby pluton. The Darby pluton is mid-Cretaceous; K/Ar ages for the Darby pluton are 88.3 +/- 1.5 and 92.8 +/- 2.6 Ma (Berry and others, 1976).

Economic information

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Occurrence
Commodity type Metallic

Comments on exploration

  • Status = Inactive

Mining district

District name Koyuk

Comments on the workings information

  • Workings / Exploration = There are no known workings; exploration in the region may have included reconnaissance stream sediment sampling and radiometric surveys.

Reference information

Links to other databases

Agency Database name Acronym Record ID Notes
USGS Alaska Resource Data File ARDF SO038
USGS Mineral Resources Data System MRDS A012616
USGS Mineral Resources Data System MRDS D002608

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    West, W.S., 1953, Reconnaissance for radioactive deposits in the Darby Mountains, Seward Peninsula, Alaska, 1948: U.S. Geological Survey Circular 300, 7 p.

  • Deposit

    Cobb, E.H., 1972, Metallic resources map of the Solomon quadrangle, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Miscellaneous Field Studies Map MF-445, scale 1:250,000.

  • Deposit

    Miller, T.P., Grybeck, D.J., Elliott, R.L., and Hudson, T.L., 1972, Preliminary geologic map of the eastern Solomon and southeastern Bendeleben quadrangles, eastern Seward Peninsula, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 72-256, 11 p.

  • Deposit

    Miller, T.P., and Grybeck, D.J., 1973, Geochemical survey of the eastern Solomon and southeastern Bendeleben quadrangles, Seward Peninsula, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 553, 115 p.

  • Deposit

    Berry, A.L., Dalrymple, G.B., Lamphere, M.A., and Von Essen, J.C., 1976, Summary of miscellaneous potassium-argon age determinations, U. S. Geological Survey, Menlo Park, California, for the years 1972-1974: U.S. Geological Survey Circular 727, 13 p.

  • Deposit

    Miller, T.P., and Bunker, C.M., 1976, A reconnaissance study of the uranium and thorium contents of plutonic rocks of the southeastern Seward Peninsula, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Journal of Research, v. 4, p. 367-377.

  • Deposit

    Cobb, E.H., 1978, Summary of references to mineral occurrences (other than mineral fuels and construction materials) in the Solomon quadrangle, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 78-181, 185 p.

  • Deposit

    Johnson, B.R., Miller, T.P., and Karl, S., 1979, Uranium-thorium investigations of the Darby pluton, Seward Peninsula, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Circular 804-B, p. 68-70.

  • Deposit

    Till, A.B., Dumoulin, J.A., Gamble, B. ., Kaufman, D.S., and Carroll, P.I., 1986, Preliminary geologic map and fossil data, Soloman, Bendeleben, and southern Kotzebue quadrangles, Seward Peninsula, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 86-276, 10 p., 3 plates, scale 1:250,000.

Comments on the references

  • Primary Reference = West, 1953

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit Model Name = Disseminated; uranium- and rare-earth-bearing minerals are probably accessory phases in the Darby pluton. Other types of deposits could be present locally as suggested by the presence of cassiterite and scheelite.

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 19-AUG-1999 Travis L. Hudson Applied Geology