Vote for your favorite mineral in #MinCup26! - Sphalerite vs. Anorthite
Both zinc ore Sphalerite and calcium plagioclase feldspar Anorthite have perfect cleavage that will split cleanly if you hit them with a hammer, but only one can claim a larger split of your votes!
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Independence Prospect, Nizina Mining District, Valdez-Cordova Census Area, Alaska, USAi
Regional Level Types
Independence ProspectProspect
Nizina Mining DistrictMining District
Valdez-Cordova Census AreaCensus Area
AlaskaState
USACountry

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Latitude & Longitude (WGS84):
61° 30' 54'' North , 142° 49' 11'' West
Latitude & Longitude (decimal):
61.51500,-142.81972
GeoHash:
G#: bffmyn3yg
GRN:
N42W50
Type:
Prospect
Köppen climate type:
ET : Tundra
Mindat Locality ID:
198130
Long-form identifier:
mindat:1:2:198130:1
GUID (UUID V4):
0


The locality is in the Wrangell-Saint Elias National Park and Preserve.
Location: This prospect is on the west valley wall of McCarthy Creek. It is at an elevation of about 5,200 feet, 2,700 feet north-northeast of elevation 6184, and about 200 feet north of the south boundary of section 14, T. 4 S., R. 14 E. of the Copper River Meridian. This is locality 90 of MacKevett (1976); the location is accurate to within about 100 feet. Cobb and MacKevett (1980) included this prospect under the name 'Kennecott (Copper Corp.)'.
Geology: This prospect consists of sheeted calcite veins containing chalcocite that are localized in a shear zone cutting Triassic Nikolai Greenstone (Moffit and Capps, 1911, p. 92; MacKevett, 1976). The shear zone with the calcite veins strikes N 38 E and intersects quartz-epidote veins with some bornite that strike N 78 E. The calcite veins continue upward into Triassic Chitistone Limestone but, the chalcocite is restricted to the part of the veins in the Nikolai Greenstone. The deposits were probably explored by at least pits and open cuts. Copper mineralization is common in Nikolai Greenstone and is thought to have accompanied regional deformation and low-grade metamorphism in the Late Jurassic to Early Cretaceous (MacKevett and others, 1997).
Workings: The deposits were probably explored by at least pits and open cuts.
Age: Cretaceous? Copper mineralization is common in Nikolai Greenstone and is thought to have accompanied regional deformation and low-grade metamorphism in the Late Jurassic to Early Cretaceous (MacKevett and others, 1997).

Commodities (Major) - Cu
Development Status: None
Deposit Model: Basaltic Cu (Cox and Singer, 1986; model 23) and/or Kennecott-type copper depos

Select Mineral List Type

Standard Detailed Gallery Strunz Chemical Elements

Commodity List

This is a list of exploitable or exploited mineral commodities recorded at this locality.


Mineral List


5 valid minerals.

Gallery:

List of minerals arranged by Strunz 10th Edition classification

Group 2 - Sulphides and Sulfosalts
ⓘChalcocite2.BA.05Cu2S
ⓘBornite2.BA.15Cu5FeS4
Group 4 - Oxides and Hydroxides
ⓘQuartz4.DA.05SiO2
Group 5 - Nitrates and Carbonates
ⓘCalcite5.AB.05CaCO3
Group 9 - Silicates
ⓘEpidote9.BG.05a(CaCa)(AlAlFe3+)O[Si2O7][SiO4](OH)

List of minerals for each chemical element

HHydrogen
Hⓘ Epidote(CaCa)(AlAlFe3+)O[Si2O7][SiO4](OH)
CCarbon
Cⓘ CalciteCaCO3
OOxygen
Oⓘ CalciteCaCO3
Oⓘ Epidote(CaCa)(AlAlFe3+)O[Si2O7][SiO4](OH)
Oⓘ QuartzSiO2
AlAluminium
Alⓘ Epidote(CaCa)(AlAlFe3+)O[Si2O7][SiO4](OH)
SiSilicon
Siⓘ Epidote(CaCa)(AlAlFe3+)O[Si2O7][SiO4](OH)
Siⓘ QuartzSiO2
SSulfur
Sⓘ BorniteCu5FeS4
Sⓘ ChalcociteCu2S
CaCalcium
Caⓘ CalciteCaCO3
Caⓘ Epidote(CaCa)(AlAlFe3+)O[Si2O7][SiO4](OH)
FeIron
Feⓘ BorniteCu5FeS4
Feⓘ Epidote(CaCa)(AlAlFe3+)O[Si2O7][SiO4](OH)
CuCopper
Cuⓘ BorniteCu5FeS4
Cuⓘ ChalcociteCu2S

Other Databases

Link to USGS - Alaska:MC092

Other Regions, Features and Areas containing this locality

North AmericaContinent
North America PlateTectonic Plate

This page contains all mineral locality references listed on mindat.org. This does not claim to be a complete list. If you know of more minerals from this site, please register so you can add to our database. This locality information is for reference purposes only. You should never attempt to visit any sites listed in mindat.org without first ensuring that you have the permission of the land and/or mineral rights holders for access and that you are aware of all safety precautions necessary.

References

Cobb, E.H., and MacKevett, E.M., Jr., 1980, Summaries of data on and lists of references to metallic and selected nonmetallic mineral deposits in the McCarthy quadrangle, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 80-885, 156 p. MacKevett, E.M., Jr., 1970, Geologic map of the McCarthy C-4 quadrangle, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Geologic Quadrangle Map GQ-844, 8 p., 1 sheet, scale 1:63,360. MacKevett, E.M., Jr., 1976, Mineral deposits and occurrences in the McCarthy quadrangle, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Miscellaneous Field Studies Map MF-773-B, 2 sheets, scale 1:250,000. MacKevett, E.M., Jr., Cox, D.P., Potter, R.W., III, and Silberman, M.L., 1997, Kennecott-type deposits in the Wrangell Mountains, Alaska--High-grade copper ores near a basalt-limestone contact, in Goldfarb, R.J., and Miller, L.D., eds., Mineral deposits of Alaska: Economic Geology Monograph 9, p. 66-89. Moffit, F.H., and Capps, S.R., 1911, Geology and mineral resources of the Nizina district, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 448, 111 p.
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