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Cave Prospect, Chistochina Mining District, Valdez-Cordova Census Area, Alaska, USAi
Regional Level Types
Cave ProspectProspect
Chistochina Mining DistrictMining District
Valdez-Cordova Census AreaCensus Area
AlaskaState
USACountry

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Latitude & Longitude (WGS84):
61° 40' 17'' North , 144° 4' 8'' West
Latitude & Longitude (decimal):
61.67139,-144.06889
GRN:
N42W51
Type:
Prospect
Köppen climate type:
Dfc : Subarctic climate
Nearest Settlements:
PlacePopulationDistance
Chitina126 (2017)26.1km
Mindat Locality ID:
196841
Long-form identifier:
mindat:1:2:196841:8
GUID (UUID V4):
0


This prospect is within the Wrangell-St. Elias National Park.
Location: This prospect is on the west side of upper Copper Creek (Van Alstine and Black, 1946, plate 30); it is at an elevation of about 4,100 feet in the NW1/4 section 25, T. 2 S., R. 7 E., of the Copper River Meridian. This prospect is approximately located, perhaps to within one-quarter mile. It is included in locality 70 of Cobb and Matson (1972) and locality 57 of Winkler and others (1981 [OFR 80-892-B]). Cobb (1979 [OFR 79-1241]) includes this prospect under the name 'Cave'.
Geology: A 223-foot-long adit explores this copper prospect in Triassic Nikolai Greenstone (Van Alstine and Black, 1946, p. 129-130). The only mineralization exposed in the adit is a 2- to 12-inch-thick shear zone that contains quartz, bornite, malachite, and some chalcopyrite. The shear zone is located 23 feet in from the portal, trends N 14 W, and dips 7 degrees west. Other shear zones with quatz and calcite were exposed in the adit, but they did not contain copper mineralization. The prospect is only about 30 feet below the contact with overlying Triassic Chitistone Limestone; azurite and malchite films coat some fractures in the nearby limestone. The copper mineralization is believed to be related to the regional mineralizing event that produced the rich Kennecott copper deposits in the McCarthy quadrangle (MacKevett and others, 1997).
Workings: A 223-foot-long adit explores this copper prospect in Triassic Nikolai Greenstone (Van Alstine and Black, 1946, p. 129-130).
Age: The copper mineralization is believed to be related to the mineralizing event that produced the rich Kennecott copper deposits in the McCarthy quadrangle to the east (MacKevett and others, 1997). This event is interpreted to have accompanied Late Jurassic or Early Cretaceous deformation and metamorphism (MacKevett and others, 1997, p. 88).

Commodities (Major) - Cu
Development Status: None
Deposit Model: Vein and fracture fillings in greenstone; probably related to Kennecott-type co

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
ⓘBornite2.BA.15Cu5FeS4
ⓘChalcopyrite2.CB.10aCuFeS2
Group 4 - Oxides and Hydroxides
ⓘQuartz4.DA.05SiO2
Group 5 - Nitrates and Carbonates
ⓘAzurite5.BA.05Cu3(CO3)2(OH)2
ⓘMalachite5.BA.10Cu2(CO3)(OH)2

List of minerals for each chemical element

HHydrogen
Hⓘ AzuriteCu3(CO3)2(OH)2
Hⓘ MalachiteCu2(CO3)(OH)2
CCarbon
Cⓘ AzuriteCu3(CO3)2(OH)2
Cⓘ MalachiteCu2(CO3)(OH)2
OOxygen
Oⓘ AzuriteCu3(CO3)2(OH)2
Oⓘ MalachiteCu2(CO3)(OH)2
Oⓘ QuartzSiO2
SiSilicon
Siⓘ QuartzSiO2
SSulfur
Sⓘ BorniteCu5FeS4
Sⓘ ChalcopyriteCuFeS2
FeIron
Feⓘ BorniteCu5FeS4
Feⓘ ChalcopyriteCuFeS2
CuCopper
Cuⓘ AzuriteCu3(CO3)2(OH)2
Cuⓘ BorniteCu5FeS4
Cuⓘ ChalcopyriteCuFeS2
Cuⓘ MalachiteCu2(CO3)(OH)2

Other Databases

Link to USGS - Alaska:VA043

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., 1979, Summary of references to mineral occurrences (other than mineral fuels and construction materials) in the Valdez quadrangle, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 79-1241, 167 p. Cobb, E.H., and Matson, N.A., Jr., 1972, Metallic mineral resources map of the Valdez quadrangle, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Miscellaneous Field Studies Map MF-438, 1 sheet, 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. Van Alstine, R.E., and Black, R.F., 1946, Copper deposits of the Kotsina-Kuskulana district, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 947-G, p. 121-141. Winkler, G.R., Miller, R.J., MacKevett, E.M., Jr., and Holloway, C.D., 1981, Map and summary table describing mineral deposits in the Valdez quadrangle, southern Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 80-892-B, 2 sheets, scale l:250,000.
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