Coongan babingtonite occurrence, Nullagine, East Pilbara Shire, Western Australia, Australiai

Regional Level Types
Coongan babingtonite occurrence	Deposit
Nullagine	- not defined -
East Pilbara Shire	Shire
Western Australia	State
Australia	Country

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Bailey indicates that the site is 30 kilometres west of Nullagine.

Babingtonite at this location is hosted by the Kelly Greenstone Belt, wherein the Warrawoona Group volcanics have been extensively altered and largely recrystallized to prehnite-pumpellyite and greenschist facies mineral assemblage, while retaining well preserved original volcanic structures and textures.

The babingtonite occurs in a 30 metre thick basalt flow. The upper portions of this is mottled due to the presence of irregular yellow-green epidote rich patches up to 20 cm across surrounded by grey albite-rich basalt. The lower portion of the flow shows grey-green relatively unaltered basalt with minor epidote-rich metadomains. Throughout the flow are veins of quartz-albite-chlorite-calcite, epidote-quartz-calcite and epidote-quartz.

The unaltered basalt contains tabular plates of relict clinopyroxene, wholly or partially enclosing laths of albite, finely dusted with chlorite and epidote, with chlorite, epidote, sphene and Fe-Ti oxide between the laths replacing the original basaltic glass. The relict clinopyroxene crystals are completely mantled by overgrowths of pale green fibrous actinolite.

The epidote rich metadomains consist of lemon yellow epidote with quartz, carbonate, and minor relict clinopyroxene. Babingtonite was found in one of the epidote metadomains as ragged grains intergrown with epidote and quartz; subhedral grains in epidote-quartz-calcite veins; and as a partial replacement of clinopyroxene.

Mineral List

8 valid minerals.

Rock Types Recorded