Geospatial compilation of results from field sample collection in support of mineral resource investigations, Western Alaska Range, Alaska, July 2013
This Data Series summarizes results from July 2013 sampling in the western Alaska Range near Mount Estelle, Alaska. The fieldwork combined in situ and camp-based spectral measurements of talus/soil and rock samples. Five rock and 48 soil samples were submitted for quantitative geochemical analysis (for 55 major and trace elements), and the 48 soils samples were also analyzed by x-ray diffraction to establish mineralogy and geochemistry. The results and sample photographs are presented in a geodatabase that accompanies this report. The spectral, mineralogical, and geochemical characterization of these samples and the sites that they represent can be used to validate existing remote-sensing datasets (for example, ASTER) and future hyperspectral studies. Empirical evidence of jarosite (as identified by x-ray diffraction and spectral analysis) corresponding with gold concentrations in excess of 50 parts per billion in soil samples suggests that surficial mapping of jarosite in regional surveys may be useful for targeting areas of prospective gold occurrences in this sampling area.
Table of Contents
- Abstract
- Introduction
- Methods
- Results
- Discussion
- References Cited