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Publications

Results from our Program’s research and minerals information activities are published in USGS publications series as well as in outside journals.  To follow Minerals Information Periodicals, subscribe to the Mineral Periodicals RSS feed.

Filter Total Items: 2328

Assimilation of reduced carbon triggers platinum alloy saturation in mafic and ultramafic magmas Assimilation of reduced carbon triggers platinum alloy saturation in mafic and ultramafic magmas

It is generally observed that magmatic sulfide ores have higher ratios of Pd/Pt than the mantle-like values of their parental magmas. This discrepancy has defied simple explanation because the partitioning behavior of both elements between sulfide and silicate liquids is very similar. Assimilation of sulfur- and carbon-rich country rocks by mafic and ultramafic magmas is considered a...
Authors
Ying Zhou Li, William D. Smith, Michael Jenkins, Zhuosen Yao, James E. Mungall

Critical minerals in orogenic (gold) and Coeur d’Alene-type mineral systems of the United States Critical minerals in orogenic (gold) and Coeur d’Alene-type mineral systems of the United States

Orogenic and Coeur d’Alene-type mineral systems are produced by metamorphic devolatilization of thick volcanic or siliciclastic sedimentary rock sequences and the focused flow of hydrothermal fluids upwards along crustal-scale faults. Most orogenic systems are found along the Cordilleran orogen, stretching from California northwards into Alaska, whereas most Coeur d’Alene-type systems...
Authors
Ryan D. Taylor, Albert H. Hofstra

Critical minerals in mine waste Critical minerals in mine waste

Introduction Critical minerals are commodities with vulnerable supply chains that play a vital role in supporting the United States’ economy, national defense and security, emerging technologies, and energy independence. The prosperity of our Nation depends on generating a resilient supply of domestic critical minerals; mine waste may be an untapped source of these commodities. Mine...
Authors
Nadine Piatak, Sarah Jane White, Sarah Hayes, Robert R. Seal,

Formation of the Mount Weld rare earth element deposit, Western Australia: A carbonatite-derived laterite Formation of the Mount Weld rare earth element deposit, Western Australia: A carbonatite-derived laterite

Carbonatite-hosted rare earth element (REE) deposits are the primary source of the world’s light REEs. The Mount Weld REE deposit in Western Australia is hosted in a lateritic sequence that reflects supergene enrichment of the underlying carbonatite. Water-rock interaction is a key to the formation of this world-class deposit. REE enrichment in the laterite is controlled by the breakdown...
Authors
Philip Verplanck, Jay Michael Thompson, Cameron Mark Mercer, Ganesh Bhat, Heather A. Lowers, Adam Boehlke

The feasibility of using lidar-derived digital elevation models for gravity data reduction The feasibility of using lidar-derived digital elevation models for gravity data reduction

Gravity data require submeter elevation accuracy for data processing, and differential global navigation satellite system (dGNSS) equipment is commonly used to acquire three-dimensional positional data to achieve such accuracy. However, lidar (light detection and ranging) data are commonly used to develop digital elevation models (DEMs) of Earth’s surface. Therefore, using elevations...
Authors
Jacob T. Murchek, Benjamin J. Drenth, James J. Reitman, Eric D. Anderson, Benjamin P. Magnin, James M. DeGraff

Bayesian mapping of regionally grouped, sparse, univariate earth science data Bayesian mapping of regionally grouped, sparse, univariate earth science data

Some earth science data are naturally grouped by region, and it is often desirable to map these data by region. However, if there are only a few samples within each region, then the map should be smoothed in an appropriate way to mitigate the problems that arise from having only a few samples. A smoothing algorithm based on a Bayesian hierarchical model is developed and presented in this...
Authors
Karl J. Ellefsen, Bronwen Wang, Margaret A. Goldman

Metal fingerprints of Eocene rhyolite magmas coincident with Carlin-type gold deposition in Nevada USA Metal fingerprints of Eocene rhyolite magmas coincident with Carlin-type gold deposition in Nevada USA

Eocene magmatic systems contemporaneous with world-class Carlin-type Au deposits in Nevada (USA) have been proposed by some researchers as a key ingredient for Au mineralization, though evidence conclusively demonstrating their genetic relationship remains tenuous. This study provides the first direct evidence of the pre-eruptive metal budget of volatile- and metal-charged silicic magmas...
Authors
Celestine N. Mercer, Hannah R. Babel, Cameron Mark Mercer, Albert H. Hofstra

USGS critical minerals review USGS critical minerals review

No abstract available.
Authors
Graham W. Lederer, James V. Jones, Darcy McPhee, Patricia J Loferski, Robert Seal, Paul A. Bedrosian, Patricia Grace MacQueen, V.J.S. Grauch, Federico Solano, Joshua Mark Rosera, David George Pineault

Statistical approaches for modeling correlated grade and tonnage distributions and applications for mineral resource assessments Statistical approaches for modeling correlated grade and tonnage distributions and applications for mineral resource assessments

Correlations between grade and tonnage exist in mineral resource data compiled from published reports, but they are not always addressed during quantitative assessment of undiscovered mineral resources. Failure to account for correlated grade and tonnage distributions can result in geologically unrealistic assessment results. Current software tools simulate univariate ore tonnage and...
Authors
Joshua Mark Rosera, Graham W. Lederer, John Schuenemeyer

In situ Re-Os geochronology of Re-rich Palaeogene molybdenite by LA-ICP-MS/MS In situ Re-Os geochronology of Re-rich Palaeogene molybdenite by LA-ICP-MS/MS

In situ Re–Os geochronology by LA-ICP-MS/MS was previously demonstrated by reacting Os with CH4 or N2O reaction gasses. However, for both reactions, a minor proportion of the Re parent isotope also reacts, potentially leading to significant isobaric interferences of 187Re on 187Os, especially for young samples with little radiogenic in-growth. Here we present an interlaboratory...
Authors
Stijm Glorie, Jay Michael Thompson, Sarah E. Gilbert, Amanda (Kate) Souders

Critical Minerals in Ores (CMiO) database Critical Minerals in Ores (CMiO) database

Critical minerals are commodities essential to modern industrial and strategic technologies and are highly vulnerable to supply chain disruption. The Critical Minerals Mapping Initiative (CMMI) is a collaboration among the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), the Geological Survey of Canada, and Geoscience Australia that aims to deepen global understanding of where critical minerals are...
Authors
George N. D. Case, Garth E. Graham, Christopher Lawley, Evgeniy Bastrakov, David Huston, Albert H. Hofstra, Vladimir Lisitsin, Steph Hawkins, Bronwen Wang

Structural analysis of brittle-plastic shear zones in the Sangre de Cristo Range, southern Colorado USA: Superposition of Rio Grande rift extension on Laramide contraction Structural analysis of brittle-plastic shear zones in the Sangre de Cristo Range, southern Colorado USA: Superposition of Rio Grande rift extension on Laramide contraction

The Sangre de Cristo Range in southern Colorado exposes some of the deepest Cenozoic structural levels in the Rocky Mountain region, including mylonitic shear zones associated with both the Laramide orogeny and Rio Grande rift. We investigated the relation between Laramide contraction and Rio Grande rift extension with detailed geologic mapping, kinematic analysis, and geochronometry in...
Authors
Michael C. Sitar, John S. Singleton, Jeffrey M. Rahl, Jonathan Caine, Jacob King, Andrew R C Kylander-Clark, Paul O’Sullivan
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