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Mineral Resource Assessments

Mineral resource assessments are tools used for projecting the potential for undiscovered domestic and global deposits of minerals such as copper and rare-earth elements.  Land management agencies, industry and the public use this mineral resource information to help project future resource development.

Filter Total Items: 16

Alaska Resource Data File

The Alaska Resource Data File (ARDF) site provides descriptions of mines, prospects, and mineral occurrences for individual U.S. Geological Survey 1:250,000-scale quadrangles in Alaska.
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Alaska Resource Data File

The Alaska Resource Data File (ARDF) site provides descriptions of mines, prospects, and mineral occurrences for individual U.S. Geological Survey 1:250,000-scale quadrangles in Alaska.
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USMIN Mineral Deposit Database

Our objective is to develop a national-scale, geospatial database that is the authoritative source of the most important mines, mineral deposits, and mineral districts of the United States.
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USMIN Mineral Deposit Database

Our objective is to develop a national-scale, geospatial database that is the authoritative source of the most important mines, mineral deposits, and mineral districts of the United States.
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Multidisciplinary Investigations of REE Mineralization at Mountain Pass and in the Southeast Mojave Desert, California

In this time of increased focus on renewable energy technologies, rare earth elements (REEs) are of critical importance. For example, neodymium (Nd) is a REE used in the generator and motor magnets of wind turbines and electric vehicles. Reliance on REE imports puts the U.S. at high risk for supply disruption. The project will integrate geology, geophysics, petrology, geochronology, and economic...
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Multidisciplinary Investigations of REE Mineralization at Mountain Pass and in the Southeast Mojave Desert, California

In this time of increased focus on renewable energy technologies, rare earth elements (REEs) are of critical importance. For example, neodymium (Nd) is a REE used in the generator and motor magnets of wind turbines and electric vehicles. Reliance on REE imports puts the U.S. at high risk for supply disruption. The project will integrate geology, geophysics, petrology, geochronology, and economic...
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International Integrated Minerals Interpretation

We will publish reports and interpretive papers on existing data from USGS internal mineral resource assessment collaborative work.
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International Integrated Minerals Interpretation

We will publish reports and interpretive papers on existing data from USGS internal mineral resource assessment collaborative work.
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21st Century Prospecting: AI-assisted Surveying of Critical Mineral Potential

The USGS Mineral Resources Program entered a partnership with the Defense Advanced Research Project Agency (DARPA). The partnership objective is to accelerate advances in science for understanding critical minerals, assessing unknown resources, and increase mineral security for the Nation so USGS can more efficiently assess critical mineral deposits within the United States.
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21st Century Prospecting: AI-assisted Surveying of Critical Mineral Potential

The USGS Mineral Resources Program entered a partnership with the Defense Advanced Research Project Agency (DARPA). The partnership objective is to accelerate advances in science for understanding critical minerals, assessing unknown resources, and increase mineral security for the Nation so USGS can more efficiently assess critical mineral deposits within the United States.
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MinFrame - Methodological infrastructure needed for resource assessment, modeling, and evaluation

Assessing the mineral resources of the United States represents a core function of the Energy and Minerals Mission Area since the inception of the U.S. Geological Survey under the Organic Act of 1879. As reaffirmed by the Energy Policy Act of 2020, assessment of identified and undiscovered resources of critical mineral commodities continues to form a focal point of the Mineral Resources Program...
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MinFrame - Methodological infrastructure needed for resource assessment, modeling, and evaluation

Assessing the mineral resources of the United States represents a core function of the Energy and Minerals Mission Area since the inception of the U.S. Geological Survey under the Organic Act of 1879. As reaffirmed by the Energy Policy Act of 2020, assessment of identified and undiscovered resources of critical mineral commodities continues to form a focal point of the Mineral Resources Program...
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Update of North American Airborne Radiometric Survey Data Using Advanced Statistical Techniques and Parallel Computing

The purpose of this project is to update the current gridded products created from the North American airborne gamma ray spectrometry data using new statistical techniques to analyze spatial data and to create higher quality national airborne radiometric grids.
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Update of North American Airborne Radiometric Survey Data Using Advanced Statistical Techniques and Parallel Computing

The purpose of this project is to update the current gridded products created from the North American airborne gamma ray spectrometry data using new statistical techniques to analyze spatial data and to create higher quality national airborne radiometric grids.
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Mineral Resource Assessment Training

The USGS Mineral Resources Program conducts mineral resource assessments and is training USGS scientists in how to conduct these assessments for future work. As a practical exercise, the scientists will conduct an assessment for tungsten in the U.S.
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Mineral Resource Assessment Training

The USGS Mineral Resources Program conducts mineral resource assessments and is training USGS scientists in how to conduct these assessments for future work. As a practical exercise, the scientists will conduct an assessment for tungsten in the U.S.
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Mineral Resource Assessment of U.S. Territories of the Caribbean Basin Archipelago including Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands and Adjacent Areas

Project objectives are to develop a modern probabilistic quantitative mineral resource assessment of Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands and adjacent geologically similar areas that examines the potential for minerals-based economic development and trade within the region.
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Mineral Resource Assessment of U.S. Territories of the Caribbean Basin Archipelago including Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands and Adjacent Areas

Project objectives are to develop a modern probabilistic quantitative mineral resource assessment of Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands and adjacent geologically similar areas that examines the potential for minerals-based economic development and trade within the region.
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Development of Assessment Techniques and Analysis Project II (DATAP II)

The Development of Assessment Techniques and Analysis Project (DATAPII) objective is to modernize the application and development of USGS mineral resource and integrated multiresource assessment methodologies and capacity that are applicable at a variety of spatial and temporal scales, and national and international in scope.
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Development of Assessment Techniques and Analysis Project II (DATAP II)

The Development of Assessment Techniques and Analysis Project (DATAPII) objective is to modernize the application and development of USGS mineral resource and integrated multiresource assessment methodologies and capacity that are applicable at a variety of spatial and temporal scales, and national and international in scope.
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Heavy-Mineral Sand Resources in the Southeastern U.S.

We are assessing the extent of industrial mineral resources hosted by heavy-mineral sands in the coastal plain of the southeastern United States. “Heavy-mineral sands" (HMS) is a term commonly used in industry and geologic literature to describe layered sediments deposited in coastal environments that contain dense (“heavy") minerals of economic value. The heavy minerals extracted from these...
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Heavy-Mineral Sand Resources in the Southeastern U.S.

We are assessing the extent of industrial mineral resources hosted by heavy-mineral sands in the coastal plain of the southeastern United States. “Heavy-mineral sands" (HMS) is a term commonly used in industry and geologic literature to describe layered sediments deposited in coastal environments that contain dense (“heavy") minerals of economic value. The heavy minerals extracted from these...
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New Mineral Deposit Models for Gold, Phosphate Rare Earth Elements, and Placer Rare Earth Element-Titanium Resources

USGS Mineral Deposit Models are "an organized arrangement of information describing the essential characteristics or properties of a class of mineral deposits. Models themselves can be classified according to their essential attributes (for example: descriptive, grade-tonnage models, genetic, geoenvironmental, geophysical, probability of occurrence, and quantitative process models)." (Stoeser and...
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New Mineral Deposit Models for Gold, Phosphate Rare Earth Elements, and Placer Rare Earth Element-Titanium Resources

USGS Mineral Deposit Models are "an organized arrangement of information describing the essential characteristics or properties of a class of mineral deposits. Models themselves can be classified according to their essential attributes (for example: descriptive, grade-tonnage models, genetic, geoenvironmental, geophysical, probability of occurrence, and quantitative process models)." (Stoeser and...
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