Unnamed Occurrence (ARDF - NM044; near Windy Creek), Nome Mining District, Nome Census Area, Alaska, USAi

Regional Level Types
Unnamed Occurrence (ARDF - NM044; near Windy Creek)	- not defined -
Nome Mining District	Mining District
Nome Census Area	Census Area
Alaska	State
USA	Country

Location: The occurrence is at an elevation of about 1,600 feet in a steep-walled, east-trending canyon. The canyon enters Windy Creek about 2 miles above the confluence of Windy Creek and Sinuk River. This is locality 37 of Hummel (1962 [MF 248]), locality 83 of Hummel (1975), and locality 12 of Cobb (1972 [MF 463], 1978 [OFR 78-93]).
Geology: This is one of four tactite scheelite occurrences (this occurrence, NM027, NM035, and NM041) identifed by Hummel (1961) in the central and southern Kigluaik Mountains. The calc-silicate assemblages hosts to the tactite were interpreted by Hummel to have been metamorphosed along with their country rocks. Scheelite is present in all four occurrences, and galena and sphalerite accompany scheelite here. This occurrence is in amphibolite facies metasedimentary rocks along the south contact of the Thompson Creek orthogneiss (Hummel, 1962 [MF 248]; Till, 1980). The Thompson Creek orthogneiss has been determined to have a Late Proterozoic protolith (555 Ma, Amato and Wright, 1998). The metasedimentary rocks south of the Thompson Creek orthogneiss are considered to have Precambrian or early Paleozoic protoliths (Till and Dumoulin, 1994). They are thought to have undergone regional high-pressure metamorphism in the Late Jurassic or Early Cretaceous (Sainsbury, Coleman, and Kachadoorian, 1970; Forbes and others, 1984; Thurston, 1985; Patrick, 1988; Patrick and Evans, 1989; Armstrong and others, 1986; Hannula and McWilliams, 1995). Higher temperature metamorphism overprinted these rocks in conjunction with regional extension, crustal melting, and magmatism in the mid-Cretaceous (Throckmorton and Hummel, 1979; Till, 1983; Evans and Patrick, 1987; Leiberman, 1988; Patrick and Leiberman, 1988; Miller and Hudson, 1991; Miller and others, 1992; Dumitru and others, 1995; Hannula and others, 1995; Hudson and Arth, 1983; Hudson, 1994; Amato and others, 1994; Amato and Wright, 1997, 1998). Uplift of the higher temperature metamorphic rocks took place in the mid- to Late Cretaceous and in the Eocene (Calvert, 1992; Dumitru and others, 1995).
Workings: Mining claims were staked along the south contact of the Thompson Creek orthogniess from this locality east across Windy Creek (Alaska Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys, 1982); at least some surface exploration has probably occurred here.
Age: Late Proterozoic (?); may be the same age as the Thompson Creek orthogneiss.
Alteration: Recrystallized calc-silicate assemblages.

Commodities (Major) - W
Deposit Model: W skarn deposit (Cox and Singer, 1986; model 14a).

Other Databases

Link to USGS - Alaska:	NM044

Other Regions, Features and Areas containing this locality

References