BCGS Technical Talks: Brendan Howe скачать в хорошем качестве

BCGS Technical Talks: Brendan Howe

Title: An Empirical Geophysical Model for Porphyry Copper Deposits in the Laramide Copper Province Abstract: The Laramide copper province is located in southwestern North America, covering parts of Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas in the U.S, in addition to Sonora, Chihuahua, Sinaloa and Baja California in Mexico. Porphyry copper mineralization is associated with Laramide age (~80-45 Ma) magmatism and has been estimated to represent ~300 million tonnes of copper metal, making it a globally significant accumulation of the red metal. The geological and geochemical manifestations of these mineralizing systems have been well documented. Specifically, exploration models based on alteration zonation and trace element geochemistry have been developed and successfully deployed in the province since the late 1960’s. As a result of post-Laramide extension and deposition, much of the province is covered by post-mineral rocks or sediments, and it can be argued that the greatest residual potential for future discoveries is located within the covered regions. Consequently, geophysical datasets are playing a more prominent role in the integrated targeting of porphyry systems. In this extended abstract, we present a series of observations and interpretations of geophysical data from various deposits in the province with the goal of developing an empirical model to guide the selection of geophysical methods, interpret subsequent results and ultimately contribute to future exploration success.