McDermitt Caldera
McDermitt Caldera | |
---|---|
Highest point | |
Peak | Jordan Meadow Mountain |
Elevation | 6,816 ft (2,078 m)[1] |
Coordinates | 41°51′01″N 118°02′12″W / 41.85028°N 118.03667°W[2] |
Dimensions | |
Length | 28 mi (45 km) north–south[3] |
Width | 22 mi (35 km) east–west[3] |
Geography | |
Location | Harney County, Oregon Malheur County, Oregon Humboldt County, Nevada |
Range coordinates | 42°00′05″N 117°59′48″W / 42.00139°N 117.99667°W |
Geology | |
Age of rock | 19 million years (Miocene) |
Mountain type | Caldera |
Last eruption | 16.39 ± 0.02 million years ago (Miocene) |
The McDermitt Caldera is a large, oval-shaped
McDermitt in southeastern Oregon and northern Nevada in the United States. It is about 28 miles (45 km) long north–south and 22 miles (35 km) wide east–west.[3] The western part of the caldera is in the Trout Creek Mountains, and the northern part is in the Oregon Canyon Mountains.[3][4] The highest point of the McDermitt Caldera is Jordan Meadow Mountain at 6,816 feet (2,078 m), which is part of the Montana Mountains of Humboldt County, Nevada.[1][5]
McDermitt Caldera is possibly the oldest of a sequence of calderas formed by the
mafic lavas.[7]
Significant
brecciated fault zone at the Moonlight mine on the caldera's southwestern edge.[3][7][10] The uranium ore minerals include uraninite and coffinite. The age of the uranium formation is assumed to be the same as the caldera tuff, which is approximately 16.1 million years.[7] Other deposits in the caldera contain ores of antimony, cesium, and lithium[11][12] (potentially, one of the biggest mines in the world).[13]
The
Thacker Pass lithium deposit, located within the caldera, is a prospect that in 2017 was said to be the most significant lithium-clay resource in the U.S.[14]
-
Location of Aurora uranium deposit at McDermitt caldera margin
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Cross-section showing Aurora uranium deposit in McDermitt caldera
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Schematic cross-section of Aurora uranium deposit ore zones
See also
References
- ^ a b Rytuba, James J.; Glanzman, Richard K. (1978). "Relation of Mercury, Uranium, and Lithium Deposits to the McDermitt Caldera Complex, Nevada-Oregon" (PDF). United States Geological Survey. p. 8. Retrieved 19 June 2018.
- ^ "Jordan Meadow Mountain". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. 12 December 1980. Retrieved 7 March 2021.
- ^ a b c d e f g Rytuba, James J. (1976). "Geology and Ore Deposits of the McDermitt Caldera, Nevada–Oregon" (PDF). United States Geological Survey. Retrieved 3 August 2015.
- ^ a b Rytuba, James J.; Conrad, Walter K. (1981). Goodell, P. C.; Waters, A. C. (eds.). "Petrochemical Characteristics of Volcanic Rocks Associated with Uranium Deposits in the McDermitt Caldera Complex". Studies in Geology. 178: 63–72. Retrieved 3 August 2015.
- ^ "Jordan Meadow Mountain - 6,816' Nevada". Listsofjohn.com. Retrieved 17 June 2018.
- ^ ISSN 1553-040X.
- ^ a b c Nash, J. Thomas (2010). "Volcanogenic Uranium Deposits: Geology, Geochemical Processes, and Criteria for Resource Assessment" (PDF). USGS Open-File Report 2010-1001. United States Geological Survey. pp. 17–22. Retrieved 20 May 2021.
- OCLC 42944922.
- ^ "Mercury" (PDF). United States Geological Survey. January 2012. Retrieved 6 August 2015.
- ISBN 978-3-540-78559-0.
- .
- ^ Borden, Buddy; Harris, Tom (November 2017). "Economic and Fiscal Impacts From New Lithium Mine and Lithium Processing Operations in Humboldt County, Nevada" (PDF). University of Nevada, Reno. Retrieved 7 March 2020.
- ^ Alessio Ricchiardi. "EV batteries, the largest lithium deposit discovered | Now the world balance is changing".
- ISSN 2330-7102.
- ^ "Kleinite". Mindat.org. Hudson Institute of Mineralogy. Retrieved 19 June 2018.
External links
- Media related to McDermitt Caldera at Wikimedia Commons