Banded iron formations (BIFs) are among the few chemical sedimentary archives that capture the biogeo-chemical evolution of Fe cycling and the redox evolution of the early Earth. Although biologically recycled continental Fe has been previously proposed to be a significant source of Fe in BIFs deposited from a stratified ocean at the onset of the Great Oxidation Event (GOE; ~2.5–2.2 Ga), constraining

The timing and mechanism of ore precipitation in porphyry copper systems are hot topics and remain controversial. The large Miocene collision-related Zhunuo porphyry Cu deposit in the Gangdese belt of southern Tibet, China, was produced by multistage quartz veining and hydrothermal alteration, accompanied by Cu sulfide precipitation. In this study, we have combined cathodoluminescence (CL) petrography

Mineral exploration since 2005 in a previously underexplored region of southwestern Mongolia resulted in the definition of the Zuun Mod porphyry Mo-Cu deposit, followed by discovery of the Altan Nar and Bayan Khundii epithermal gold deposits along with several prospects and advanced exploration projects. These discoveries form the core of the emerging Khundii (“Valley”) metallogenic province, ~50 ×

The Rouyn-Noranda mining district of Quebec contains 20 Cu-Zn (±Au ±Ag) volcanogenic massive sulfide (VMS) deposits, including the giant and gold-rich Quemont and Horne deposits. Mineralized epigenetic veins are also present, but their origin and relative timing remain enigmatic. The nature and extent of their alteration signatures and the effect of their superposition on district-scale alteration

High-grade Cu mineralization was recently discovered in the Mbesa prospect in southern Tanzania, but its origin is poorly constrained. Herein, we present new major element, trace element, rare earth element (REE), and platinum group element (PGE) geochemistry and petrographic data to constrain the origin of the mineralization. The sulfide mineralization is dominated by chalcopyrite and bornite and

To meet surging requirements of copper for the green energy revolution, minable resources subequal to all copper production in history must be found in the next two decades. We show that trace elements in zircon and whole-rock samples that are diagnostic of unusually high-pressure magmatic differentiation and high hydration state and oxidation state of their parent silicate melt are effective for discriminating

The Río Blanco-Los Bronces deposit is the largest Cu-Mo porphyry deposit in the world in terms of contained Cu metal. It is the product of protracted superposed magmatic and hydrothermal activity associated with multiple intrusive and brecciation events, with simultaneous regional uplift, erosion and unroofing, and decompression. Magmatism resulted in three major mineralization-alteration stages. The

This study unravels the spectral footprint of the Paraná deposit, northeastern Brazil, and provides strategies for emerald exploration in mafic- and/or ultramafic-hosted deposits using point spectral data and hyperspectral imaging. Potential host rocks (phlogopite and actinolite-phlogopite schists) were discriminated from other associated lithotypes after petrography and whole-rock geochemistry, using

The San Albino deposit is an orogenic gold occurrence hosted by a low-angle thrust that is the site of a new open-pit mine in northern Nicaragua. The deposit is hosted in greenschist facies rocks of the Jurassic metasedimentary Neuvo Segovia Formation. The schist was uplifted and exposed during arc accretion and Cretaceous thin-skin deformation, forming the NE-striking Colon fold-and-thrust belt. Deformation

We present a petrographic and geochemical study of tourmaline from the Triassic Chacaltaya Sn-polymetallic district in the Cordillera Real of Bolivia. Tourmaline is associated with greisens, breccias, and veins, which occur around the Triassic Chacaltaya peraluminous granitic stock hosted by Silurian metasedimentary rocks. Three main petrographic types of hydrothermal tourmaline have been identified:

Distal alteration related to porphyry Cu mineralization is typically characterized by an abundance of green minerals, such as epidote, tremolite, and chlorite, within the propylitic and sodic-calcic alteration zones and extends far outside (>1 km) the mineralized zone(s). Glacial erosion and dispersal derived from rocks affected by propylitic and sodic-calcic alteration have resulted in the development

The Chagai porphyry Cu belt in Pakistan is an important metallogenic terrain extending approximately 400 km in an east-west direction. Most of the known porphyry Cu deposits, such as the world-class Reko Diq deposit and Saindak deposit, are located in the western Chagai belt. In this study, the ZY1-02D hyperspectral data acquired by a recently launched spaceborne imaging spectrometer with 166 bands

A 90° change in stress orientation has been previously proposed as the trigger for the final emplacement of the world-class Norilsk-Talnakh magmatic sulfide mineralization via the migration of accumulated sulfide melts from elsewhere within the plumbing system of the Siberian Traps large igneous province (LIP). We propose that this stress change does not require and was not triggered by a distal change

The giant Bayan Obo deposit in China represents the largest rare earth element (REE) resource in the world, but the mechanisms for its highly anomalous REE enrichment have long been controversial. The central debate concerns the nature and origin of the ore-hosting dolomite. In this study, a texturally constrained microanalytical study of carbonate minerals from the Bayan Obo ore-hosting dolomite is

Porphyry deposits in magmatic arcs form coincident with changes to steady-state oceanic subduction conditions, such as changes in plate convergence rate and vector or angle of subduction. However, it remains unclear whether such processes also operated during formation of postsubduction porphyry deposits. The Yulong magmatic belt in the eastern Tibetan Plateau consists of middle to late Eocene igneous

Greenstone belts are dominated by mafic volcanic rocks with geochemical characteristics that indicate a range of possible geodynamic influences. Many analogies with modern tectonic settings have been suggested. Increasing exploration of the modern oceans and comprehensive sampling of volcanic rocks from the sea floor are now providing unique opportunities to characterize different melt sources and

The Snow Lake camp is located in the ca. 1.89 Ga Flin Flon-Glennie Complex in the Paleoproterozoic Trans-Hudson orogen, Manitoba, Canada. The Flin Flon-Glennie Complex is bordered by the ca. 1.855 to 1.84 Ga metasedimentary Kisseynew domain to the north and by the Archean Superior craton to the east and is underlain by the Archean Sask microcraton. It hosts several orogenic gold deposits, including

Jiama is a giant skarn-porphyry deposit in southern Tibet, southwestern China. It is the largest Cu (~7.4 Mt), second largest Au (~208 t), and fourth largest Mo (~0.62 Mt) skarn deposit in China. In addition, Jiama also contains considerable amounts of Zn, Pb, and Ag. The mineralization is related to a Miocene (~15 Ma) monzogranite porphyry that intruded the Upper Jurassic Duodigou Formation limestone

Sediment-hosted gold deposits represent a significant portion of the world’s gold resources. They are characterized by the ubiquitous presence of organic carbon (Corg; or its metamorphosed product, graphite) and the systematic occurrence of invisible gold-bearing arsenian pyrite. Yet the role played by these features on ore formation and the distribution of gold remains a long-standing debate. Here

Porphyry copper deposits are associated with large alteration footprints, and alteration mapping plays a key role in the exploration of these deposits. Imaging spectroscopy is commonly deployed for exploration targeting, yet it has rarely been used to map deposit-scale alteration patterns before initiating drilling. To close this gap, the Shadan porphyry Cu-Au deposit was thoroughly studied using the

The Jiangnan orogen, one of the largest gold-producing areas in China, has experienced multiple orogenic events with complex structural overprinting that is marked by multiple stages of magmatism, deformation, metamorphism, and orogenic gold mineralization. Different orogenic events have been recognized in the Neoproterozoic, mid-Paleozoic, Triassic, and Early Cretaceous, reflecting collisions and

Mafic volcanic rocks of the Kangilleq Formation of the Paleoproterozoic Karrat Group host volcanogenic massive sulfide (VMS) mineralization in the area of central Kangiusap Kuua, central West Greenland. The mafic volcanic rocks display evidence of subaqueous, effusive eruption and redeposition by mass debris flows generated along fault scarps on the sea floor. A zone of semiconformable quartz alteration

The Paleoproterozoic Flambeau Cu-Zn-Au deposit in northwestern Wisconsin is the only volcanogenic massive sulfide (VMS) deposit to reach production in the Pembine-Wausau terrane of the Penokean orogen, despite the discovery of more than 150 million tonnes of mineralization within 14 deposits since the 1970s. Renewed exploration interest in the region and need for critical minerals has highlighted the

Economic Geology is an independent journal published by the Society of Economic Geologists, Inc. Papers submitted to the journal will be evaluated on the basis of appropriateness for the journal, suitability of topic, and quality and significance of the research. Do not send manuscripts that have already been published or accepted for publication elsewhere, that reiterate previously published material

Escape a los Andes: La historia de Mauricio Hochschild, “el Schindler de Bolivia” (Escape to the Andes: The story of Mauricio Hochschild, “the Bolivian Schindler”). Raúl Peñaranda and Robert Brockmann. 2023. AGUILAR. 511 Pp. Paperback ISBN 978-987-735-311-2. Price US$39.00; eBook https://a.co/d/dGxPPg0. Price US$11.99.Escape a los Andes fills a gap in the literature of Bolivian mining history for a

Jiama is the largest porphyry-skarn ore system in the Gangdese metallogenic belt, Tibet. It is composed of porphyry Cu-Mo, Cu-polymetallic skarn, Cu-Pb-Zn manto, and distal vein Au orebodies with associated Ag, W, and Bi. However, the precise timing of the magmatism and hydrothermal events at Jiama remains obscure. Here, using high-precision chemical abrasion-isotope dilution-thermal ionization mass

In the paper, “Rare Time Series of Hydrothermal Fluids for a Submarine Volcano: 14 Years of Vent Fluid Compositions for Brothers Volcano, Kermadec Arc, New Zealand,” by V. K. Stucker, C.E.J. de Ronde, K.J. Lawrence, and A.M. Phillips (vol. 118, issue 7, p. 1563–1576), Table 1 was published with incorrect units. The error has been corrected in the online version of the paper, and the corrected table

Magmatic-related epithermal silver-rich polymetallic deposits are among the most important sources of Ag in the world, and they are found associated with magmatic systems with striking differences. Most of the time, they are associated either with I-type oxidized (magnetite-series granite) intermediate to evolved intrusions or with S-type/A-type reduced (ilmenite-series granite) highly evolved intrusions

Regolith-hosted rare earth element (REE) deposits have been the focus of recent studies. Most studies concern deposits formed over granites and felsic volcanic rocks, but little is known about those deposits developed over silica-undersaturated alkaline igneous rocks. The recently discovered Puxiong REE deposit in Southwest China formed through the weathering of nepheline syenite that has REE concentrations

Addition of crustal sulfur to the Jinchuan magma or oxidation of the magma associated with carbonate assimilation has been considered to be the main cause of sulfide saturation in the magma by two opposing groups of researchers. To address this controversy, we have carried out an integrated mineralogical and C-S-Sr-Nd isotope study of the Jinchuan magmatic Ni-Cu-platinum group element (PGE) sulfide

Chalcopyrite from 51 volcanogenic massive sulfide (VMS) and sea-floor massive sulfide (SMS) deposits from six lithostratigraphic settings was analyzed for trace elements by laser ablation-inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) to evaluate its potential as an indicator mineral for exploration. Partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) results reveal that chalcopyrite from

Carbonaceous materials are a key factor controlling mineralization processes in many world-class gold deposits. Haoyaoerhudong is the largest carbonaceous metasediment-hosted gold deposit on the north margin of the North China craton. Gold-bearing orebodies are hosted in carbonaceous slates and schists belonging to Mesoproterozoic rift-related successions. Typical hydrothermal minerals are pyrrhotite

Although scandium is commonly concentrated to economic levels by magmatic processes, hydrothermal fluids also play an important role in its concentration. Indeed, the most important source of scandium is currently the Bayan Obo deposit in China, where scandium is extracted from hydrothermally produced aegirine. To know how and why scandium is concentrated by hydrothermal fluids, it is necessary to

Polymetallic veins and breccias and carbonate-replacement ore deposits in the Cyclades continental back arc, Greece, formed from a range of fluid and metal sources strongly influenced by the dynamics of the late Mesozoic-Cenozoic Hellenic subduction system. These complexities are recorded in the isotopic signatures of hydrothermal barite. We investigated 17 mineral occurrences on four Cycladic islands

Acquiring information about the spatial distribution of ore grade in the subsurface is essential for exploring and discovering mineral resources. This information is derived commonly from the geochemical analysis carried out on drill core samples, which allows the quantification of the concentration of ore elements. However, these surveys are generally time-consuming and expensive, usually leading

The Nautanen North deposit in the Gällivare-Malmberget area of Norrbotten, Sweden, currently contains a resource of 21 million tonnes (Mt) at 1.46% Cu, 0.78 g/t Au, 6 g/t Ag, and 99 g/t Mo and remains open at depth and along strike. This study, based on extensive examination of drill core, geochemical data, and petrographic analyses, represents the first comprehensive description of the structural

The genetic relationship between organic-rich source rocks and Hg deposits remains the subject of debate. This paper evaluates the role of organic-rich source rocks in cinnabar ore formation in the Terlingua mining district, Texas, which was deposited at relatively shallow depths in Cretaceous sedimentary rocks spatially related to intrusive alkali igneous rocks.The mineralization formed at ~45 bar

Komatiites require external sulfur from country rocks to generate immiscible sulfide liquid, which concentrates metals to form economic nickel sulfide deposits. Although signatures related to mass-independent fractionation of S isotopes (MIF-S, denoted as Δ33S) may identify external S sources, their values may not be directly indicative of the S reservoirs that were tapped during the ore-forming process

The thick laterite developed over platinum group element (PGE)-bearing ultramafic rocks of the Owendale Alaskan-Uralian Complex in New South Wales, Australia, provides an ideal environment in which to address the question of whether Pt-Fe nuggets are formed during lateritization. This is an important issue to settle because Pt-Fe nuggets in alluvial placers and eluvial deposits associated with the

The hydrothermally active Brothers volcano on the Kermadec arc, New Zealand, hosts two geochemically distinct hydrothermal systems within a single caldera. At the NW Caldera, metal-sulfide–rich black smoker spires form on the caldera wall. In contrast, Fe-rich crusts and native sulfur-rich chimneys occur at the resurgent central Upper Cone. Previous studies have revealed that the contrasting styles

International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP) Expedition 376 cored the submarine Brothers volcano of the Kermadec arc to provide insights into the third dimension and the evolution of the volcano and its associated ore-forming systems. We present new petrological and geochemical data on dacitic rocks drilled from Brothers as well as mafic rocks collected at two adjacent ridges. These data include major

The 3-D subseafloor architecture of submarine hydrothermal systems is largely unknown, particularly at arc volcanoes. The alteration of volcanic rocks in these systems produces dramatic changes in their magnetic properties. Here, we present the first comprehensive study of paleomagnetic measurements from oriented samples of hydrothermally altered dacites from Brothers volcano (Kermadec arc), drilled

Brothers volcano is a submarine dacitic caldera located on the southern Kermadec arc. It is host to the NW Caldera vent field (Site U1530 and Hole U1530A), which locally discharges more focused, metal-rich fluids, and the Upper Cone hydrothermal vent field (Site U1528 and Hole U1528D), which discharges predominantly diffuse, acidic fluids (pH 1.9). These two active vent sites were drilled in 2018 by

Hydrothermal vent fluids from Brothers submarine arc volcano were previously collected in 2004, 2005, and 2017. We present new data from 2018 along with a unique time series of a submarine volcano hosting two distinct types of hydrothermal venting to better understand subsurface processes and how they evolve over time. Samples were collected from known venting locations along the NW Caldera, the Upper

Better understanding metallogenesis in oceanic crust depends on costly sea-floor drilling projects in areas where metal-bearing deposits, such as sea-floor massive sulfide deposits, are currently forming. In 2018, International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP) Expedition 376 recovered drill cores from an active hydrothermal field at Brothers volcano, in the Kermadec arc. These provide insight into the

Brothers volcano is arguably the most well-studied submarine arc volcano on Earth. Between 1996, when massive sulfides were first recovered by dredging, and 2018, when International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP) Expedition 376 recovered cores from as deep as 453 m below the sea floor at two chemically distinct hydrothermal upflow zones, over 60 conductivity-temperature-depth (CTD) vertical casts and

Downhole data and cores collected during International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP) Expedition 376 at Brothers volcano, Kermadec arc, provide unprecedented, in situ views of volcanic facies and fluid pathways in an actively forming volcanogenic massive sulfide (VMS) ore deposit. Brothers volcano is a submarine caldera with extensive sea-floor hydrothermal alteration. Downhole data were collected

The Southern Permian basin in central Europe contains a number of important high-grade sediment-hosted Cu deposits. Laterally extensive stratabound Cu and Zn-Pb sulfide mineralized rocks are located at a major stratigraphic redox boundary, where coarse-grained continental sandstones of the uppermost Rotliegend Group are overlain by carbonaceous mudstones (T1) and limestones (Ca1) of the Zechstein Formation

The Oligocene Latir magmatic center in northern New Mexico is an exceptionally well exposed volcano-plutonic complex that hosts a variety of magmatic-hydrothermal deposits, ranging from relatively deep, F-rich porphyry Mo mineralization to shallower epithermal deposits. We present new whole-rock chemical and isotopic data for plutonic rocks from the Latir magmatic center, including extensive sampling

White Pine, located in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, is an archetypal sediment-hosted stratiform copper deposit. The Midcontinent rift system is one of only seven basins globally that host a giant sediment-hosted stratiform copper deposit. Despite many similarities with other deposits of this type, White Pine displays some important differences, including the late Mesoproterozoic age, a thick basalt

The San Rafael Sn (-Cu) deposit, located in the Eastern Cordillera of southeast Peru, is one of the world’s largest cassiterite-bearing vein systems (>1 Mt Sn produced since 1969). The deposit consists of a quartz-cassiterite-chlorite-sulfide lode system spatially associated with an upper Oligocene (ca. 24 Ma) S-type granitic pluton. Based on a revised paragenetic sequence for the deposit, we interpret

Paleozoic porphyry-style hydrothermal alteration and mineralization has previously been recognized within the Delamerian orogen, South Australia, where porphyry prospects include Anabama Hill, Netley Hill, and Bendigo. However, limited exploration due in part to thick postmineralization cover hinders the understanding of the temporal context, metallogenic setting, and mineral potential of the porphyry

Mehdiabad is the world’s largest Mississippi Valley-type (MVT) Zn-Pb deposit (394 million tonnes [Mt] of metal ore at 4.2% Zn, 1.6% Pb) and contains significant barite resources (>40 Mt). Such large accumulations of barite are not common in carbonate-hosted Zn-Pb deposits. Therefore, the origin of the barite and its association with the Zn-Pb mineralization is of significant interest for further investigation

Uranium-Pb dating of unusual coarse-grained apatite crystals from hydrothermal dolostone breccia in the barite-rich Magcobar zone at the Silvermines deposit, Ireland, indicates an age of 331 ± 5.6 Ma for hydrothermal alteration. This age is in agreement with an Re-Os age on pyrite-sphalerite but differs from previous estimates that were based on palemomagnetism and sphalerite Rb-Sr geochronology at

Filo del Sol is a composite porphyry-epithermal deposit, straddling the frontier between Argentina and Chile at latitude 28°29′ S, that has attracted a great deal of recent attention because of several drill intersections in excess of 1 km long with unusually high Cu, Au, and Ag grades. The deposit is part of the 8.5-km-long, N- to NE-trending Filo del Sol alignment of porphyry and high-sulfidation

The Ruwai skarn deposit is the largest polymetallic skarn deposit in Borneo and is located in the Schwaner Mountains. The skarns and massive orebodies are hosted in marble of the Jurassic Ketapang Complex, which was intruded by Cretaceous Sukadana granitoids. The prograde-stage garnet and retrograde-stage titanite yielded U-Pb ages of 97.0 ± 1.8 to 94.2 ± 10.3 Ma and 96.0 ± 2.9 to 95.0 ± 2.0 Ma, respectively

In the central Andes, giant porphyry copper deposits of similar ages group into discrete geographic clusters that are regularly spaced and aligned within orogen-parallel belts. This clustering highlights how exceptional geologic processes affected localized regions of the lithosphere during mineralization and that the spatial and temporal distribution of giant porphyry deposits is nonrandom. Development

In the paper, “Exploration Targeting in Porphyry Cu Systems Using Propylitic Mineral Chemistry: A Case Study of the El Teniente Deposit, Chile,” by Jamie J. Wilkinson, Michael J. Baker, David R. Cooke, and Clara C. Wilkinson (vol. 115, issue 4, p. 771–791), the online Supplement, Appendix Table A1, contained several rows of incorrect K2O values. The table has been replaced.

The Winu-Ngapakarra Cu-Au deposit (Winu) was discovered in late 2017. Winu is hosted in metamorphosed massive sandstones, siltstones, and lesser mafic rocks that are possible distal and deep-water correlatives of the Malu Formation of the Yeneena basin, also host to the large Telfer Au-Cu deposit. Structure at Winu is dominated by an inclined dome formed through interference between NNW- and WNW-trending

Despite the substantial amount of research on the Cretaceous Samail ophiolite in Oman, the factors controlling the size and metal endowment of the mafic-hosted, Cu-Au(-Zn-Ag) volcanogenic massive sulfide (VMS) deposits remain elusive. This work shows that the volcanostratigraphic position, hydrothermal venting style, and oxidation processes are critical factors controlling the distinct features of