SIGNIFICANT DISCOVERIES by W. Dan Hausel

• 1978-79 Mapped the Wyoming portion of the Colorado-Wyoming State Line district & discovered several diamondiferous kimberlite intrusives (Hausel and others, 1979, 1981).
• 1980 Completed mapping & geophysical studies of the Sheep Rock district in the Laramie Range, Wyoming. Discovered the Radichal kimberlite intrusive and numerous 'kimberlitic' heavy mineral anomalies (Hausel and others, 1981).
• 1981 Discovered significant gold mineralization in the Seminoe Mountains greenstone belt, Wyoming. This led to a major gold-rush. Visible gold was recovered in dozens of quartz-vein samples. Several anomalies were in propylitically altered greenstones and banded iron formation. Assays ran from a trace to 2.87 opt Au (Hausel, 1993, 1994).
• 1982 Discovered significant gold mineralization in the Rattlesnake Hills greenstone belt, Granite Mountains, Wyoming. Gold was found in Archean pyritiferous veins, exhalites, stockworks, banded iron formation and in Tertiary breccias associated with alkalic plugs (Hausel, 1996).
• 1983-87 Projects which led to the identification of more than 300 kimberlitic indicator mineral anomalies in southeastern Wyoming. Several of the anomalies were later tested and at nearly every site that was followed up on, diamond-stability kimberlitic indicator minerals were found (Hausel and others, 1988; Hausel and others, 2003).
• 1985-89 Mapped eight 7.5-minute quadrangles of the South Pass greenstone belt & identified dozens of significant gold anomalies and recognized the importance of saddle-reef type gold deposits in an extensive shear zone complex (Hausel, 1991).
• 1988 Identified a potentially major gold deposit at the historical Carissa gold mine that is potentially open-pittable over a width of 1000 feet.
• 1988-89 Mapped significant alteration zones and gold mineralization associated with the Donlin Creek – Snow Gulch disseminated gold deposit, Alaska. In 2003, this was described by the Northern Miner as the largest undeveloped gold deposit in North America.
• 1990-91 Mapped the Seminoe Mountains greenstone belt & discovered gold, zinc, lead & 'kimberlitic' indicator mineral anomalies.
• 1992-93 Mapped of the Rattlesnake Hills greenstone belt & associated epithermal & exhalitive gold mineralization.
• 1993-94 Mapped the Cooper Hill mining district, Wyoming (1:12,000 scale).
• 1995 Discovered significant Ni and Pd anomaly associated with Cu-Co-Au-Pt-Pd mineralization in the Puzzler Hill layered complex, Wyoming (Hausel, 1997).
• 1995 Discovered a gem-quality sapphire, ruby, kyanite and iolite deposit at Palmer, Canyon, Wyoming. Recovered the largest gem iolite in the world at that time (1,750 carats).
• 1997 Discovered gem-quality peridot in the Leucite Hills, Wyoming.
• 1997-99 Discovered several kimberlites in the Iron Mountain district, Wyoming, and produced a 1:24,000 scale map of the district.
• 2003 Recognized one of the largest opal deposits in North America in central Wyoming.
• 2004 Identified one of the richest iolite-kyanite gemstone deposits in the world at Grizzly Creek, Wyoming. Recovered the largest iolite gem in the world at 24,150 carats.
• 2005 Discovered a potentially large, world-class colored gemstone deposit in Wyoming - estimated to have >2.4 trillion carats of iolite.
• 2005 Discovered several kimberlite-like anomalies in Wyoming Craton.
• 2006-2007 Found several cryptovolcanic fields with characteristics consistant with kimberlite (i.e., structurally-controlled depressions with vegetation anomalies, montmorillonite-carbonate blue ground, an some kimberlitic indicator minerals). DiamonEx Ltd acquired 6 of these fields based on my recommendations and discoveries.
• 2007 Recommended and successfully acquired the Sloan Ranch kimberlites for DiamonEx Ltd. 
• 2006-2008 Discovered more than 150 cryptovolcanic structures with characteristics similar to kimberlite including 8 new fields of probable kimberlite. One of these is comparable to the size of the Colorado-Wyoming kimberlite district and includes targets larger than any kimberlite in the State Line District (http://www.abnnewswire.net/press/en/44155/DIAMONEX-LIMITED.html)

 

 

 

 

Group of gemstones include a faceted chromian diopside (Cape Emerald) surrounded

by pyrope (Cape Ruby) and spessartine garnet. (Right) Two flawless faceted pyropes from

same locality (McCandless and others, 1995; Hausel, 2006; Hausel and Sutherland, 2006).

 

      

Faceted peridot from a parcel of >13,000 carats recovered from two anthills in the Leucite Hills lamproite field.

(Right) Faceted and rough peridot from gem discovery. Some pieces collected by the ants were as long as 18 mm

and large peridot megacrysts (up to 0.5 in across) were found in place at Black Rock lamproite. Olivine had

been known in this area for more than 100 years, but no one ever looked at the quality of the material. Nearly all

material the I collected was gem-quality. After 2 weeks in the sample bags, the ants were still upset - guess they

didn't want to surrender their gems (Hausel and others, 1995; Hausel, 1998).

 

   

Iolite, ruby & kyanite  faceted from rough from Palmer Canyon. This deposit was discovered in 1995. Two similar discoveries

were made at Grizzly Creek in 2005 and further south near the Elmers Rock Greestone belt. I was able to recover the largest

iolite in the world at 1,750 carats. This was later dwarfed by a much larger stone of >24,150 carats. Even so, I left giant gemstones

in place: some possibly weigh > 1 tonne (>4.5 million carats) (Hausel, 1998; 2002; 2003; 2004).

 

The geology of this region is favorable for additional discoveries. Prior to be being harassed by the State Geologist at the Wyoming

Geological Survey in 2006, I had made an additional discovery of what could potentially be the largest colored gemstone deposit on

earth. Based on my research and much earlier work, there is verey good evidence that supports potential for >2.4 trillion carats of iolite.

I was able to verify the presence of gem-quality iolite prior to the State Geologist taking away my field vehicle. Today, most of this deposit

remains unexplored. I later found out that there is a possibility that JohnSinkankas knew about this latter deposit (see his 1959 edition

of Gemstones in North America).

 

 

   

 Grizzly Creek iolite discovery.  I recovered the largest iolite gemstone on earth at this deposit (>24,150 carats - top center photo) that now is on display at the Wyoming Geological Survey (Hausel, 2005). Even so, because of size, I had to leave giant gemstones in the outcrop (including specimens estimated to weigh 1 to 5 tons). Outcrops of iolite at Grizzly Creek have distinct alteration assemblages of milky quartz with limonite. Hammering the limonite stained rock results in display of high-quality gemstone iolite. The hammer (above left) leans against an outcrop of massive iolite. The photo (right) shows the exposed iolite from hammering.

 

 

Several dozen kimberlites and related diamond deposits are now known in North America (Hausel, 1998; Erlich and Hausel, 2002; Hausel, 2008).

Field mapping in Wyoming led to several important discoveries in the State Line (Hausel and others, 1979, 1981) and Iron Mountain diamond districts (Hausel and others, 2003; Coopersmith and others, 2003) the Leucite Hills lamproite field (Hausel, 2006) and the Cedar Mountain diamondiferous lamprophyre field (Hausel and others, 1999). The State Line District yielded >120,000 diamonds during testing with diamonds weighing up to 28.3 carats and evidence for stones >90 carats in weight. Unfortunately, three test mills were constructed in the district - all three were incredibly inefficient and lost as many (if not more) stones. For instance, the Kelsey Lake mill was designed to actually reject everything >40 carats. The first follow-up test on the mine tailings (waste) recovered a >6 carat diamond. No one knows how many diamonds were lost at all three mills.

 

 

   

Recognition of one of the largest (if not the largest) opal deposits in North America. Common, precious and fire opal were found on parts of

16 sections of land (16 square miles) in 2003. Giant specimens of opal (some weighing >78,000 carats) were also found in this field overlooked

by numerous petroleum and uranium geologists (Hausel, 2003).

 

 

  

Hundred of gold discoveries were made in Wyoming including a whole new gold district (Rattlesnake Hills) in 1982. Other discoveries of

precious metals included the Puzzler Hill palladium-nickel-gold-platinum deposit near Encampment Wyoming (Hausel, 1989; 1996; 1997; 2007; 2008).

 

  

 

 

RMAG gemstonespdf.pdf

 Create your own educational wiki!Support Community Add to Del.ici.ous Add to Digg Add to Reddit Add to fUrl Add to SpurlPublic, not yet premium Privacy Policy RSS