Mineral Resources Research

Scanning electron microscope image of “wooly" erionite from Durkee, OR. Collected by Richard Sheppard, USGS.

Our scientists conduct research to provide information about the genesis, characteristics, and deposit models for major mineral deposit types, to understand the geologic processes that concentrate known mineral resources at specific localities in the Earth's crust. This full spectrum of mineral resource science allows for a comprehensive understanding of the complete life cycle of mineral resources and materials.

Current Studies

• Great Basin Metallogeny and Regional Structure; New Interpretations of Magnetic and Gravity Data for Understanding Concealed Mineral Resources
• Integrated Hyperspectral, Geophysical and Geochemical Studies of Yellowstone National Park Hydrothermal Systems
• Magmas to Metals: Melt Inclusion Insights into the Formation of Critical Element-Bearing Ore Deposits
• Magmatic-Tectonic History and Component Sources of Major Precious Metal Deposits in the Tonopah, Goldfield, and Comstock Lode Districts, NV
• Sources, Forms and Extractability of Metals in Non-Ore Deposit Sources

Completed Studies

• Basement Tectonic Framework of the U.S.: Role of Cratonization of Juvenile Crust and Structural Modification in Forming Metallogenic Provinces
• Magmatic-Tectonic History and Component Sources of Major Precious Metal Deposits in the Southern Walker Lane
• Mapping Mineral Resources Using HyTES and WorldView 3 Data
• Nonmetallic Industrial Mineral Resources of the U.S.
• Paired δ⁸⁸Sr - ^87/86Sr Systematics — A New Frontier in Ore Genesis and Assessment: Evaluation and Application in the U.S. Midcontinent
• Petrogenesis and REE Metallogenesis of 1.4 Ga Magmatism in the Conterminous U.S.