History & Geology
The Ups and Downs of Geologic Faults
May 2011 by Chris Ralph
Faults are fractures, breaks and broken zones in the Earth’s crust where one side of the break has moved relative to the other, and they come in many different varieties.
The Basics of Geophysical Exploration
In developing a mineral property or mining claims, one of the first goals is to identify and quantify valuable deposits. The classic method of doing this is by drilling holes into the ground to sample what is below the surface. The problem is that one or two holes usually are not going to tell you a whole lot...
One of the Richest Beaches Ever Mined
Everyone has heard of the golden beach at Nome, but Nome did not have the richest beach.
Copper Deposits of Alaska
Only the famous Kennecott copper mine was able to continue operating through the Depression owing to the exceptional richness of its ore.
Detector Brings New Life to An Old Lode Mine
…it was immediately evident the previous owner had not been using a detector. During just a few months of working the dumps part-time, he recovered gold in quartz specimens valued in excess of $40,000.
Calcite and Limestone
The other distinguishing feature of calcite has to do with its chemistry. Geologists sometimes take a small bottle of dilute hydrochloric acid out into the field with them because calcite reacts with acids to make a bubbly foam.
Natural Gold Alloys
Natural gold is never 100% pure; all natural nuggets contain at least some impurities. We're going to take a look at just what some of those impurities might be.
All the Gold Ever Mined...
If you have been prospecting for any length of time, then you have probably heard something like, “All the gold ever mined would equal a cube 60 feet on each side.”
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The Bawl Mill
• Why Haven't They Mined This Claim?
• Ask The Experts—Where can I find information on the Abby mine?
• Ask The Experts—Is it possible for a mountain range to have good lode gold deposits and yet the area streams not carrying like deposits of gold?
• Ask The Experts—How do you amend a placer claim?
• Ask The Experts—What happened to the BLM web site geocommunicator.gov?
• Fountain of Youth Gold
• Legislative and Regulatory Update
• Suction Dredging Update for California & Idaho
• The Disappearance of State Mining Departments
• The Golden Streams of Butte County, California
• Melman on Gold & Silver
• Mining Stock Quotes & Mineral and Metal Prices
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One Question, Forever Unanswered—Did He Really Find the Gold?
