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U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY MARINE-MINERALS RESEARCH.

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Abstract

Summary form only given. The US Exclusive Economic Zone is an area approximately one and two-thirds the size of the land area of the United States. In this frontier area, US Geological Survey (USGS) research in marine minerals is aimed at three objectives: (1) defining geologic settings of potential mineral resources; (2) understanding the processes by which seafloor nonliving resources form; and (3) estimating the resource potential. Potential resources of primary interest are cobalt-rich manganese seafloor crusts, polymetallic sulfides in hydrothermal vent areas on the seafloor, and heavy-mineral placer deposits. Research activities include studies of manganese-crust samples from oceanographic-institution archives and a USGS research cruise through the central and southern Pacific. Preliminary results confirm that cobalt is concentrated by as much as 2. 5% in the manganese crusts at water depths of 1000-2600 m; further research on the precipitation processes and patterns of crust formation will be needed to understand the origin, occurrence patterns, and resource potential of these crusts. Research cruises have revealed a zone of polymetallic sulfide vent deposits a few hundred meters long in the Juan de Fuca spreading center.

Suggested Citation

Offield, 1984, U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY MARINE-MINERALS RESEARCH., in Oceans Conference Record (IEEE), Washington, DC, USA.

Publication type Conference Paper
Publication Subtype Conference Paper
Title U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY MARINE-MINERALS RESEARCH.
Year Published 1984
Language English
Publisher IEEE
Publisher location New York, NY, USA
Larger Work Title Oceans Conference Record (IEEE)
First page 481
Conference Title Oceans '84 Conference & Exposition, Conference Record: Industry, Government, Education, Designs for the Future.
Conference Location Washington, DC, USA
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