Major-oxide and trace-element geochemical data from rocks collected in 2015 in the Wrangellia mineral assessment area, Alaska

Late Triassic mafic to ultramafic intrusions in the Wrangellia terrane are host to magmatic sulfide nickel-copper-cobalt and platinum-group element (PGE) mineralization. DGGS's mineral-resources group carried out a geologic mapping project in the eastern Denali Highway region between Watana Creek and Paxson from July 29 through August 7, 2015. This project is part of a multi-year effort focusing on improving the publicly available geological and geochemical data and assessing the mineral potential of the less-explored extension of the western Wrangellia terrane; other data resulting from this project include geophysical surveys and several geochemical datasets. This program of geologic mapping and rock sampling was conducted as part of the State of Alaska's Strategic and Critical Minerals Assessment project, an initiative designed to evaluate Alaska's potential for rare-earth elements, PGEs, and other similarly supply-challenged resources. Highlights of this project include identification, sampling, and characterization of a broad section of Wrangellia stratigraphy, including Late Triassic ultramafic and mafic intrusions thought to be a part of the Ni-Cu-Co-PGE- and Cu-Ag-mineralized Wrangellia large igneous province. This dataset includes four samples with high copper values (1.6 to 4.62 percent) and elevated silver values (10.15 to 18.25 ppm) and two samples have elevated copper (1,400 and 4,610 ppm); those samples are scattered throughout the area. Two samples from the Caribou Dome area show elevated platinum (0.113 and 0.101 ppm) and palladium (0.141 and 0.193 ppm). The analytical data tables associated with this report are being released in digital format as comma-delimited text (CSV) files.