Paragenesis of gold mineralization at the Kiyuk Lake Project, Kivalliq Region, Nunavut, Canada

ABSTRACT Exploration for gold in Nunavut has been primarily focused on Archean greenstone belts in the north and coastal regions of the territory, resulting in large areas of underexplored terrain in the south. The Kiyuk Lake property is located in the underexplored southwest corner of the Kivalliq Region of Nunavut within the Hearne domain of the ∼1.9 Ga western Churchill Province. The property is hosted by Proterozoic calc-silicate and clastic sedimentary units of the Hurwitz Group (<2.4–1.9 Ga) and the unconformably overlying Kiyuk Group (1.9–1.83 Ga). Gold mineralization in Proterozoic sedimentary rocks is rare in the Canadian Shield, so the Rusty Zone at Kiyuk Lake presents a unique opportunity to study the enigmatic gold mineralization hosted in such sedimentary rocks. Mineralization at the Rusty Zone is hosted by an immature lithic wacke cut by thin intermediate dikes that are associated with hydrothermal breccias composed of Fe-carbonate, calcite, calcic-amphibole, Fe-sulfide, Fe-oxide minerals, and gold. Textural and timing relationships suggest that the gold mineralization is post-sedimentary and syn- to post-intrusion of intermediate dikes. Stable isotope thermometry suggests that mineralization took place between 450 and 600 °C, and geochronological studies indicate that the intrusion and mineralization occurred before or about 1.83 Ga. Using basement breaching thrusts faults as conduits to the surface, over-pressurization along a later normal fault is thought to be the primary cause for the localized breccia pipe that controls gold mineralization. The hydrothermal fluids are postulated to be volatile-rich aqueous solutions exsolved from a source of cooling magmas at depth. Although sub-economic at present, the occurrence of high-grade gold in a Paleoproterozoic basin such as Kiyuk Lake could signal a new opportunity for exploration for gold in the Canadian Shield.

ISOTROPY SUBGROUP OF HURWITZ ACTION OF THE 3-BRAID GROUP ON THE BRAID SYSTEMS

The Hurwitz action of the n-braid group Bn on the n-fold direct product Bmn of the m-braid group Bm is studied. We show that the isotropy subgroup of the Hurwitz group action of B3 at the triple of the standard generators of B4 has index 16, by explicitly describing a complete system of coset representatives. An application to the braided surfaces in 4-space is also given.

The Spi Lake Formation of the central Hearne domain, western Churchill Province, Canada: an axial intracratonic continental tholeiite trough above the cogenetic Kaminak dyke swarmGeological Survey of Canada Contribution 20070462.

The Spi Group is a package of plagioclase porphyritic, amygdaloidal basalt flows and sandstone (Spi Lake Formation) conformably overlain by coarse conglomerate and sandstone (Old Boot Formation). These unconformably overlie the Kaminak Lake segment of the Central Hearne supracrustal belt, western Churchill Province. The Spi Group developed in a small, isolated basin (8 km2) and is older than the Paleoproterozoic Hurwitz Group. Our data demonstrate that the basalts of the Spi Lake Formation are genetically related to the ca. 2450 Ma Kaminak dyke swarm, a speculation previously promoted by some workers based on field characteristics alone. They are continental tholeiites with large ion lithophile and light rare-earth element enriched multielement profiles with prominent high field-strength element troughs. The 143Nd/144Nd compositions overlap the contemporaneous chondritic bulk-earth data. All of these are features we infer to have resulted from mixing of melts from dominantly depleted mid-ocean ridge basalt (MORB) mantle with low-degree partial melts of metasomatically enriched sub-continental lithospheric mantle. These composite magmas then underwent clinopyroxene + plagioclase ± olivine fractionation with minor assimilation of local tonalitic middle crust. The Spi Lake basin is <1 km wide, trends 020° parallel to Kaminak dykes but is discordant to the more common 045° to 070° trends of fold keels of the Hurwitz Group. The basin is a graben filled first with basalt and then molassoid sediments, representing the expression of crustal extension associated with Kaminak dyke emplacement. This indicates that the present erosional surface in the region is broadly at the same level as at the time of both Hurwitz and Spi Group deposition.

Continental tholeiitic mafic rocks of the Paleoproterozoic Hurwitz Group, Central Hearne sub-domain, Nunavut: insight into the evolution of the Hearne sub-continental lithosphere

The Paleoproterozoic Hurwitz Group of the western Churchill Province is an erosional remnant of an areally extensive, predominantly shallow-water intracratonic basin comprised of four major sequences. Sequence 2, forming the central part of the stratigraphy, contains the Ameto Formation, a sequence of pillowed and massive basaltic rocks and associated gabbro sills termed the Happotiyik Member that are interlayered with subordinate deep-water mudstones, siltstones, and diamictites. Whole-rock geochemical data for the mafic rocks reveals a suite of homogeneous tholeiitic basalts with affinities to both continental and volcanic-arc tholeiites. Compatible trace elements and large-ion lithophile elements exhibit scattered behavior, whereas all high field strength elements show a systematic increase with Zr. The rocks are large-ion lithophile and light rare-earth element enriched, and have parallel primitive mantle normalized extended trace element patterns with prominent negative Nb, Ta, and Ti anomalies. εNd(t=2200 Ma) values for the rocks range from 0.0 to +0.8. The data indicate that the parental magmas were derived from a heterogeneous, predominantly depleted mantle source that included a minor metasomatically enriched component. Contamination by Neoarchean, juvenile silicic upper crust during ascent was minimal. We envisage that the rocks of the Happotiyik Member were generated from sub-continental lithospheric mantle that was stabilized immediately after formation of the ca. 2680 Ma, Neoarchean Central Hearne sub-domain. This enrichment occurred via metasomatic infiltration of subduction-derived fluids and melts into the overlying lithosphere. A wide range of Paleoproterozoic intra-continental mafic rocks in the western Churchill Province exhibit comparable geochemical and isotopic signatures that suggest an origin in the lithospheric mantle. These observations imply that the Hearne sub-continental lithospheric mantle has endured since the Neoarchean and likely persists today.

Paleoproterozoic stromatolites, Hurwitz Group, Quartzite Lake area, Northwest Territories, Canada

Decimetric to metric domal stromatolites with constituent ministromatolites characterize reddish, 13C-enriched dolostones in the Watterson Formation of the Quartzite Lake area west of Hudson Bay. They provide paleontologic support for a correlation with the only other known early Paleoproterozoic stromatolite occurrences in North America: the Kona Formation of Michigan, and the Nash Formation in southern Wyoming. They also are similar to stromatolites in probable coeval Jatulian carbonates in Karelia on the Baltic Shield, and possibly to stromatolites in the Hutuo Group in China.