Volcanogenic massive sulfide deposit

Ore deposit

Hot springs on the sea floor around undersea volcanoes, the black smokers, pour out metal-laden water that drops mounds of sulfide: more than nine tenths pyrite, with copper, zinc and lead sulfides. They still form today on mid-ocean ridges; the ancient ones lie in old volcanic rock on land.

Rocks

Basalt, Rhyolite, Tuff

Minerals

Pyrite, Chalcopyrite, Sphalerite, Galena, Pyrrhotite, Magnetite, Hematite, Barite, Quartz

Metals

Bismuth, Copper, Iron, Lead, Silver, Zinc

Worked

Since the industrial age

Examples

Noranda, Flin Flon and Kidd Creek, Canada; Bathurst Mining Camp, New Brunswick

Sources

• Volcanogenic massive sulfide ore deposit. Wikipedia.

Browse the Crystal Encyclopedia — MGS Toolbox