Desarrollo de la Antártica

EL DESARROLLO DE LA ANTARTICA Hill. A number of geologists of different nations are steadily working through úhe most accesible mountains and, although traces of all minerals have been found, few mineral deposits of any size have been discovered. N othing of any commercial significance has yet been found. We shouId remember, though, that geoIogical investigations so far have been concerned mainly with reconnaissance and broad geologicaI mapping. Very little systematic prospecting has been done. Let us divide miner.aI discoveries into two categories: tibe first we shall call mineral deposíts, which we define as those wnose extent has been roughly determined and whioh are of a size richness which wouId probably warrant economic investigation if they occurred else· where. The second we shall caH mineral occurrences and define this as meaning minerals which Ihave been observed in specific pIaces but which would not warrant further investigation if they occurred elsewhere and which, Ilherefore, are currently only of scientific interest. i) Mineral deposits a. Iron ore deposits in banded rormations have been found at Mt. Ruker, Prince Charles Mountains, MacRobertson Land. They are about 100 metres thick, nave a limited surface exposure, and are of grade about 35% iron. Magnetic anomalies possibly associated with the iron formations have been traced for 120 km by Soviet scientists. b. Coal seams near Beaver Lake in the Prince Ohades Mountains, 2.5m and 3.5m thick, are of unknown but proba1y limited extent. The coal appears lO be good quality steaming coal. c. Coal Occurs in the Transantarctic Mountains to the west of the Ross Sea and in the HorIick, Pensacola and Theron Mountaim. The coal is mostly of poor to medíum quality; some anthracite coal has been reported. Seams of workable thidkness are known but, in the Transantarctic 'Mountains particularIy, they have been degraded by ígneous intrusions. ii) Mineral occurrences Many minor occurrences of metallic and non-metallic minerals have been reported throughout Antarctica, but their significance has in most cases been exaggerated. Some occurrences, such as the copper