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Geology of Hermanas Quadrangle, Luna County, New Mexico > Upper Member

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Geology of Hermanas Quadrangle, Luna County, New Mexico > Upper Member GEOLOGIC MAP 63 NEW MEXICO BUREAU OF MI'\JES & MINERAL RESOURCES A DIVJSION OF NEW MEXICO [NSTrTUTE OF MINING & TECH'JOLOGY 103'·'.) (J' 107''5'.:'30 " 31 "' :,•,o ' CORRELATIO N OF UNITS ', , ' ', " I Holocene I E / J Yo1mo1;r . / piedmont-slope '• c1lluvium Ope Opo end Opy undifferentiated ~, ·;- \ Late ··--~-+ Pleistocene E Older ! pied mont-slope alluvium Opu a rid Om i u n difforcn tifltP.d ! Late Pliocene cmd caly to middle Pleistocene Mimbres formation rw C ~ 0 Basnlt plug :a, Fan;;ilomera ce ~b~ [lasaltic-andesite flow.~ !'·, ~ LOW81 "'ang lomerate Ttb <{' . .:;;"7,,/J , ,J'; T,jJi,'. '/ 'fl'/I l,1 I Ttb- Rhyol it 1c-tuff Tbd - Basaltic-a11desite _...--f / brer,cia dikP.s ~,,,. -------- I C ' Tmb - Megabreccia Tfr - Flow-banded ',,_"~po ! 1"11yolile ~,._ ,\ I ' \ 1' t Andes1te porphyry Tf ' Tuff of Johnson Mountain Tah n s ,....<,d10 ' Tsi __..------- . 28 S. 21: S _,,,,,s Tic : .ns • / C) s Tia 0 Tah - Ar1 c! es1te of Her m a1 ;as sidin~ Intermediate­ Tr. - Vnlc,1nic conglomcr::itc composition Tts - Tutfac1oous 8pidaslic rocks, bi-eccia, intrusive fresh-waler limestone, and intermcrlimc-composition flows Tic - Limastone conglonerate Ts i - \/:)lcaniclasti~ s1;1di111er1 lar·y ruGks Tia - lnermediate-com position flows Fl ~ Tuff of Carriza lillo Hi lls Tlcu - UppN member Ttr:I - Lower member ~ Lov1;er andesite \'Ve il \•,.'Vi! 'if Lower rhyo lite tuff -- ('. / ' ~ Rhyolitic tuttaceous breccia and epicl2s1ic rocks /) ,11.5'. A I I~ ..c / '.:: 7 1'G 1i ~ /-Ji ~ I§, II :iX , Arproxim~te m~crn declimilion, 1980 A B Draftin\J d11d layout by K. Doherty and M. Brown Ba ss trom U.S. Geolo,11cal Su, ,ey Edill ,l\J b11 J C. Love G1:mlogy by W. R Seager, ', 983-1904 Thickness {ft) H~locene Low PIJiGtocene Alluvi1.:m Late Pl ,ocene-middle Ple,stoc:e ,e Carrizal i llv Hi l ls Fanglomerate Johnson Min. Cedar Mts_ 8t!illi in C,1rfiz,1lillu Hills fault rnne fault C11rrizalillo Spring~ sec1 ion A' A fault zone 1 Johnccn 1Vltn. fault znnP. 5,UUU 5,000 Basaltic anrlesi1e 4,000 - 4,000 Lower fa nglomera te 3,000 Tsl!;I) 3,000 feet feet -3/' - Carrizal1llo Hills l\1 eqabrncc1'.l and tuff hrP.cci/l B B' Carrizalillo Hills Johnson Mt11. G,500 fault zone Cedar Mts. 5,500 fault fault zone Tuff of Johnson Mountai11 ..,,.------- ........... 5,000 5,000 Tl" u 11(;,_...-....- Ttcl '~ ..___ Om Ttcl --/ :::-~ - - r ar·--- • ,;:J:;-,___ _ Qpy Tt~ITal Tal __..._"-...._ o Andesite nf Hcrmana5 5id111g i, ,: _> , T'.cl } ~-l_ajJ__) 11f~ 111 liJLl 111'_ -- ---. -~I __ _ \ ~1,-_~,l::>~c~s'-c:::~~ ±=CC''-:~--"-,W~ ]l!if'. F'7.[,:0,,~=~;Cc__ __ 1 1 ,I I , ' - ~- Ttd ~-c~\ Tl., I '1 / T\ ,)'11:,/ r iT:l ~/a \ 1,,Ta ]j I@: - - Q!Il!lJllit,\~""'Tallluj,tirtl _..-- ,,,-----T1cu \---- ---~-r -- ----1 ---.....!., . 4,UU(J - T,l, \. r~u - - - · , ,Ttl ~,,:, I -· ---,.., II , ft 0 1 T•1'I) - 4,000 \ , •,, 1r.l1. 1 ,, ------. .Jo..I.\-- --Teel , :c~/ ' · Tia fsb \• y Tcb . ~ 1 ------ ...,..}-':: 1~~- yA ' \y \ 1 \ ( 1/ Tub J \ ,Y ;Tsb -:--l]f0°ii ~~~' \:- r..1 · ;· Tcb ,\ _,. -1.1 I; ,n1 1111 ' h b \+--- 3,000 3,000 \ Ts:b~~......... - ..................- limeston e fe et foGt •0 C -ri~ estore conglomerate anrl "C • volca niclastic sedimentary rocks "0 u 0 -~ ----- ---- --- ~ 0• 0 C •V 1,500 ] Tia lntermed1ate-comrosition flows u C •u C •u 0 Geology of Hermanas quadrangle, Luna County, New Mexico > Upper member 1,000 io-- '"'~ ---t+-- I I 0 0 ,J' ,J' ,, / ,,~ , ;<"' --w- -.,,, J_ by Vvilliarn R. Seager and Russell E, Clemons, 1988 I () -\'< ''- 1 Ttcl Lowr.r membEc1r C"""' . N ·;- c-''- ~ -I+- - ( ru u" ·/'-.. J-,. I _______j____ 5ca[e 1:24,000 Tai Lower andesite .5 u 1 mi 500 Ttl Lower rhyolite tuH ,5 0 1 km Rhyolitic t'uttaceous breccia and epiclastic rocks 0 not exposed .FIGURE ]-Composite stratigraphic colum!l the lower member (12- 8% and 10-5%, respectively), only southern Nt•w Me ,><.irn. We presume that the basal series of distinguished by conspirnuuc, andesilic-lithic &agn1.en ts and to dramatically increasC' (14 -17% and 7 10o/c, respedively) INTRODUCTION volcanic and volcanidastic rocks is Oligocene 8S are simili'lf by bintite phenocrysts rendered bronze in color by oxida­ at the tup of the lower member and fall back to 3-7% in sequences of ash-flow luff, flow-banded _rhyolitc, ,md in ­ tion. The lithic-vitric tuff contains xenocrysts of pl:'rthitP, Adjoining the State of Chihuahua, Mexico, the Hl·rmanas the upper member. These relationships suggest th21t the termediate-composition b vain southern New Mexico, such microcline, and oligoclase, which c1w intensely altered lo guaUrangle is located in Lunn O _nmty a pproximately 30 mi initial eruption tapped progressively more nphyric m,1gma as those in the Black Range (Elston, 1957; Seager et al., carbonates ;md day, 2nd 2ndesilic-lithic fragments. Xeno­ 5outh-southwest of Deming, Nt:!w Mexico (Fig. 1). NM-9 down to a cc rt.:iin IC'vcl, below which nvstals, especially traverses the c<'nhcr of tl1e quadrangle, providing principal 1':!82). The overlying fanglomerate is generally correlative crysls c1nd xenoliths total approximately 37% of the rock samdint:! and ,1uarl:c 1 were ~.rowing in abundance and were wilh the Santa Fe Group of the Rio Gr,md(• rq';iDn a11d tl1e The tuff also contains approxim<ltely 3% quartz, 1 o,;, sani­ access. The hi:=;bway connects Columbus,. \Tew Mexico, to erupted as the last part of the lower member. Subsequent the east with 1-Iachita, New Mexico, to the west. Mining Gila(?) Group of the Mogollon-Datil Plateau (Balk, 196:l). dine, and 2% intensely oxidizi'd bintite in a cryplocrystal­ eruption of the upper h1ff was from fl mon' nphyric and Undated hn saltic-andesite fluws near lhe base of the fan­ line to micrunystalline matrix. The shard-poor part of the roads, ranch roads serving stock tanks, and a n irnproved so[l\ewhnt more mafic upper m,1gm;i ( hambt->r, to llowi11g a gravel road from Henndnas lo Denting allow further access glomt:rate are probably late Oligocene-earliest Miocene and matrix is stained easily ,vith sodium cobaltinitrite, indicat­ ing its high potassium content. InterstitiDl pD tchl·~ .ind p ort" p<'rmd ot parti<1l or whole 1·eequilibrat1on of and, perhaps, to most parts uf the quadrangle. correlative with the Bear Springs Basalt and Uvc1 s Basaltic new thennal input into the magma chamber. Other schemes Andcsite of the Black Range-Sicrm de ];:if; Uv.is rt:giun. A fillings of carbonate are common. Mirnir spherulitic wnes ! C ,08' 0J' to account for the mineral and chemical•vnriations arc pos­ b8saltic plug neilr the top of th e fanglomerale section ap­ show som e rl1--vitrification of the matrix, A chemical analysis sible. pe.ws simil:::tr to Plioi,:ene dikes, plugs. and flow remnants of thi.~ nlter;.,d rock is included in Table L Some oxides, parti,·ularly sodium and polassmrn, have LJ orn ,oe in thP nead,y Palomas volcanic field (Seager et al. 1984) LO WER ANDESITE (Tal)-An andesitic flow, approxim.'.'ltely FIGURE 2- Tuff of Carrizalillu Hills forming cuest21 s in east-central no apparent trem.b. However, K/Na ralios for every sample Mod ern alluvial fans are mostly Quaternary, although th£ 60- 100 ft thick, overlies the lower rhvolitc tuff .1nd llnderlies of luff of Carnzalillo Hills are anomalously high, typically Carri :s <1l il!o Hills. oldest p arts of the oldest generation may mnge in to late in V,ctori c the tuft of Carriznlillo Hills thP CP~1tral and southern Car­ 8:<1 (Table 1). These anomalous ratios almost certainly re­ ,\ r-co, ntc,ns eventually resulted in a composite strc1tigraphic section. At Pliocene. riz,ilillo Hil ls. The dark-gray lo reddish-gray lava flows con­ flect extensive potflssium metDsom::iti sm, which also was the same time, several mining c,-:impani es became interested Descriptions of map ur1 its Lhal follow are grouped into t1in approximately 14''.'c: stout znd blocky feldspar (probably revea led in thin sections. in the area bec.rnst' u( the alteration, swarms of quartz cmd th!· thn ·t· main rock series, from oldest to youngest: vokc,nic sauidine) phenocrysts and 12% microcrystalline (0 .01-0.05 " rnrhun;__ite veins, 2nd indications of precious mC't,,l s. Al ­ and vokaniclastic series, fanglomerate and basnltic-.1ndcs mm) anhedral-equant quartz patches and V('in s(?) in a ma­ lNTERMED1AT[- C0Ml'US1110N FT .CJY,S (Tlu}--Ovetlyin~ Lhe luff though the present study is not foc used on ct·o11om1c geol­ ite series, and Quatern.My Oeposits. Chemirnl datil for •;t•­ trix of small (0.05- 0.3 mm) plagioclase laths, iron oxides, of Carriwlillo Hills is a series of intennedi8te-cornpos1tion <m, ogy, we hope that the geologinn<.q.J, composite section, and lected rocks are p resente(l in Table 1, and a summary of ;ind quartz. Feldspar phenocrysls appear to have a faint lava flows 600 or more ft thick. These are widely exposed account of the petrology uf th e vokanic section will provide petrographic data is pres;.,rited in Tables 2 and 3. perthifo.: texture, but they are replaced extensively by clay in Lhe Carrizalillo Hills, <,1rhere thev 2.re extensivelv ;ilkrcd, faulted, and locally veined with :iuurl:z and cMbonate. A ,' n 11sf'ful base for further exploration. The mnpping w;1 :-. and sericite. Most are surrounded by <1 dark coronn of aligned 0 I done by Seager, whe reas petrographic rlrscrip tions of more Volcanic and volcaniclastic-rock series plagioclase laths and iron oxides.
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