New Mexico Mineral Symposium — Abstracts

Metamunirite, NaVO₃•H₂O, is a new mineral from two locations in San Miguel County, Colorado. The type location is the Burro mine at Slick Rock. Only a few square inches of microscopic acicular crystals of metamunirite were found there as efflorescent crusts on the dumps. Some metamuni¬rite was also found in the Deremo-Snyder mine as white acicular crystals to 1 mm. In both cases the metamunirite is associated with rossite, metarossite, and pascoite on vanadium-rich ore. Only about 35 samples have been found so far.
Also found at the Deremo-Snyder mine was the world's fourth(?) locality for chalconatronite. It was associated with andersonite. Pascoite was locally common. Mr. Phillip Allen located a potentially new uranium carbonate mineral.

At the Long Park #15 mine in Montrose County, Colorado, white efflorescent crusts of a microscopic acicular mineral that resembled metamunirite were collected. It turned out later to be hexahydrite.

The Big Indian mine, south of La Sal, San Juan County, Utah, has been producing some interesting secondary copper minerals. Clinoclase, tyrolite, chrysocolla, aurichalcite, olivenite (var:leuco¬chalcite), azurite, malachite, barite, and psilomelane have been found.

Haynesite, (UO₂)₃(OH)₂(SeO₃)₂. 5H₂O, was found at the Repete mine in San Juan County, Utah. It occurs as microscopic yellow acicular crystals associated with boltwoodite, andersonite, and ferroselite.

Arnold Hampson showed me some interesting things at the Monument #2 mine in Apache County, Arizona. Research and identification is continuing but the species verified so far include tyuyamunite, metatyuyamunite, rauvite, bokite, variscite, metahewettite, fervanite, and a lone sample of schubnelite.

Mr. Hampson and I also collected clinoptilolite, mordenite(?), and erionite at a roadcut 3.5 mi west of the New Mexico border in Greenlee County, Arizona on Hwy 78.

Marc Wilson and I found some interesting species on Socorro Peak, Socorro County, New Mexico. These included linarite, caledonite, fornacite, rosasite, and anglesite as microspecimens.

Acknowledgments—I wish to thank the following: Marc Wilson for the use of the NMBMMR's microphotography equipment; Debra Wilson for microphotography; researchers Paul Hlava, Peter Modreski, Howard Evans, Jr., Marc Wilson, Michel Deliens, and Paul Piret; Phillip Allen and the staff at the Deremo-Snyder mine; Marcelino, Marc, and the late Felix Mendisco; and Ron Gibbs and Will Moats for locality information.

References:

1. Deliens, M., and Piret, P., 1991, La Haynesite, silinite hydragi d'uranyle, nouvelle espece minirale de la Mine Repete, Conti de San Juan, Utah: Canadian Mineralogist, v. 29, pp. 561-564.
2. Evans, H., Jr., 1991, Metamunirite, a new anhydrous sodium metavanadate from San Miguel County, Colorado: Mineralogical Magazine, v. 55, pp. 509-513.
3. Fleischer, M., and Mandarin, J., 1991, Glossary of mineral species 1991: The Mineralogical Record Inc., Tucson, Arizona. Moats, W., 1991, Minerals of the Socorro Peak district, Socorro County, New Mexico: Rocks and Minerals, v. 66, no. 1, p. 56-63.
4. Northrup, S. A., 1959, Minerals of New Mexico (revised edition): University of New Mexico Press, Albuquerque. Roberts, W. L., Campbell, T. J., and Rapp, G. R., Jr., 1990, Encyclopedia of minerals: Van Nostrand Reinhold Company, New York.