Uranium occurrences in the volcanic rocks of northwestern Argentino

Abstract

Rich uranium ore bodies were located at Macusani (14°S, Perú) and several occurrences in Bolivia (19°S, Sevaruyo district) and the Argentinian Puna (23°S ) along 1800 km of the Cenozoic Volcanic Belt of the Central Andes of Peru, Bolivia and northern Argentina and Chile. The presence in the Argentinian Puna of several favourable factors for uranium accumulations in volcanic environments led to the development of a multidisciplinary project devoted to identifying the most favourable areas for further exploration. The project will comprise geological research on a 1:250000 scale covering the most interesting areas of the Argentinian Puna, using interactive digital analysis of LANDSAT imagery and Computer processing techniques. Ground-truth studies and laboratory support will complete the project, in which some 15 geoscientists will participate for about 1 year.