Preface

• Published in: GEUS Bulletin
• Main Author: Larsen, Rune Berg-Edland
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland (GEUS) 2023
• Subjects: igneous complex; magma chamber processes; mineralisation; platinum group elements; Skaergard intrusion; Geology; Igneous geology; Greenland; East Greenland
• Online Access: https://geusbulletin.org/index.php/geusb/article/view/8347; https://doi.org/10.34194/geusb.v54.8347

In this special issue of GEUS Bulletin, the many riddles regarding the platinum group elements and gold (PGE-Au) mineralisation of the East Greenland Skaergaard intrusion are untangled and discussed. The Skaergard PGE-Au mineralisation, as defined in this study, embodies an enigmatic and rich ore-formation that arguably could have been an economic resource, had it not been for its ice-locked position in central East Greenland. The authors of this study (Rudashevsky et al. 2023, this volume) characterise the systematic variability in the precious metal mineralogy from the contact towards the interior of the intrusion based on the analysis of more than 4000 individual PGE-Au grains. This variability is interpreted in the light of 90 years of research and over 1000 publications pertaining to magma chamber processes in the Skaergaard intrusion. With such an impressive library of knowledge, on a comparatively simple magmatic system such as the Skaergard intrusion, we should have discovered a few islands of truth in igneous petrology and ore-deposit formation. And indeed, we have. But we are also enriched with an evolving story, where answering one question only serves to raise three new questions. This study demonstrates the variability of PGE-Au phases throughout the ore-forming zone of the Skaergaard intrusion. As previously observed, PGE-Au mineralisation in the central parts is divided into several layers over 30–40 m of the cumulus stratigraphy with increasing Pd/Pt ratios upwards, an Au-rich upper part and a low sulphide content throughout all layers. Close to the contact the precious metal zonation is less pronounced, and it is significantly more sulphide rich. The PGE mineralogy deviates significantly from the centre to the margin. These complex lateral and vertical variations cannot be explained by one genetic model but require an intricate combination of igneous processes including silicate-melt liquid immiscibility, sulphide-melt immiscibility, sulphide-melt resorptions, precious metal transport by ...