K. Lepper, S. Reneau, J. Thorstad, Boone Pickens, A. Denton
Quaternary lacustrine deposits exist within several valleys in the Valles caldera in northcentral New Mexico . These deposits contain potentially valuable paleoclimatic records . We report OSL ages for a section of unconsolidated Quaternary sediments exposed in the southwest part of Valle Toledo within Valles caldera . The sequence represents the transition over time from lacustrine to fluvial deposition at the site . We present a stratigraphically coherent depositional chronology for the Valle Toledo section consistent with the available radiocarbon constraint based on analysis of bootstrapped dose distributions derived from data collected by IRSL MAAD procedures . The ages suggest the existence of a late Pleistocene lake in Valle Toledo from at least 48 .5 ka to ~44 ka, which is consider ably younger than age interpretations based on correlation to a >500 ka rhyolite dam across San Antonio Creek . This study helps to emphasize the need for additional research to decipher the geologic history of the intra-caldera lakes as well as to correlate the records of climate and environmental change among the lacustrine deposits within Valles caldera .
第四纪湖相沉积存在于新墨西哥州中北部山谷火山口的几个山谷中。这些沉积物包含有潜在价值的古气候记录。我们报告了在Valle Toledo火山口的西南部暴露的一段松散的第四纪沉积物的OSL年龄。该层序代表了该遗址从湖泊沉积到河流沉积的过渡时期。基于对来自IRSL MAAD程序收集的数据的自启动剂量分布的分析，我们提出了与可用放射性碳约束相一致的Valle Toledo剖面地层相干沉积年代学。这些年龄表明，在Valle Toledo存在一个晚更新世湖泊，时间至少为48.5 ka至~44 ka，这比基于与横跨San Antonio Creek的bbbb500 ka流纹岩坝的相关性的年龄解释要年轻得多。这项研究有助于强调进一步研究的必要性，以破译火山口内湖泊的地质历史，并将山谷火山口内湖泊沉积物的气候和环境变化记录联系起来。
{"title":"OSL dating of a lacustrine to fluvial transitional sediment sequence in Valle Toledo, Valles caldera, New Mexico","authors":"K. Lepper, S. Reneau, J. Thorstad, Boone Pickens, A. Denton","doi":"10.58799/nmg-v29n4.112","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.58799/nmg-v29n4.112","url":null,"abstract":"Quaternary lacustrine deposits exist within several valleys in the Valles caldera in northcentral New Mexico . These deposits contain potentially valuable paleoclimatic records . We report OSL ages for a section of unconsolidated Quaternary sediments exposed in the southwest part of Valle Toledo within Valles caldera . The sequence represents the transition over time from lacustrine to fluvial deposition at the site . We present a stratigraphically coherent depositional chronology for the Valle Toledo section consistent with the available radiocarbon constraint based on analysis of bootstrapped dose distributions derived from data collected by IRSL MAAD procedures . The ages suggest the existence of a late Pleistocene lake in Valle Toledo from at least 48 .5 ka to ~44 ka, which is consider ably younger than age interpretations based on correlation to a >500 ka rhyolite dam across San Antonio Creek . This study helps to emphasize the need for additional research to decipher the geologic history of the intra-caldera lakes as well as to correlate the records of climate and environmental change among the lacustrine deposits within Valles caldera .","PeriodicalId":35824,"journal":{"name":"New Mexico Geology","volume":"1 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2007-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"71173210","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
A. Sanford, T. M. Mayeau, J. Schlue, R. Aster, L. Jaksha
Earthquakes in New Mexico and bordering areas have been instrumentally located since 1962 at New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology . Catalogs of these earthquakes for the period 1962 through 1998 were published in 2002 . This report extends the cata loging of earthquakes for the region through 2004 . For this 6-yr period 198 earthquakes with magnitudes of 2 . 0 or greater were located . An unusual feature of the seismicity 1999 through 2004 is that 63% of the earthquakes were concentrated in two swarms, one near water disposal wells on the western edge of the Dagger Draw oil field in southeastern New Mexico, and the other within and bordering the coalbed methane fields of the Raton Basin in northeastern New Mexico . We suggest that the proximity of these swarms to oil and gas fields may indicate that the earthquakes are induced by destabilization of the crust through production and waste disposal practices . The remaining 37% of the earthquakes 1999 through 2004 were concentrated near Socorro and west Texas . Except for the Socorro area, activity along the Rio Grande rift was low .
{"title":"Earthquake catalogs for New Mexico and bordering areas II: 1999-2004","authors":"A. Sanford, T. M. Mayeau, J. Schlue, R. Aster, L. Jaksha","doi":"10.58799/nmg-v28n4.99","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.58799/nmg-v28n4.99","url":null,"abstract":"Earthquakes in New Mexico and bordering areas have been instrumentally located since 1962 at New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology . Catalogs of these earthquakes for the period 1962 through 1998 were published in 2002 . This report extends the cata loging of earthquakes for the region through 2004 . For this 6-yr period 198 earthquakes with magnitudes of 2 . 0 or greater were located . An unusual feature of the seismicity 1999 through 2004 is that 63% of the earthquakes were concentrated in two swarms, one near water disposal wells on the western edge of the Dagger Draw oil field in southeastern New Mexico, and the other within and bordering the coalbed methane fields of the Raton Basin in northeastern New Mexico . We suggest that the proximity of these swarms to oil and gas fields may indicate that the earthquakes are induced by destabilization of the crust through production and waste disposal practices . The remaining 37% of the earthquakes 1999 through 2004 were concentrated near Socorro and west Texas . Except for the Socorro area, activity along the Rio Grande rift was low .","PeriodicalId":35824,"journal":{"name":"New Mexico Geology","volume":"1 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2006-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"71173428","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Crinoids from each of the five Pennsylvanian epochs are described from 26 localities in New Mexico. The crinoid faunas occupied diverse shelf environments around many intermontane basins of New Mexico during the Pennsylvanian. The crinoids described here include 29 genera, 39 named species, and at least nine unnamed species, of which one genus and 15 named species are new. This report more than doubles the number of previously known Pennsylvanian crinoid species from New Mexico; 17 of these species also occur in midcontinent faunas. New Mexico Pennsylvanian crinoids exhibit greater species richness than Pennsylvanian faunas from the intermontane basins of Colorado, Utah, and Arizona and show some generic affinity with Great Basin Pennsyl-vanian faunas. They indicate seaway connections were open, although perhaps intermit-tently, throughout the Pennsylvanian between the intermontane basins of New Mexico and midcontinent basins in Texas and Oklahoma. New taxa introduced are: Lekobikocrinus n. gen., Aaglaocrinus bowsheri n. sp., Diphuicri-nus borgesae n. sp., Goleocrinus chronici n. sp., Metacromyocrinus cedroensis n. sp., M. szaboi n. sp., Ulocrinus manzanitaensis n. sp., Mosco-vicrinus ? rotundobasis n. sp., Endelocrinus globularus n. sp., Neoprotencrinus gutschicki n. sp., Euerisocrinus tijerasensis n. sp., Apograph-iocrinus rimosus n. sp., A. kietzkei n. sp., Metaffinocrinus noblei n. sp., Sciadiocrinus ornatus n. sp., and Paramphicrinus novamexi-canus n. sp.
新墨西哥州的26个地方描述了宾夕法尼亚五个时期的海百合。在宾夕法尼亚时期，在新墨西哥州的许多山间盆地周围，海红类动物占据了不同的陆架环境。本文所描述的海百合包括29属、39个已命名种和至少9个未命名种，其中1属和15个已命名种为新种。该报告将来自新墨西哥州的宾夕法尼亚菊科植物的数量增加了一倍以上;其中17种也出现在中大陆的动物群中。新墨西哥州宾夕法尼亚类海蛇科动物的物种丰富度高于科罗拉多州、犹他州和亚利桑那州的山间盆地的宾夕法尼亚类动物，并与大盆地宾夕法尼亚类动物有一定的亲缘关系。它们表明，在新墨西哥州的山间盆地和德克萨斯州和俄克拉荷马州的大陆中部盆地之间的整个宾夕法尼亚地区，海道连接是开放的，尽管可能是间歇性的。新引进的分类群有:Lekobikocrinus n. gen.、Aaglaocrinus bowsheri n. sp.、Diphuicrinus borgesae n. sp.、goeocrinus chronici n. sp.、metacroomyrinus cedroensis n. sp.、M. szaboi n. sp.、ulocrius manzanitaensis n. sp.、Moscovicrinus?圆孔线虫、球状线虫、古氏新蛋白线虫、提jeraseuisocrinus、巨斑线虫、A. kietzkei、metaffinorinus nogii、Sciadiocrinus ornatus、novamexicanus副毛虫
{"title":"Pennsylvanian crinoids of New Mexico","authors":"G. D. Webster, B. Kues","doi":"10.58799/nmg-v28n1.3","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.58799/nmg-v28n1.3","url":null,"abstract":"Crinoids from each of the five Pennsylvanian epochs are described from 26 localities in New Mexico. The crinoid faunas occupied diverse shelf environments around many intermontane basins of New Mexico during the Pennsylvanian. The crinoids described here include 29 genera, 39 named species, and at least nine unnamed species, of which one genus and 15 named species are new. This report more than doubles the number of previously known Pennsylvanian crinoid species from New Mexico; 17 of these species also occur in midcontinent faunas. New Mexico Pennsylvanian crinoids exhibit greater species richness than Pennsylvanian faunas from the intermontane basins of Colorado, Utah, and Arizona and show some generic affinity with Great Basin Pennsyl-vanian faunas. They indicate seaway connections were open, although perhaps intermit-tently, throughout the Pennsylvanian between the intermontane basins of New Mexico and midcontinent basins in Texas and Oklahoma. New taxa introduced are: Lekobikocrinus n. gen., Aaglaocrinus bowsheri n. sp., Diphuicri-nus borgesae n. sp., Goleocrinus chronici n. sp., Metacromyocrinus cedroensis n. sp., M. szaboi n. sp., Ulocrinus manzanitaensis n. sp., Mosco-vicrinus ? rotundobasis n. sp., Endelocrinus globularus n. sp., Neoprotencrinus gutschicki n. sp., Euerisocrinus tijerasensis n. sp., Apograph-iocrinus rimosus n. sp., A. kietzkei n. sp., Metaffinocrinus noblei n. sp., Sciadiocrinus ornatus n. sp., and Paramphicrinus novamexi-canus n. sp.","PeriodicalId":35824,"journal":{"name":"New Mexico Geology","volume":"1 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2006-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"71172594","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Open fissures in the Middle Jurassic Todilto Formation near San Ysidro, Sandoval County, New Mexico, trapped large late Pleistocene mammals whose articulated bones are preserved in the fissure fill. The fissures probably originated as the result of two tectonic events—compression that led to closed conjugate fractures during the Laramide orogeny followed by extension associated with development of the Rio Grande rift. During the later event the conjugate shears were opened and additional extensional, open fractures were formed.
{"title":"Tectonic development of late Pleistocene (Rancholabrean) animal-trapping fissures in the Middle Jurassic Todilto Formation, north-central New Mexico","authors":"L. Rinehart, S. Lucas, G. Morgan, L. Woodward","doi":"10.58799/nmg-v28n3.84","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.58799/nmg-v28n3.84","url":null,"abstract":"Open fissures in the Middle Jurassic Todilto Formation near San Ysidro, Sandoval County, New Mexico, trapped large late Pleistocene mammals whose articulated bones are preserved in the fissure fill. The fissures probably originated as the result of two tectonic events—compression that led to closed conjugate fractures during the Laramide orogeny followed by extension associated with development of the Rio Grande rift. During the later event the conjugate shears were opened and additional extensional, open fractures were formed.","PeriodicalId":35824,"journal":{"name":"New Mexico Geology","volume":"1 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2006-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"71173169","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Gallery of Geology, Fossil crinoid structural features","authors":"G. D. Webster, B. Kues","doi":"10.58799/nmg-v28n1.37","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.58799/nmg-v28n1.37","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":35824,"journal":{"name":"New Mexico Geology","volume":"1 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2006-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"71172684","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Today, 120 yrs after the editor of the Bullion waxed so eloquently, the Lady continues to keep up her silent watch. Her regal gaze has overseen the arrival and departure of countless centuries, the seemingly endless activities of humankind, the comings and goings of their enterprises and developments. She has observed much: the wanderings of the Native American Pueblo Indians and their Paleo-Indian ancestors before them; the arrival of the Spanish soon after 1540; the American prospectors and miners during and immediately after the Civil War; and the birth and death of North, Middle (Kelly), and South Camps at the foot of their mines. The mills, smelters, railroads, and towns built to serve the Kelly, Graphic, Waldo, and other prominent mines in the Magdalena mining district are gone now; they lived and died in little more than a centu
{"title":"Our Lady on the mountain - history, folklore, and geology of Magdalena Peak","authors":"R. Eveleth","doi":"10.58799/nmg-v28n2.43","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.58799/nmg-v28n2.43","url":null,"abstract":"Today, 120 yrs after the editor of the Bullion waxed so eloquently, the Lady continues to keep up her silent watch. Her regal gaze has overseen the arrival and departure of countless centuries, the seemingly endless activities of humankind, the comings and goings of their enterprises and developments. She has observed much: the wanderings of the Native American Pueblo Indians and their Paleo-Indian ancestors before them; the arrival of the Spanish soon after 1540; the American prospectors and miners during and immediately after the Civil War; and the birth and death of North, Middle (Kelly), and South Camps at the foot of their mines. The mills, smelters, railroads, and towns built to serve the Kelly, Graphic, Waldo, and other prominent mines in the Magdalena mining district are gone now; they lived and died in little more than a centu","PeriodicalId":35824,"journal":{"name":"New Mexico Geology","volume":"1 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2006-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"71172749","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
The Neogene Espanola Basin of the Rio Grande rift has been alternatively interpreted as overlapping an Eocene Laramide basin or as representing inversion of a Laramide uplift. The stratigraphy of the rocks penetrated by the Yates #2 La Mesa well near Santa Fe, New Mexico, is essential to the interpretation of the subsurface geology and to resolving this controversial aspect of the tectonic history of the basin. Petrographic analysis of 46 thin sections from well cuttings, as well as general examination of cuttings and geophysical logs, addresses these problems. Limestone and clastic sedimentary rocks overlying Precambrian granite were previously interpreted as Tertiary basin fill, but petrographic examination of limestone cuttings reveals many fragments with diagnostic late Paleozoic marine fossils. Along with the absence of typical local Eocene red beds, the Paleozoic fossils require reassignment of this 462-m-thick (1,516-ft-thick) interval to the Pennsylvanian section. Volcanic and volcaniclastic rocks overlying the Paleozoic strata were previously assigned to the Oligocene Espinaso Formation. Only the lower 307 m (1,007 ft) of this succession consist of latitic detritus characteristic of the Espinaso Formation. Mafic lava flows and arkosic sedimentary strata compose the upper 318 (1,043 ft) m of the volcanic interval. The mafic lava flows correlate to upper Oligocene‐lower Miocene basalts and basanites seen in nearby outcrops, and the sedimentary layers resemble overlying rift-basin fill. The results of this study support formation of the Espanola Basin by inversion of a Laramide uplift. The well cuttings provide no evidence for Eocene syn-Laramide basinfill sedimentary deposits. Oligocene volcaniclastic rocks buried the uplift that was denuded of all Phanerozoic cover strata except for a partial Paleozoic section. Basalts erupted onto an alluvial surface that was already accumulating rift-basin fill.
{"title":"Stratigraphic analysis of the Yates No. 2 La Mesa Well and implications for southern Espanola Basin tectonic history","authors":"Caroline Myer, Gary A. Smith","doi":"10.58799/nmg-v28n3.75","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.58799/nmg-v28n3.75","url":null,"abstract":"The Neogene Espanola Basin of the Rio Grande rift has been alternatively interpreted as overlapping an Eocene Laramide basin or as representing inversion of a Laramide uplift. The stratigraphy of the rocks penetrated by the Yates #2 La Mesa well near Santa Fe, New Mexico, is essential to the interpretation of the subsurface geology and to resolving this controversial aspect of the tectonic history of the basin. Petrographic analysis of 46 thin sections from well cuttings, as well as general examination of cuttings and geophysical logs, addresses these problems. Limestone and clastic sedimentary rocks overlying Precambrian granite were previously interpreted as Tertiary basin fill, but petrographic examination of limestone cuttings reveals many fragments with diagnostic late Paleozoic marine fossils. Along with the absence of typical local Eocene red beds, the Paleozoic fossils require reassignment of this 462-m-thick (1,516-ft-thick) interval to the Pennsylvanian section. Volcanic and volcaniclastic rocks overlying the Paleozoic strata were previously assigned to the Oligocene Espinaso Formation. Only the lower 307 m (1,007 ft) of this succession consist of latitic detritus characteristic of the Espinaso Formation. Mafic lava flows and arkosic sedimentary strata compose the upper 318 (1,043 ft) m of the volcanic interval. The mafic lava flows correlate to upper Oligocene‐lower Miocene basalts and basanites seen in nearby outcrops, and the sedimentary layers resemble overlying rift-basin fill. The results of this study support formation of the Espanola Basin by inversion of a Laramide uplift. The well cuttings provide no evidence for Eocene syn-Laramide basinfill sedimentary deposits. Oligocene volcaniclastic rocks buried the uplift that was denuded of all Phanerozoic cover strata except for a partial Paleozoic section. Basalts erupted onto an alluvial surface that was already accumulating rift-basin fill.","PeriodicalId":35824,"journal":{"name":"New Mexico Geology","volume":"1 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2006-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"71173120","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"In memory of Walter A. Mourant, 1913-2005","authors":"J. Shomaker","doi":"10.58799/nmg-v27n1.22","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.58799/nmg-v27n1.22","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":35824,"journal":{"name":"New Mexico Geology","volume":"1 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2005-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"71172253","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Helium gas has been produced in New Mexico since 1943. Production has been from eight oil and gas fields located on the Four Corners platform of northwestern New Mexico. Almost 950 MMCF (million cubic feet) helium has been produced from reservoirs of Permian, Pennsylvanian, Mississippian, and Devonian age on the Four Corners platform in San Juan County. In northwest New Mexico, elevated levels of helium in natural gases occur not only in Paleozoic reservoirs on the Four Corners platform but also in Paleozoic reservoirs in the deeper parts of the San Juan Basin located east of the Four Corners platform. The orthogonal sets of high-angle faults that offset Precambrian basement throughout the deeper parts of the San Juan Basin acted as migration pathways that transmitted helium from its basement source into overlying Paleozoic reservoirs. Helium has not been extracted from produced gases in the New Mexico part of the Permian Basin where the concentration of helium in most reservoir gases is significantly less than 0.1%. However, gases with helium contents ranging from 0.3 to almost 1.0% occur in Pennsylvanian and Permian reservoirs along the northwest flank of the basin. The helium appears to have originated by radiogenic decay of uranium and thorium in Precambrian granitic rocks and migrated vertically into Pennsylvanian and Permian reservoirs through regional, high-angle, strike-slip faults. Known accumulations of helium-rich gases are located near these faults. Lower Permian evaporites provide vertical fault seals. In this area, lower and middle Paleozoic strata are only a few hundred feet thick, resulting in short vertical migration distances between the Precambrian source and helium-bearing reservoirs. The fault trends define exploration fairways. Other basins and areas in New Mexico are characterized by helium-rich gases and are of significant exploratory interest. These areas include the Chupadera Mesa region of eastern Socorro and western Lincoln Counties in the central part of the state, the Tucumcari Basin in the east-central part of the state, and a wide region across Catron and southern Cibola Counties in the westcentral part of the state. Elevated levels of helium are found in Pennsylvanian and Permian gases in these areas.
{"title":"Helium in New Mexico--geologic distribution, resource demand, and exploration possiblities","authors":"R. Broadhead","doi":"10.58799/nmg-v27n4.93","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.58799/nmg-v27n4.93","url":null,"abstract":"Helium gas has been produced in New Mexico since 1943. Production has been from eight oil and gas fields located on the Four Corners platform of northwestern New Mexico. Almost 950 MMCF (million cubic feet) helium has been produced from reservoirs of Permian, Pennsylvanian, Mississippian, and Devonian age on the Four Corners platform in San Juan County. In northwest New Mexico, elevated levels of helium in natural gases occur not only in Paleozoic reservoirs on the Four Corners platform but also in Paleozoic reservoirs in the deeper parts of the San Juan Basin located east of the Four Corners platform. The orthogonal sets of high-angle faults that offset Precambrian basement throughout the deeper parts of the San Juan Basin acted as migration pathways that transmitted helium from its basement source into overlying Paleozoic reservoirs. Helium has not been extracted from produced gases in the New Mexico part of the Permian Basin where the concentration of helium in most reservoir gases is significantly less than 0.1%. However, gases with helium contents ranging from 0.3 to almost 1.0% occur in Pennsylvanian and Permian reservoirs along the northwest flank of the basin. The helium appears to have originated by radiogenic decay of uranium and thorium in Precambrian granitic rocks and migrated vertically into Pennsylvanian and Permian reservoirs through regional, high-angle, strike-slip faults. Known accumulations of helium-rich gases are located near these faults. Lower Permian evaporites provide vertical fault seals. In this area, lower and middle Paleozoic strata are only a few hundred feet thick, resulting in short vertical migration distances between the Precambrian source and helium-bearing reservoirs. The fault trends define exploration fairways. Other basins and areas in New Mexico are characterized by helium-rich gases and are of significant exploratory interest. These areas include the Chupadera Mesa region of eastern Socorro and western Lincoln Counties in the central part of the state, the Tucumcari Basin in the east-central part of the state, and a wide region across Catron and southern Cibola Counties in the westcentral part of the state. Elevated levels of helium are found in Pennsylvanian and Permian gases in these areas.","PeriodicalId":35824,"journal":{"name":"New Mexico Geology","volume":"1 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2005-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"71172581","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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