This project involves geothermal research with two holes that will be drilled in Moat-fill units in the Creede Mining District in Colorado in the fall of 1991. The objectives of the research are to obtain excellent temperature-depth data, reliable heat flow values (Q), uranium (U), thorium (Th) and potassium (K) concentration data, and radiogenic heat production data (A) for both locales. From the temperature-depth data, hydrologic phenomena in the environs of the holes can be studied, as may be the fracture systems that are receiving and yielding subsurface fluids. The vertical distributions of U, Th, K and radiogenic heat production also will be used to infer present and past movement of fluids and radioisotopes in the Moat-fill units, and will provide insight into relations between radioactive heat and hydrothermal activity near both stations. Considered with Q and A data that exist for mining company holes in the District to the north, the heat flow and heat production values for the holes in the Moat will yield reliable estimates for heat sources and temperatures at depths greater than 1 km in the Creede Hydrothermal System, information that must be known for future deep drilling in this classic mining area.
