| Hole WM00-02 was drilled 250 m east of 00-01 which intersected basement at 359 m showing that the eastside was uplifted. The nature of this eastern area is still unexplored.
Drilling then was directed at a moderate magnetic susceptibility anomaly beneath hole 98-5 and the hole was deepened from 141 m to 630 m. A 16 m sulphide zone was intersected within a 565 - 588 m disseminated zone that contained Cu, Ni and PGE values. The sulphides were zoned with copper minerals at the top of the 2 - 5 mm sulphide blebs and pentlendite-pyrrhotite at the bottom. This same texture occurs at the Norilsk No. 1 open pit Ni-Cu-PGE deposit in Siberia.
Holes 98-2 and WM00-03 were then drilled on line 2000 E to create the first north-south section. Sulphides were cut in both 03 and 98-2, however a trough or gully was reorganized near 98-5. A short hole was drilled on the western margin WM00-04, which located the upper gabbro pyroxenite phase that forms the magnetic anomaly ring like feature. A thin layer of Sibley sediments was located within this hole beneath the gabbro-pyroxenite.
Hole WM00-05 was then drilled to test a prominent magnetic susceptibility anomaly at the base of the intrusion that trends in a north-south direction for a 1.2 km length. This hole hit a 2 m zone grading up to 3.58 g Pt + Pd at 734 m and a second zone below grading up to 1.99 g/tonne. The lower contact was 763.5 m with Quetico Sediments.
The low sulphur content (0.95%) for the high amount of PGE mineral indicate the presence of "enriched sulphides". In this case if the sulphide amount increased to massive sulphides, one might expect grades up to 140 g PGE. Norilsk grades in massive chalcopyrite are typically 60 g/tonne Pd. This high susceptibility model was correct and accurately defined the shape of the Seagull Intrusion and highlighted the lower gabbro-pyroxenite-lherzolite host for the sulphide minerals. The more subtle fine grained sulphide in the 470 - 530 m area were not recognized which later became evident in July 2004.
Hole WM00-08 was later drilled on line 2300E, 4575 N to locate a possible feeder dike indicated by the magnetic susceptibility model. This hole also hit a double layer of PGE bearing sulphides as well as a fragment of an older ultramafic phase within the gabbro-pyroxenite. This might suggest the hole is close to an entry point for the magma. Narrow ultramafic dikes were also seen in the Quetico metasediments, which may be off shoots from a feeder dike. Also the lower contact with the Quetico was 30 m higher in WM01-08 than in hole WM-05 suggesting a displacement of the basement rocks which also may suggest a feeder dike along a fault. Feeder dikes bring in magma and may create sulphide concentrations.
Hole WM00-06 was drilled to the south west of hole 98-5 to trace a mise-a-la-masse anomaly seen when energizing sulphides in 00-03. A fine grained sulphide zone with anomalous PGE up to 0.75 g/tonne was intersected which may be the western edge of the new PGE horizon that presumably lays at a 100 dip to the east and extends north to other parts of the intrusion.
Hole WM01-9 and WM01-10 were drilled to the south and east of WM00-05 to locate the deepest part of the intrusion. Hole 9 hit the Quetico basement at 781 m which to date is the deepest intersection. The sulphide content in hole 1, 9 and 10 within the lower gabbro-pyroxenite was low where as the sulphide content in 00-05, 01-08 and 98-5, 00-03, 98-2, 00-06 is high. Therefore the sulphides were likely introduced through a feeder dike in the 2300E - 2350E area and spread west during the early stages of the development of the Seagull Intrusion. However a later magma pulse event formed 2 more sulphide horizons within the dunite (olivine) rich phase that carry significant Cu-Ni and PGE results including Os, Ir, Rh, Ru that exceed other world class deposits such as Sudbury, Norilsk and the Merensky Reef.
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