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This report deals with the results of 25,000 ft. of boring over an area of 15 sq. miles. Twenty-six coal seams were identified and named. Total reserves of all seams with band-free thickness greater than 4.0 ft. are 200,000,000 tons. Net open-cut reserves (to 9:1 ratio) of 7,500,000 tons over an area of 400 acres were tested and defined on four seams. All work in the Howick Area was done in the period March, 1952, to June, 1953.

This glossary gives a brief description of the more important sedimentary rocks. Composition percentages are tentative in nearly all cases. The terms listed are classified as follows.

White's South prospect is situated on the southern bank of the Finniss River (East branch) about 400 feet south southwest of White's Deposit (Ward 1953). Rocks do not outcrop in the area, but low radioactive anomalies were located in this area by the Geophysical Section 1951 suggesting that the western continuation of White's Deposit after faulting might be beneath the soil cover. Low grade ore intersections were obtained in five diamond drill holes put down in the area in 1952. A plan of the area on a scale of 40 feet to 1 inch accompanies this report (Plate 1).

The Yenberrie uranium prospect is 3.5 miles east of the Stuart Highway, and 4.5 miles in a direction 15 degrees east of north from the bridge across the Edith River, which is 33 miles by road northward from Katherine, and 137 miles southward from Darwin. The prospect is 1.5 miles slightly north of west from the old Yenberrie wolfram and molybdenite mines. Geophysical investigations at the prospect during 1953 consisted of brief radiometric, self-potential and magnetic surveys.

White's Deposit, which is the original discovery at Rum Jungle, and on which exploration has been mainly concentrated, has so far proved to be the most important deposit in the area. It is situated 2.23 miles on a true bearing of 28 degrees from Rum Jungle Railway Siding and lies on the northern bank of the Finniss River (East Branch) halfway between Brown's Deposit and Dyson's Find. Following upon the favourable results obtained from diamond drilling and shaft sinking in 1950 work was continued at the deposit during 1951 and 1952. The development work and exploration activities are not yet completed, but available evidence has suggested a control of mineralization, which it is hoped will be substantiated by future field work. Geological and assay plans and sections of the mine workings have been prepared on a scale of 20 feet to an inch from theodolite and tape surveys and surface geological plans on a scale of 40 feet to an inch have been produced by plane table and telescopic aledade surveys. A description of the deposit based on results obtained to the end of 1952 is given in the following pages.

The Brodribb anomaly was first detected by the Bureau of Mineral Resources' aerial scintillometer survey over the Rum Jungle area in 1952. The prospect lies six miles due west of the 40 mile peg on the Stuart Highway and can be reached easily in the dry season by means of the Brodribb track. However, for several months during the wet season the track is quite impassable to heavy vehicles necessary to maintain drilling operations. Ground parties made a preliminary inspection of the area in September, 1952 and by the end of October a combined preliminary detailed geological and geophysical survey was completed (Frankovich, 1952). The results of the surveys and the consequent costeaning indicated that drilling should be carried out for a complete investigation.

The prospect is an existing cooper lease (M.L.69B) held by Messrs. J.W. Watson and K. Cooper who carried out some mining in the area in 1950. The area was first visited in 1953 by I.A. Mumme whose interest was aroused by the pre-existing copper prospects and the close proximity of the Shoobridge granite. Further examination was carried out by Mumme and the writer early in November, and detailed mapping was done on a scale of 100 feet to the inch by the writer and D.N. Smith. Radioactive rocks and the secondary uranium mineral torbernite were discovered at this prospect, which is a copper mine, on October 25th 1953 by I.A. Mumme. A survey plan of the mine shafts, pits and costeans and lines of mineralization was prepared by I.A. Mumme on the 5th and 6th of November so that a suitable base line could be chosen for magnetic and self-potential test traversing. Three magnetometer traverses were completed. P. Rosenhain visited the area on the 5th November and inspected the shafts, stopes and costeans and carried out geological mapping from the 16th November to the 19th November. Further magnetic and self-potential traversing and some reconnaissance radiometric field work was carried out during the two periods 16th November to 20th November, and 24th November to 28th November.

Ella Creek radioactive prospect is one of the first order radioactive anomalies located during the airborne surveys conducted by the geophysical section of the Bureau of Mineral Resources in 1952. Geological, geophysical and geochemical ground surveys have been carried out to ascertain the type and cause of the radioactive mineralization. The geophysical programme was carried out by I.A. Mumme assisted by D. Pritchard and E.T. Hadley.