Athabasca Uranium engages renowned USASK team to lead Keefe Lake
phase 3 exploration
EXPERTS ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR NUMEROUS BASIN
DISCOVERIES
TSXV: UAX
OTCQX: ATURF
VANCOUVER, Oct. 24, 2012 /PRNewswire/ - Athabasca Uranium
Inc. is pleased to announce that it has engaged the renowned
uranium exploration geophysical team at the University of Saskatchewan (USASK) to conduct Phase
3 interpretation and exploration at its flagship Keefe Lake
Project, effective immediately.
The USASK team, led by Dr. Zoltan Hajnal, PhD (GeoPh) will be analyzing
shear wave data in conjunction with other datasets, which is an
innovative approach to seismic interpretation in the Athabasca Basin. Dr. Hajnal commented
"Several of the seismic profiles at Keefe Lake show anomalous
basement structures, comparable to features of known prominent
mineral deposits such as McArthur
River and Shea Creek.
The objective of the investigation is to detect indicators of
mineralization within these anomalous structural settings."
The intent of the analysis is to exploit both P and S waves of
surface seismic surveys to determine the above anomalous spatial
petrophysical properties of rocks within a larger area of
interest.
Dr. Hajnal is a leading expert in the
application of seismic methods in uranium exploration and is
credited, amongst many accomplishments, with having analyzed
seismic data at Rio Tinto's Roughrider Project (former Hathor
Exploration), contributing to its discovery, and with providing
better definition of subsurface structures at MacArthur River, the
richest uranium mine in the world. Gil Schneider, Athabasca Uranium president
commented "Having the USASK team's attention is a major coup for us
- they have helped discover or have analyzed most of the
world-class deposits in the Basin, including MacArthur River,
Shea Creek, Key and Moore Lakes, and
the Roughrider deposit, not to mention their work on the Extech IV
survey - and they're now very excited about our project. Our
Keefe Lake dataset apparently bears an uncanny resemblance to that
of MacArthur River - and with arguably the foremost experts in
uranium discovery now interested in it, we're excited for our
future. Dr. Hajnal will hopefully help prove our Keefe
theories out, and launch Athabasca Uranium to becoming a
world-class uranium company."
The USASK Geophysics Team
The USASK Geophysics team is led by Dr. Hajnal,
a Ph.D. in Geophysics with a fifty-year history of studying and
employing geophysics world-wide. His professional career in
geophysical interpretation began with Chevron Standard in 1963, and
his recent implementation of modern applied seismology in the
Athabasca Basin has led to
recognition of the immense importance of spatial understanding of
basement structures, and their originating lithospheric processes
in selection of exploration area and subsequent drilling
targets. He and his USASK laboratory are involved in the
adaptation of more effective data acquisition systems in the rugged
environment of the basin and development of data-specific signal
enhancement software systems. Dr. Hajnal has also recently led the
geophysical team at Athabasca Uranium to reanalyze the HD seismic
and airborne AeroTem data for Keefe Lake.
On the engagement, Gil
Schneider commented, "The work of the USASK seismology team
has been superb and is largely responsible for the identification
of the Keefe Lake Alteration Zone and our success in drilling the
numerous intersections of uranium mineralization. This new
investigation, which will be a synthesis of a host of datasets,
should help unlock Keefe Lake and pave the way to discovery."
Keefe Lake Phase 3
UAX has initiated a full scale interpretation of
data from its work to date at Keefe Lake, stimulated by the
connection between the anomalous uranium signatures in the KEF
12-08 borehole, the seismic signature of a laterally traceable
pegmatite dyke and favorable clay mineral alterations within the
unconformity zone.
Full Wave Sonic (FWS) logs, of KEF 12-08 and KEF
12-09, related geology, PIMA (Portable Infrared Mineral Analyzer)
and whole-rock geochemistry will be correlated with the seismic
data to develop a detailed understanding of the Keefe Lake 3D
structural Complex, assess major structural and tectonic trends and
generate propitious targets for the Company's upcoming winter
drilling program. Optical Tele-viewer Images (OTI) from both
boreholes will also be utilized to determine variations of dips and
their azimuth with depths for all disturbances (fractures, faults,
schistosity, dykes etc.) and thus help to define the prominent
structural framework of the prospect area. In addition,
combined analyses of sonic longitudinal and shear wave data, allows
computation of rock properties such as density, Poisson's ratio,
Lambda and Mu. Anomalous variations of these parameters facilitate
the recognition of the location of alteration zones, and definition
of fracture intervals, which are primary indicators of
mineralization.
About Athabasca Uranium
Athabasca Uranium Inc. is a uranium exploration
and development company exploring an aggregate of over 60,000
hectares strategically located in the uranium-rich Athabasca Basin region of northeast
Saskatchewan. The Company's
stated vision is to explore the region using leading-edge
technology to become a world-class uranium mining company.
Additional information on Athabasca Uranium and its vision is
available on the Company's website at www.athabascauranium.com.
ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
"Gil Schneider"
Gil Schneider,
President & CEO
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SOURCE Athabasca Uranium Inc.