This astronaut photograph illustrates three open-pit copper mines located west-northwest of the town of Green Valley, Arizona.
Published Feb 8, 2010
Mined for gold, silver, and copper, the region of Butte, Montana, had already earned the nickname of “The Richest Hill on Earth” by the end of the 19th century.
Published Nov 13, 2006
One of the largest open-pit copper mines in the world, the Cananea mine produced over 164,000 tonnes of copper in 2006. The active, 2-kilometer-diameter Colorada Pit is recognizable by the concentric steps, or benches, cut around its perimeter.
Published Apr 21, 2008
The impoundment area for waste materials associated with the Escondida Copper Mine in Chile is centered in this astronaut photograph from December 9, 2009.
Published Apr 5, 2010
The rugged, mineral-rich Andes support some of the world’s biggest mines (gold, silver, copper, and more). This image looks down the bullseye of Peru’s Toquepala copper mine, a steep sided and stepped open-pit mine.
Published Oct 13, 2003
The pit near Phalaborwa and Kruger National Park is the most visible sign of a long history of mining in the region.
Published Jul 30, 2019
Located in the Sudirman Mountains of the Irian Jaya province of Indonesia, the Grasberg complex is one of the largest gold and copper mining operations in the world.
Published Aug 1, 2005
Although this photograph may appear to be a small pit mine as seen from the air, it is actually a pit mine that is about a mile wide and just over a thousand feet deep as photographed by astronauts orbiting the Earth on board the International Space Station. The New Cornelia Mine is located just south of Ajo, Arizona. Small-scale mining of copper in this area began with the Spaniards and Mexicans as early as 1750. This large-scale, systematic operation began in 1912 and expanded rapidly for the next 50 years. Since the mid 1980s, activity has been limited because of low prices for copper on the world market. Note the tailings deposits to the east (right) and the larger containment ponds for extraction processes to the northeast.
Published Jun 23, 2002
A massive landslide occurred at Utah’s Bingham Canyon Mine on April 10, 2013. It was the largest non-volcanic landslide on record in North America.
Published Jun 13, 2013
The city’s economic engine is also a worrisome source of pollution.
Published Mar 16, 2019
The Cerro Verde mine in Peru produces nearly one billion pounds of copper per year.
Published Jan 8, 2017
One of Earth’s richest borate deposits is at the center of the largest open-pit mine in California.
Published Nov 11, 2013
otswana ranks first among the world’s gem-quality diamond producers, and diamond mining makes up 70 percent of the nation’s export revenue. The Jwaneng Diamond Mine, in south-central Botswana, sits atop the convergence of three kimberlite pipes—diamond-rich geologic formations. Because the pipes meet just below the surface and cover some 520,000 square meters (128.5 acres) at ground level, the diamonds are mined from an open pit rather than a mine tunneled below the surface.
Published Oct 26, 2008
