[Rockhounds] Deepest mine

[Tim Fisher]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mining
    * The deepest mine in the world: 
<http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Savuka_Mine&action=edit>Savuka 
Mine in the 
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_West_Province>North 
West Province, 
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Africa>South 
Africa at 3,774 
meters<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mining#_note-TauTonaPlans>[28]
        * 
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/East_Rand_Mine>East 
Rand Mine in 
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boksburg>Boksburg, 
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Africa>South 
Africa briefly held the record at 3,585 meters
        * The first mine declared the deepest in 
the world was 
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TauTona>TauTona in 
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carletonville>Carletonville, 
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Africa>South 
Africa at 3,581 meters. Plans exist to extend 
TauTona to a depth of 3,902 meters by July 2008, 
which will make it the deepest 
again.<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mining#_note-TauTonaPlans>[28]
    * The deepest mine in Europe: 
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyh%C3%A4salmi_Mine>Pyhäsalmi 
Mine in 
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyh%C3%A4j%C3%A4rvi>Pyhäjärvi, 
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Finland>Finland at 1,444 meters
    * The second deepest mine in Europe: 
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boulby_Mine>Boulby 
Mine 
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/England>England at 
1,400 meters (shaft depth 1,100 meters)
    * The deepest open pit mine in the world: 
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bingham_Canyon_Mine>Bingham 
Canyon Mine in 
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bingham_Canyon>Bingham 
Canyon, <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utah>Utah, 
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USA>USA at over 1,200 meters
    * The second deepest open pit copper mine in 
the world: 
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chuquicamata>Chuquicamata 
in 
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chuquicamata>Chuquicamata, 
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chile>Chile at 900 meters
    * The worlds largest underground mine: 
<http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Kirunavaara_mine&action=edit>Kirunavaara 
mine in 
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kiruna>Kiruna, 
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sweden>Sweden, 450 
kilometers of roads, 40 million tonnes of ore 
produced yearly, depth 1270 meters.
    * The deepest borehole in the world: 
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kola_Superdeep_Borehole>Kola 
Superdeep Borehole at 12,262 meters. This, 
however, is not a matter of mining but rather 
related to 
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientific_drilling>scientific drilling.

At 03:20 AM 1/1/2008, you wrote:
>The last Rattlesnake sand calcites I got I 
>traded with a guy who said he worked as a 
>veterinarian in S.D. and that he did work on an 
>Indian reservation where the calcites could be 
>collected. He said because of his relationship 
>with some of the Indians on the reservation he 
>could collect the sand calcites to a limited extent.
>
>
>
>The Homestake mine has the deepest mine shaft in 
>the world? Perhaps in the USA, but certainly not 
>in the world. http://www.homestaketour.com/ says 
>that the lowest mine level at the home stake was 
>"more than 8,000 feet. Gold mines in the Rand in 
>the Republic of South Africa have operational 
>levels at more than 3.8 km. Some yeas ago I was 
>told by a retired mine captain that one mine had 
>an operational level at 15,000 feet below the 
>surface. If I recall, the elevation of Joeberg 
>is about the same as Denver. (Plagiarized from 
>http://www.mbendi.co.za/indy/ming/gold/af/sa/p0005.htm#5)
>
>
>
>      Major Projects
>
>
>The development of the South Deep Mine (owned 
>jointly by Western Areas and Placer Dome). This 
>mine is a southerly extension to the Western 
>Area Gold Mine, and contains measured and 
>indicated reserves of 78.9 million ounces of 
>gold in 541 million tonnes grading 4.5 g/t gold.
>
>Currently a 2.4 km shaft is being sunk to 
>intersect haulage's developed from the Western 
>Areas mine to the north. Avgold are currently 
>developing the Target orebody (estimated total 
>resource of 6.5 Moz), situated in the Free State 
>Province. Similar to South Deep, the orebody is 
>being accessed by haulages developed from 
>Avgold's Lorraine Gold Mine. AngloGold are 
>investigating using deep level mining technology 
>to develop the Ultra Deeps orebody, situated at 
>5km depth. The orebody is currently down dip 
>from Harmony Gold's Elandsrand mine. (5 km is 16,500 feet)
>
>There is plenty of gold in the ground but the 
>problem is the increasing heat encountered at 
>greater depth. Eventually these deposites may be 
>mined only by robots which will presumably be 
>better able to take the heat. Sometimes the rock 
>simply "explodes" from the pressure.
>
>I think the big open pit copper mine at 
>Chuquicamata, Chile is currently 3x4.6 km wide 
>and .9 km deep. They advertise their hole in the 
>ground as the largest in the world. It depends 
>how you measure it if Bingham is the deepest 
>open pit. I think Bingham measures the depth 
>from a mountains side where they had some 
>workings. Chuqui is measured from a more or less level land surface.
>
>Earth first! We will mine the other planets later.
>
>Rock

Tim Fisher
Ore-ROCK-On!
Email address at http://OreRockOn.com