Monticello Dam top10 holes in worlds walls new xp wallpapers

Monticello Dam is a dam in Napa County, California, United States constructed between 1953 and 1957. It is a medium concrete-arch dam with a structural height of 304 ft (93 m) and a crest length of 1,023 ft (312 m). It contains 326,000 cubic yards (249,000 m³) of concrete. The dam impounded Putah Creek to cover the former town of Monticello and flood Berryessa Valley to create Lake Berryessa, then the second-largest man-made lake in California. The capacity of the reservoir is 1,602,000 acre·ft (1.976×109 m3).[1] Water from the reservoir primarily supplies agriculture in surrounding areas. The dam is noted for its classic, uncontrolled morning-glory type spillway.[1] The diameter at the lip is 72 ft (22 m). Locally, the spillway is also known as 'The Glory Hole'. [2]
The Monticello Dam Powerplant was built at the dam in 1983 and has three generators. The electrical power is sent mostly to the North Bay area of San Francisco.

Mirny Diamond Mine top10 holes in worlds walls new xp wallpapers

Mir Mine (Russian: Кимберлитовая алмазная трубка «Мир» Kimberlitovaya Almaznaya Trubka "Mir"; English: kimberlite diamond pipe "Peace") also called Mirny Mine is an open pit diamond mine located in Mirny, Eastern Siberia, Russia. The mine is 525 meters (1,722 ft) deep (4th in the world) and has a diameter of 1,200 m (3,900 ft),[1] and is the second largest excavated hole in the world, after Bingham Canyon Mine. The airspace above the mine is closed for helicopters because of a few incidents in which they were sucked in by the downward air flow.
The mine was discovered on June 13, 1955 by Soviet geologists Yuri Khabardin, Ekaterina Elagina and Viktor Avdeenko during the large Amakinsky Expedition in Yakut ASSR. They found traces of volcanic rock kimberlite which are usually associated with diamonds. This finding was the first success in the search for kimberlite in Russia, after numerous failed expeditions of the 1940s and 1950s. For this discovery, in 1957 Khabardin was given the Lenin Prize, which was one of the highest awards in the Soviet Union.[6][7]
The development of the mine had started in 1957 in extremely harsh climate conditions. Seven months of winter per year froze the ground, which was hard in winter, but turned into sludge in summer. Buildings had to be raised on piles, so that they would not sink in summer, and the main processing plant had to be built on a better ground found 20 km away from the mine. The winter temperatures were so low that car tires and steel would shatter and oil would freeze. During the winter, the workers used jet engines to defreeze and dig out the permafrost or blasted it with dynamite to get access to the underlying kimberlite. The entire mine had to be covered at night to prevent the machinery from freezing.[2][8]
In the 1960s the mine was producing 10,000,000 carats (2,000 kg) of diamond per year, of which a relatively high fraction (20%) were of gem quality.[2] The upper layers of the mine (down to 340 meters) had very high diamond content of 4 carats (0.80 g) per tonne of ore, with the relatively high ratio of gems to industrial stones. The yield decreased to about 2 carats (0.40 g) per tonne and the production rate slowed to 2,000,000 carats (400 kg) per year near the pit bottom. The largest diamond of the mine was found on 23 December 1980; it weighed 342.5 carats (68 g) and was named "26th Congress CPSU" (Russian: XXVI съезд КПСС). The mine operation was interrupted in 1990s at a depth of 340 m after the pit bottom became flooded but resumed later.[9][10]
The rapid development of the Mir mine had worried De Beers company, which at that time was distributing most of the world's diamonds. De Beers had to buy Russian diamonds in order to control the market price, and therefore needed to know as much as possible about the Russian mining developments. In the 1970s, De Beers requested permission to visit the Mir mine. Permission was granted under condition that Russian experts would visit De Beers diamond mines in South Africa. De Beers executive Sir Philip Oppenheimer and chief geologist Barry Hawthorne arrived in Moscow in the summer of 1976. They were intentionally delayed in Moscow by arranging a series of meetings and lavish banquets with Soviet geologists, mineralogists, engineers and mine managers. When Oppenheimer and Hawthorne finally reached the Mir mine, their visas were about to expire, so that they could only have 20 minutes at the Mir mine. Even that short time was sufficient to get some important details. For example, the Russians did not use water during the ore processing at all, which was astonishing to De Beers. The reason was that water would freeze most of the year, and dry crushing was used instead. De Beers also overestimated the size of the mine's pit.
The Mir mine was the first and the largest diamond mine in the Soviet Union.[11] Its surface operation lasted 44 years, finally closing in June 2001.[10] After the collapse of the USSR, in the 1990s, the mine was operated by the Sakha diamond company, which reported annual profits in excess of $600 million from diamond sales.
Currently, the mine is operated by Alrosa, the largest diamond producing company in Russia, and employs 3600 workers. It has long been anticipated that the recovery of diamonds by conventional surface methods will saturate. Therefore, in 1970s construction has started of a network of underground tunnels for diamond recovery. Production of diamonds by this method started in 1999 and is estimated to last for another 27 years. This estimate is based on depth explorations down to 1220 meters. In order to stabilize the abandoned main pit, its bottom was covered by a rubble layer 45 meters thick.

guatemala sink hole top10 holes in worlds walls new xp wallpapers

A sinkhole, also known as a sink, shake hole, swallow hole, swallet, doline or cenote, is a natural depression or hole in the Earth's surface caused by karst processes — the chemical dissolution of carbonate rocks[1] or suffosion processes[2] for example in sandstone. Sinkholes may vary in size from 1 to 600 meters (3.3 to 2,000 ft) both in diameter and depth, and vary in form from soil-lined bowls to bedrock-edged chasms. Sinkholes may be formed gradually or suddenly, and are found worldwide. The different terms for sinkholes are often used interchangeably.[3]
Contents  [hide]
1 Formation mechanisms
2 Occurrence
3 Local names of sinkholes
4 Piping pseudokarst
5 Notable sinkholes
6 See also
7 References
8 External links
[edit]Formation mechanisms



Sinkholes near the Dead Sea, formed by dissolution of underground salt by incoming freshwater, as a result of a continuing sea level drop.


A special type of sinkhole – formed by rainwater leaking through the pavement and carrying dirt into a ruptured sewer pipe.
Sinkholes may capture surface drainage from running or standing water, but may also form in high and dry places in a certain location
The mechanisms of formation involve natural processes of erosion[4] or gradual removal of slightly soluble bedrock (such as limestone) by percolating water, the collapse of a cave roof, or a lowering of the water table. Sinkholes often form through the process of suffosion. Thus, for example, groundwater may dissolve the carbonate cement holding the sandstone particles together and then carry away the lax particles, gradually forming a void.
Occasionally a sinkhole may exhibit a visible opening into a cave below. In the case of exceptionally large sinkholes, such as Minyé sinkhole in Papua New Guinea or Cedar Sink at Mammoth Cave National Park, USA, a stream or river may be visible across its bottom flowing from one side to the other.
Sinkholes are common where the rock below the land surface is limestone or other carbonate rock, salt beds, or rocks that can naturally be dissolved by circulating ground water. As the rock dissolves, spaces and caverns develop underground. These sinkholes can be dramatic because the surface land usually stays intact until there is not enough support. Then, a sudden collapse of the land surface can occur.
Sinkholes also form from human activity, such as the rare but still occasional collapse of abandoned mines in places like West Virginia, USA. More commonly, sinkholes occur in urban areas due to water main breaks or sewer collapses when old pipes give way. They can also occur from the overpumping and extraction of groundwater and subsurface fluids. They can also form when natural water-drainage patterns are changed and new water-diversion systems are developed. Some sinkholes form when the land surface is changed, such as when industrial and runoff-storage ponds are created; the substantial weight of the new material can trigger an underground collapse of supporting material, thus, causing a sinkhole.
[edit]Occurrence

Sinkholes are usually but not always linked with karst landscapes. In such regions, there may be hundreds or even thousands of sinkholes in a small area so that the surface as seen from the air looks pock-marked, and there are no surface streams because all drainage occurs sub-surface. Examples of karst landscapes dotted with numerous enormous sinkholes are Khammouan Mountains (Laos) and Mamo Plateau (Papua New Guinea).[5] The largest known sinkholes formed in sandstone are Sima Humboldt and Sima Martel in Venezuela.[5]
The most impressive sinkholes form in thick layers of homogenous limestone. Their formation is facilitated by high groundwater flow, often caused by high rainfall – such high rainfall causes formation of the giant sinkholes in Nakanaï Mountains, New Britain island in Papua New Guinea.[6] On the contact of limestone and insoluble rock below it there form powerful underground rivers which may create large underground voids.
In such conditions have formed the largest known sinkholes of the world, like the 662-metre (2,172 ft) deep Xiaozhai tiankeng (Chongqing, China), giant sótanos in Querétaro and San Luis Potosí states in Mexico and others.[5][7][8]
Unusual processes have formed the enormous sinkholes of Sistema Zacatón in Tamaulipas (Mexico) – here more than 20 sinkholes and other karst formations have been shaped by volcanically heated, acidic groundwater.[9][10] This has secured not only the formation of the deepest water-filled sinkhole in the world – Zacatón, but also unique processes of travertine sedimentation in upper parts of sinkholes, leading to sealing of these sinkholes with travertine lids.[citation needed]
The state of Florida in the USA is known for having frequent sinkholes, especially in the central part of the state. The Murge area in southern Italy also has numerous sinkholes. Sinkholes can be formed in retention ponds from large amounts of rain.[citation needed]

Great Blue Hole top10 holes in worlds walls new xp wallpapers

A blue hole is a cave (inland) or underwater sinkhole. They are also called vertical caves. There are many different blue holes located around the world, typically in low-lying coastal regions. The best known examples can be found in Belize, the Bahamas, Guam, Australia (in the Great Barrier Reef), and Egypt (in the Red Sea).
Blue holes are roughly circular, steep-walled depressions, and so named for the dramatic contrast between the dark blue, deep waters of their depths and the lighter blue of the shallows around them. Their water circulation is poor, and they are commonly anoxic below a certain depth; this environment is unfavorable for most sea life, but nonetheless can support large numbers of bacteria. The deep blue color is caused by the high transparency of water and bright white carbonate sand. Blue light is the most enduring part of the spectrum; where other parts of the spectrum—red, yellow, and finally green—are absorbed during their path through water, blue light manages to reach the white sand and return back upon reflection.[1]
The deepest blue hole in the world—at 202 metres (663 ft)—is Dean's Blue Hole, located in a bay west of Clarence Town on Long Island, Bahamas. Other blue holes are about half that depth at around 100–120 metres (330–390 ft). The diameter of the top entrance ranges typically from 25–35 metres (82–115 ft) (Dean's Blue Hole) to 300 metres (980 ft) (Great Blue Hole in Belize).

Diavik Mine top10 holes in worlds walls new xp wallpapers

The Diavik Diamond Mine is a diamond mine in the North Slave Region of the Northwest Territories, Canada, about 300 kilometres (190 mi) north of Yellowknife.[1] It has become an important part of the regional economy, employing 700, grossing C$100 million in sales, and producing 8 million carats (1,600 kg (3,500 lb)) of diamonds annually. The area was surveyed in 1992 and construction began in 2001, with production commencing in January 2003. It is connected by an ice road and Diavik Airport with a 5,235 ft (1,596 m) gravel runway regularly accommodating Boeing 737 jet aircraft.
The mine is owned by a joint venture between the Harry Winston Diamond Corporation and Diavik Diamond Mines Inc., a subsidiary of Rio Tinto Group. The lifespan of the mine is expected to be 16 to 22 years.
The mine consists of three kimberlite pipes associated with the Lac de Gras kimberlite field and is located on an island 20 km2 (7.7 sq mi) in Lac de Gras and is informally called East Island. It is about 220 km (140 mi) south of the Arctic Circle.
In 2006 the ice road from Yellowknife to the Diavik mine, and neighbouring mines, froze late and thawed early.[2] The Diavik mine was unable to truck in all the supplies needed for the rest of 2006 before the road closed and arrangements had to be made to bring the remainder of the supplies in by air.
On July 5, 2007 a consortium of seven mining companies, including Rio Tinto, announced they are sponsoring environmental impact studies to construct a deep-water port in Bathurst Inlet.[3][4] Their plans include building a 211 km (131 mi) road connecting the port to their mines. The port would serve vessels of up to 25,000 tonnes.
In March 2010, underground mining began at the mine. The transition from open pit to underground mining is expected to be completed by 2012.

Darvaza Gas Crater top10 holes in worlds walls new xp wallpapers

Derweze (Turkmen language: The Gate, also known as Darvaza) is a Turkmenistan village of about 350 inhabitants, located in the middle of the Karakum desert, about 260 km north from Ashgabat.
Darvaza inhabitants are mostly Turkmen of the Teke tribe, preserving a half-nomadic lifestyle.
Contents  [hide]
1 "Door to Hell" gas deposit
2 See also
3 References
4 External links
[edit]"Door to Hell" gas deposit



The deposit as seen at night, 2010.
The Derweze area is rich in natural gas. While drilling in 1971, geologists tapped into a cavern filled with natural gas.[1] The ground beneath the drilling rig collapsed, leaving a large hole with a diameter of about 70 metres (230 ft) at 40°15′10″N 58°26′22″E. To avoid poisonous gas discharge, it was decided to burn it off.[2] Geologists had hoped the fire would use all the fuel in a matter of days, but the gas still burns 40 years later. Locals have dubbed the cavern "The Door to Hell".[3]
Next to capturing the gas, flaring is safer and friendlier to the environment than releasing the methane into the atmosphere, as methane is a relatively potent greenhouse gas and considered to have a high global warming potential of 72 (averaged over 20 years) or 25 (averaged over 100 years).[4]
Turkmenistan plans to increase its production of natural gas. In April 2010, the President of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow visited the site and ordered that the hole should be closed, or other measures be taken to limit its influence on the development of other natural gas fields in the area.[

chuquicamata copper mine chile top10 holes in worlds walls new xp wallpapers

Chuquicamata is known around the world because of its copper production (activity that preceeds the Inca Empire). It´s an industry that began circa 1882, although it started operating properly in 1911 when US capitals finished its construction. Today, the production reaches the 630 tons of fine copper every year. The Chuquicamata Mine belongs to CODELCO (Copper Corporation), the most important Chilean mineral industry, and it`s the biggest copper mine in the world (4,3 kilometers long, 3 kilometers wide and 800 meters deep). The mine has a balcony for visitors, who can also learn about copper procedures.

Attractions

Biggest copper mine in the world.

Activities

Photography.

Location

Second region. Located 16 kilometers north of Calama and 230 kilometers northeast of Antofagasta.

How to get there?

Anywhere-Santiago: Airway. Santiago-Antofagasta: Airway and land route, by Panamericana 5 North. Antofagasta-Calama: Land route, by Route 25 CH. Airway. Calama-Chuquicamata Mine: Land route (north way) Public and private transportation. Anywhere- Calama: Airway.

When to go?

All year long.

Climate

Desert weather. The temperature oscillates between day and night time, and the summer rain is more frequent with a high media of 3 milimeters. The high media temperature is 24,5ºC and the lowest is 17,1ºC.

Services

Food, transportation.

Surroundings

Ayquina, Calama, Caspana, Chiu-Chiu, Cupo, Conchi Dam, Geyser del Tatio, Ayquina Church, Lasana, Chuquicamata, Ollague, Conchi town, Coska town, Lasana Pukara, Turi Pukara, Loa River, Ascotan Salar, Carcote Salar, Toconce, Aucanquilcha Volcano.

Admision

Ask for visits in the Chuqui Office.

Bingham Canyon Mine top10 holes in worlds walls new xp wallpapers

The Bingham Canyon Mine, also known as the Kennecott Copper Mine, is an open-pit mining operation extracting a large porphyry copper deposit southwest of Salt Lake City, Utah, USA, in the Oquirrh Mountains. It is the deepest open-pit mine in the world. The mine is owned by Rio Tinto Group, an international mining and exploration company headquartered in the United Kingdom. The copper operations at Bingham Canyon Mine are managed through Kennecott Utah Copper Corporation which operates the mine, a concentrator plant, a smelter, and a refinery. The mine has been in production since 1906, and has resulted in the creation of a pit over 0.75 miles (1.2 km) deep, 2.5 miles (4 km) wide, and covering 1,900 acres (7.7 km²). According to Kennecott, it is the world's largest man-made excavation.[3] It was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1966 under the name Bingham Canyon Open Pit Copper Mine.[2]
Contents  [hide]
1 History
2 Geology
3 Recovery process
4 Production
5 Operations
6 See also
7 References
8 External links
[edit]History

Minerals, in the form of copper ore, were first discovered in Bingham Canyon in 1848 by two brothers, Sanford and Thomas Bingham, sons of Erastus Bingham, Mormon pioneers of September 1847, who grazed their family's and other's cattle and horses there. They reported their find to their leader, Brigham Young, who advised against pursuing mining operations because the survival and establishment of settlements was of paramount importance at that time. The brothers applied themselves to that purpose as directed and did not stake a claim. In 1850, the Bingham family went to settle what is now Weber County, leaving the canyon still today known by their name.[4][5]


Bingham Canyon Mine, November 1942. Carr Fork Canyon as seen from "G" bridge. A train in the background carries material to the dump.
It was not until 1863 that extraction of ore began and the potential of the canyon's mineral resources began to be widely recognized. At first, mining was difficult due to the area's rugged terrain, but a railroad reached the canyon in 1873, prompting greatly increased mining activity and accompanying settlement. The canyon's nineteenth-century mines were relatively small, however, and it was not until 1898 that plans for very large-scale exploitation of the canyon's ore bodies began to develop. That year, Samuel Newhouse and Thomas Weir formed the Boston Consolidated Mining Company, intending to increase mine development in the canyon.
A more significant development took place in 1903, when Daniel C. Jackling and Enos A. Wall organized the Utah Copper Company. Utah Copper immediately began construction of a pilot mill at Copperton, just beyond the mouth of the canyon, and the company actually started mining in 1906. The success of Utah Copper in mining the huge but low-grade porphyry copper type orebody at Bingham Canyon revolutionized the copper industry, and set the pattern for the large open-pit porphyry copper mines that today dominate the copper industry worldwide. Utah Copper and Boston Consolidated merged in 1910. The Kennecott Copper Corporation, established in 1903 to operate mines in Kennecott, Alaska, purchased a financial interest in Utah Copper in 1915 and fully acquired the company in 1936.
Bingham's Canyon mine expanded rapidly, and by the 1920s the region was a beehive of activity. Some 15,000 people of widely-varying ethnicity lived in the canyon, in large residential communities constructed on the steep canyon walls. The population declined rapidly as mining techniques improved, however, and several of the mining camps began to be swallowed up by the ever-expanding mine. By 1980, when Lark was dismantled, only Copperton, at the mouth of Bingham Canyon and with a population of 800, remained. Today, mining operations continue at full-swing in the mine. For years, the largest open-pit mine in the world, it is still the largest copper mine and among the world's largest open-pit mines. Work to expand the mine 600 feet (180 m) east began in 2005, continuing to increase its size, growth, and capabilities.

big hole udachnaya pipe top10 holes in worlds walls new xp wallpapers

The Udachnaya Pipe is a diamond mine in Russia. The mine was discovered in 1955 and is over 600 meters deep
The Udachnaya pipe is the largest diamond deposit in Russia and one of the largest in the world.
According to Wikipedia, it is an open-pit mine and it is almost 600 meters (1 968 ft.) deep.
When you are standing on the top, the huge Caterpillars look tiny.
And when you are at the bottom of the pipe, it looks... well, it looks just amazing (the 2nd photo).

big hole kimberley top10 holes in worlds walls new xp wallpapers

Kimberley is a city in South Africa, and the capital of the Northern Cape. It is located near the confluence of the Vaal and Orange Rivers. The town has considerable historical significance due its diamond mining past and siege during the Second Boer War. Notable personalities such as Cecil Rhodes made their fortune here and the roots of the De Beers corporation can also be traced to the early days of the mining town.


Country   South Africa
Province         Northern Cape
DistrictMunicipality Frances Baard
Local Municipality Sol Plaatje
Established 1873-07-05
Elevation         1,184 m (3,884 ft)
Population
 - Total         167,000
Time zone          SAST (UTC+2)
Postal Code 8300
Area code(s) 053


The Big Hole, Open Mine or Kimberley Mine (Afrikaans: Groot Gat) is an open-pit and underground mine in Kimberley, South Africa, and claimed to be the largest hole excavated by hand.
Contents  [hide]
1 History
2 The Excavation
3 Controversy
4 See also
5 References
6 External links



Main article: History of Kimberley
The first diamonds here were found on Colesberg Kopje by members of the "Red Cap Party" from Colesberg on the farm Vooruitzigt belonging to the De Beers brothers. The ensuing scramble for claims led to the place being called New Rush, later renamed Kimberley.[1] From mid-July 1871[1] to 1914 up to 50,000 miners dug the hole with picks and shovels[2] , yielding 2,720 kilograms (6,000 lb) of diamonds. The Big Hole has a surface of 17 hectares (42 acres) and is 463 metres (1,519 ft) wide. It was excavated to a depth of 240 metres (790 ft), but then partially infilled with debris reducing its depth to about 215 metres (705 ft). Since then it has accumulated about 40 metres (130 ft) of water, leaving 175 metres (574 ft) of the hole visible. Once above-ground operations became too dangerous and unproductive, the kimberlite pipe of the Kimberley Mine was also mined underground by Cecil Rhodes' De Beers company to a depth of 1,097 metres (3,599 ft).[3]
There is currently an effort in progress to register the Big Hole as a World Heritage Site