open pit mines
Terraced extraction sites
Open pit mines are surface excavations where ore or minerals are extracted from a large, terraced hole in the ground rather than through underground tunnels.
The stepped walls create a distinctive amphitheater shape, descending in benches to the pit floor.
The open pit mine was visible from space.
Also called open cut mines or opencast mines.
- quarryPit for extracting rock
- excavationAct of unearthing
- deep holeCavity extending far underground
- coalCombustible sedimentary rock
- copperReddish-brown metallic element
ore · raw materials · dragline · haul trucks · heavy equipment · truck routes · terraces · benches · overburden · tailings · crater · blast zone · dust · dust clouds · blasting · dynamite · machinery · dump trucks