SLC - Copper Mine

We took a side trip to the nearby mine - a great experience. This is the world's largest (production/size) open-pit mine and has been in continuous production for over a 100 years! The visitor's center is well done and these photos are from its balcony overlooking the mine.

This thing is huge! To help grasp the scale: it is one of only a few man-made objects that can be seen by the naked eye from the orbiting Space Station by the astronauts. Look at the black dots on the roads, above; they are mostly the trucks seen below hauling ore to the crushers where they begin extracting the metals.

Again, to appreciate the scale of this operation: there are six tires on this baby - and we are standing by one of the old Michelins retired from service. Its over 12 ft in diameter - ran 50,000 miles in one year - cost over $25,000 to buy new and weighs 10,000 pounds - by itself! Wow! Now that's making a whole lot of hole.