The final Virtual Vista is a fitting one to illustrate man's reliance on Earth resources and the extraordinary technological means used to exploit those resources.

The images on this page are of the Bingham Canyon Copper Mine near Salt Lake City, Utah, USA. This is an open pit mine developed to exploit a disseminated copper deposit. The ore-bearing rock was first discovered in 1863, and mining activity began very shortly after the discovery.

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Presently, the mine is over 1.2 km deep and over 4.6 km across. An entire mountain has been removed to create this mine, "the richest hole in the world". Since production began in 1863, this mine has yielded over 16 million tons of copper, more than any other copper mine in the world. In addition to copper, the mine also yields substantial quantities of gold, silver, and molybdenum.

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This Virtual Vista was created by processing a digital elevation model (DEM) of the mining area, then mapping a digital aerial image to the rendered surface using Geographic Information System software.

To learn more about the Bingham Canyon Copper Mine and its parent company, Kennecott Copper, visit their website by following the hyperlink above.