Chino mine

Overview:The Chino mine and processing facilities are located at Hurley, New Mexico, USA, near the historic mining community of Silver City. It is one of the largest open-pit copper mines in the world. The Chino mine covers over 9,000 acres. The pit is 1.75 miles across
Chino is a porphyry open-pit copper mine and was one of the first low-grade, open-pit copper mines in the world

This location has been mined for at least two centuries. Since 1801 more than $2,000,000,000 estimated production of copper, silver, and gold has been mined at Chino and there is potential for more. Chino began production as an open-pit mine in 1910. At current reserves mine life at the Chino copper mine is estimated to be 5 to 15 years if prices remain high 

Employment rose at Chino from 380 employees at the end of 2003 and is expected to stabilize at slightly more than 600 employees by the first quarter of 2005
The mine is owned and operated by Phelps Dodge

locaton

The Chino mine is located at Hurley, Grant County, New Mexico, 15 miles east of Silver City
Grant County is largely rural, with a population of 30,000. Silver City has a third of the population. Mining has been an occupation in this area since well before 19th century American miners arrrived. It is an area of ghost towns and ghost mines. The pit of the Chino mine is located on the former townsite of Santa Rita. The pit overtook the town, which was demolished in the 1950s  

This is a high desert area. The central part of Grant County is just under 6,000 feet above sea level. It is a region of greasewood flatlands, yucca patches and carpets of creosote brush, and cacti in many varieties. Reptiles and birds are abundant. The topography features mountains, arroyos, and desert.

Temperatures range from a low of 24°F in January to highs of 85°F in July. There is plenty of sun and few very hot or very cold days. Spring is usually dry and may be windy. Wildflowers and other desert plants may bloom, depending upon winter moisture. Beginning sometime in July the seasonal monsoon rains start. Trees turn brilliant colors in the fall and snow occasionally falls in winter  

Location Summary Nearest Landmark: GRANT CITY Distance from Landmark: 0km Direction from Landmark: Latitude: 32 deg 47 min N Longitude: 108 deg 4 min W

By road, Chino is an easy drive of 4.5 hours from Albuquerque, NM, 3.5 hours from Tucson, AZ and 1.5 hours from Palomas, Mexico. Interstate Highway 10, which joins El Paso and Tucson crosses through southern Grant County. New Mexico Highway 90 provides direct access to Silver City and much of the northern part of the County. Local air service is available to Grant County Airport. Airports in El Paso, Tucson and Phoenix are 3 and 4.5 hours away by car. Hurley is on     Highway 180 and Highway 90, about 50 miles north of the border with Mexico

This is a high desert area. The central part of Grant County is just under 6,000 feet above sea level. It is a region of greasewood flatlands, yucca patches and carpets of creosote brush, and cacti in many varieties. Reptiles and birds are abundant. The topography features mountains, arroyos, and desert  
Temperatures range from a low of 24°F in January to highs of 85°F in July. There is plenty of sun and few very hot or very cold days. Spring is usually dry and may be windy. Wildflowers and other desert plants may bloom, depending upon winter moisture. Beginning sometime in July the seasonal monsoon rains start. Trees turn brilliant colors in the fall and snow occasionally falls in winter 

Location Summary Nearest Landmark: GRANT CITY Distance from Landmark: 0km Direction from Landmark: Latitude: 32 deg 47 min N Longitude: 108 deg 4 min W

By road, Chino is an easy drive of 4.5 hours from Albuquerque, NM, 3.5 hours from Tucson,        AZ  and 1.5 hours from Palomas, Mexico. Interstate Highway 10, which joins El Paso and Tucson crosses through southern Grant County. New Mexico Highway 90 provides direct access to Silver City and much of the northern part of the County. Local air service is available to Grant County Airport. Airports in El Paso, Tucson and Phoenix are 3 and 4.5 hours away by car. Hurley is on Highway 180 and Highway 90, about 50 miles north of the border with Mexico  

Property - The Chino porphyry copper mineralisation is associated with the Palaeocene Santa Rita Stock in the Central Mining District of south-western New Mexico. Approximately 1.5 km to the north of the Santa Rita Stock is the bi-lobate Hanover-Fierro Stock

The Central Mining District lies within a NW-SE trending, 15 km wide, fault bounded range of the Arizona-New Mexico Basin and Range Province. An old north-east trending lineament passes to the south-west from the Santa Rita area, through the Tyrone, Bisbee and Cananea mining Districts in New Mexico, Arizona and Sonora in Mexico

Two main types of ore and alteration are known in the Chino open pit ... supergene enriched porphyry type mineralisation and skarn. The main areas of thick high grade mineralisation are principally supergene enrichment ore comprising chalcocite, generally accompanied by abundant pyrite within both intrusives and sediments. The southern-most is largely within the granodiorite porphyry of the Santa Rita stock, while the others are predominantly hosted by sandstones and shales of the Cretaceous Beartooth and Colorado Formations. A fairly continuous sheet of thinner ore grade rock connects these thick high grade zones. With rising metal prices and the reactivation of the Ivanhoe concentrator at Chino, byproduct production of gold, silver and molybdenum resumed in 2004

Operation - Chino was reactivated in 2003 after mining operations were idled in 2001 due to low copper prices 
The open pit mine presently covers an area of approximately one square mile at the perimeter, with additional areas on the perimeter used as rock stockpiles. The uppermost level in the pit is located on the east side at the 6,750 foot elevation and the lowest level in the pit is currently at the 5,400 foot elevation. Mining takes place on a 3-shift-per-day, 7-day-per-week basis.

Blasthole drilling is about 8,430 feet per day, or approximately 130 holes. Drill hole cuttings are sampled and assayed for determination of material type. Material is designated as sulfide ore, leach ore, or low-grade leach ore. Blasting is done only during day- shift on a 5-day-per-week basis. Loading of the materials in the Santa Rita Pit is accomplished with electric shovels varying from 17 cubic yard to 56 cubic yard dipper capacity. The size of dipper used is dependent on whether the shovel is operating in high or low density material.

The existing haulage truck fleet moves approximately 60,000 tons per day of ore, 151,000 tons per day of leach rock, and 228,000 tons per day of waste rock. Ore is delivered to the concentrator primary crusher; leach ore and no-leach rock are delivered to stockpiles on the perimeter of the pit. Haul distances are currently averaging about 13,000 feet with 600 feet of lift.

Equipment at the mine includes a P&H 2800XPA shovel and Caterpillar 797 360 ton capacity haul trucks. In 2005 Chino is installing Mintek Minesite Operations software to collect exploration and mining data 

Bored Tunnel through the Green Heart of Holland

The boring machine, named 'Aurora', started its work from a construction shaft that was 25 metres deep, the so-called start shaft. In view of the boring machine's size, the start shaft measured 30 metres in width and over 80 metres in length. From this shaft, the tunnel boring machine commenced its journey at a depth of 30 metres to the end shaft, 7,160 metres further south. Boring at a depth of 30 metres meant that the boring machine and the hollow tube that was left in its trail had enough earth and weight above them to prevent the whole structure from being pushed upward by the groundwater

The construction process hardly disturbed the groundwater streams, because the 15-20 metres of soil above the tunnel always allows enough space for the groundwater to pass above and under the tunnel

Digging the access ramps

The start and end of the tunnel, the so-called access ramps, where the tunnel descends or rises 30 metres, could not be bored. Accordingly, both the closed and open parts of the access ramps were dug. The access ramps are basically huge concrete tanks – partly with an open roof, partly closed

To affect the groundwater level in the vicinity of the access ramps as little as possible, these concrete tanks were built in sealed-off construction pits, lined with so-called deep walls. The deep wall panels reach 25 metres into the ground and anchor the concrete floors of the two construction pits. Only those parts of the access ramp construction floors that were less deep had to be pile supported 

For those parts that were situated at less depth, steel pipes with a diameter of 1 to 1.5 metres were used as piles. This meant heavy-duty piling. When the construction pits allowed for less deep piling, the steel pipes could be replaced by lighter, steel sheet piling, making the piling work also lighter

After driving the sheetpile walls and installing the deep walls, the soil was removed down to a few metres below the bottom of the projected tunnel. When the digging was finished, the excavation had groundwater in it, as was expected. At that point, a watertight floor of underwater concrete was poured on the bottom of the construction pit. To prevent this concrete floor from being pushed up by the groundwater after draining, the floor is held by so-called tension piles

When the construction pits were finished, the tunnel access ramps were built of reinforced concrete. In the meantime, these access ramps and the deep shaft have been covered with earth from the same area. For this reason, this building method is also called cut & cover. The roof and the areas around the access ramps are brought back to the original state as much as possible. The open part of the access ramps remains open and visible

The work on each access ramp took around twelve months

Excess earth

The excess dug-out earth is stored in temporary depots. The final use of this earth was the subject of negotiations with various parties. After removal of the boring fluid and any salt from the partly brackish groundwater, the sand that is released from the bored tunnel may be used for raising terrain or road construction

Construction schedule

   Main features     

• Length of bored tunnel: 7160 metres; or 8670 metres including access ramps
• Length of access ramp at Leiderdorp: 713 metres
• Length of access ramp at Hazerswoude: 768 metres
• Diameter drill chuck: 14.87 metres
• Depth of tunnel: approximately 30 metres under Normal Amsterdam Water Level
• Concrete partition wall: 10 metres high and 0.45 metres thick

...... TO BE CONTINUED

Construction

A tunnel may be for pedestrains or cyclists, for general road traffiic, for motor vehicles only, for rail  traffic, or for a canal. Some are acqueducts, constructed purely for carrying water — for consumption, for hydroelectric purposes or as sewers — while others carry other services such as telecommunication cables. There are even tunnels designed as wild crossing for European badgers and other endengered spicies. Some secret tunnels have also been made as a method of entrance or escape from an area, such as the Cu Chi tunnels or the tunnels connecting the Gaza Stip to Egypt.

In the United Kingdom a pedestrian tunnel or other underpass beneath a road is called a subway. This term was also used in the past in the United States, but is now used to refer to underground rapid transit systems.

The longest canal tunnel is the Standedge tunnel in the United Kingdom, which stretches over three miles

The central part of a rapid transit network is usually built in tunnels. To allow non-level crossings, some lines run in deeper tunnels than others. At metro stations there are usually pedestrian tunnels from one platform to another. Often, ground-level railway station also have one or more pedestrian tunnels under the railway to enable passengers to reach the platforms without having to walk across the tracks. However, in the United Kingdom bridges are an equally popular method of pedestrian access between two or more different railway station platforms

.....TO BE CONTINUED

Vertical Shaft : A shaft perpendicular (at a right angle) to the surface; mines with access through vertical shafts are shaft mines.
Inclined Shaft : A shaft at an angle to the surface; also known as a slop shaft. Mines with access through inclined shafts are slop mines.
Drift : A horizontal shaft at an underground working level. Mines with access through horizontal shafts are drift mines.
Headframe : A steel or timber frame at the top of a shaft; it carries the sheave or pulley for hoisting rope and serves various other purposes such as lifting and transferring ore.
Cage : An elevator that lowers and brings up mine personnel.
Skip Hoist : An elevator, shaped like a bucket, used to raise mined ore to the surface.
Sump : A pit where water collects at the bottom of a shaft.
Crosscut : A tunnel connecting drifts, usually at right angles to them.
Raise : A shaft driven upward from a drift.
Winze (pronounced winz) : A shaft driven downward from a drift.
Stope : The area from which ore is being or has been removed; it is the basid productive area of the mine.
Continuous Miner : A machine with cutting edges to break up soft or weak mineral deposits and remove them in continuous operation.
Blastholes : Holes drilled into the face of a mineral deposit; explosives are placed in the holes.
Bit : The cutting edge of a drill.
Jackhammer : A hand-held pneumatic drill.
Jumbo : A machine mounted with several drills known as drifters.
Haulage : Means of moving ore, supplies, and personnel from the mine.
Methane : An inflammable gas released by coal.
Stabilization : The system of support used in a mine to prevent rock slides or cave-ins.
Timbering : A stabilization system that uses timbers (heavy beams of wood).
Hydraulic Jack : A device for raising or lifting a heavy weight; it is operated by water or another fluid.
Overhand Stoping : Working the mineral deposit from a lower to an upper level; the opposite, from upper to lower, is underhand stoping.
Breast Stoping : Working the deposit horizontally.
Rill Stoping : Working the deposit at an angle to its face.
Open Stope : A roomlike stope where the ceiling rock can be supported by columns of the ore being mined; also called room and pillar mining.
Robbing : Removing pillars of ore that have been left as supports in an open stope; afterward, the stope is allowed to cave in.
Timbered Stope : A stope supported by beams of timber.
Filled Stope : A stope temporarily supported by timbers but afterwards filled in with waste material.
Shrinkage Stope : A stope in which broken-up ore is left to serve as a platform for mining the ore above.
Caving : A system of mining in which ore is made to cave in on mined chambers or shafts below the deposit.

Central Artery/Tunnel Project.  Big Dig

Vital Statistics Location: Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Completion Date: 2004
Cost: more than $10 billion
Length: 18,480 feet 3.5 milesPurpose: Roadway
Setting: Soft ground
Materials: Steel, concrete
Engineer(s): Bechtel, Parsons Brinckerhoff, Quaide Douglas

Some call the Central Artery/Tunnel Project in Boston, Massachusetts, the "largest, most complex and technologically challenging highway project in American history." Others consider it one of the most expensive engineering projects of all time. Locals simply call it the "Big Dig." By the time it's finished in 2004, the tunnel will be eight lanes wide, 3.5 miles long, and completely buried beneath a major highway and dozens of glass-and steel skyscrapers in Boston’s bustling financial district. What does it take to dig a tunnel like this? A lot of hard work and a handful of engineering tricks.

Heavy construction vehicles working on a stretch of the Big Dig, Boston, Massachusetts, 2000

Today, engineers use special excavating equipment, called "clamshell excavators," that work well in confined spaces like downtown Boston. These special machines carve narrow trenches -- about three feet wide and up to 120 feet deep -- down to bedrock. In Boston, engineers are pumping liquid slurry (clay mixed with water) into the trenches to keep the surrounding dirt from caving in. Huge reinforcing steel beams are lowered into the soupy trenches, and concrete is pumped into the mix. Concrete is heavier than slurry, so it displaces the clay-water mix. The side-by-side concrete-and-steel panels form the walls of the tunnel, which will allow workers to remove more than three miles of dirt beneath the city

As if tunneling beneath a city isn’t hard enough, the soil beneath Boston is actually landfill -- it’s very loose and soggy. Engineers had to devise a few tricks to keep the soggy soil from collapsing. Their solution: freezing the soil! Engineers pump very cold saltwater through a web of pipes beneath the city streets. The cold pipes draw heat out of the soil little by little. Once frozen, the soil can be excavated without sinking. Engineers also inject glue, or grout, into pores in the ground to make the soil stronger and less spongy during tunnel construction

  .....TO BE CONTINUED

There are three steps to a tunnel's success.Today, engineers know that there are three basic steps to building a stable tunnel. The first step is excavation: engineers dig through the earth with a reliable tool or technique. The second step is support: engineers must support any unstable ground around them while they dig. The final step is lining: engineers add the final touches, like the roadway and lights, when the tunnel is structurally sound

Based on the setting, tunnels can be divided into three major types

Soft-ground tunnels...
are typically shallow and are often used as subways, water-supply systems, and sewers. Because the ground is soft, a support structure, called a ,tunnel shield must be used at the head of the tunnel to prevent it from collapsing

Rock tunnels
require little or no extra support during construction and are often used as railways or roadways through mountains. Years ago, engineers were forced to blast through mountains with dynamite. Today they rely on enormous rock-chewing contraptions called tunnel boring machines
Hoosac Tunnel interior
North Adams, Massachusetts

Rock Tunnel: Forces
The rock walls are very dense and can support themselves. Some sections of the rock are less dense than other sections. These loose chunks of rock push on the sides of the tunnel.

Underwater tunnels are particularly tricky to construct, as water must be held back while the tunnel is being built. Early engineers used pressurized excavation chambers to prevent water from gushing into tunnels. Today, prefabricated tunnel segments can be floated into position, sunk, and attached to other sections

Tunnel segment being floated into position
Boston Harbor, Massachusetts


 TO BE CONTINUED

With more than six million kilometers of highways and 240,000 kilometers of railways snaking across the United States, life above ground has become increasingly congested. Tunnels provide some of the last available space for cars and trains, water and sewage, even power and communication lines. Today, it's safe to bore through mountains and burrow beneath oceans -- but it was not always this way. In fact, it took engineers thousands of years to perfect the art of digging tunnels

Before cars and trains, tunnels carried only water                            

Roman engineers created the most extensive network of tunnels in the ancient world. They built sloping structures, called aqueducts, to carry water from mountain springs to cities and villages. They carved underground chambers and built elegant arch structures not only to carry fresh water into the city, but to carry wastewater out

Worsely underground canal tunnel                                                         

Inauguration of Holland Tunne l
New York, New York

With trains and cars came a tremendous expansion in tunnel construction
During the 19th and 20th centuries, the development of railroad and motor vehicle transportation led to bigger, better, and longer tunnels

Tunnel boring machine
Used to carve New York Third Water Tunnel
 

Today, not even mountains and oceans stand in the way.With the latest tunnel construction technology, engineers can bore through mountains, under rivers, and beneath bustling cities. Before carving a tunnel, engineers investigate ground conditions by analyzing soil and rock samples and drilling test holes

TO BE CONTINUED

Exploring : With reference to mining, the process of searching or inspecting an area for mineral deposits. Another mining term is prospecting and the person engaged in the search is a prospector.
Geology : The study of the earth's crust or surface and the materials in it.
Geophysics : Combines geology and physics.
Geochemistry : Applies chemistry to the study of the earth's features.
Magnetometer : A device for measuring the strength of the earth's magnetic field.
Geiger Counter : A device to detect radioactivity, the energy given off by unstable elements.
Core Drilling : The process of drilling with a hollow cylinder to obtain samples of subsurface materials; the samples are called cores.
Gravimeter : A device for measuring the earth's gravity.
Seismograph : A device for measuring vibrations in the earth; it can be used to detect earthquakes or to record mechanical vibrations.
Overburden : The rock or soil above a valuable mineral deposit, sometimes called burden.
Dredge : A floating barge used for excavation in shallow waters.
Nodule : A small round lump of matter; manganese is obtained from nodules recovered from the ocean.
Surface Mining : Excavating mineral deposits by methods that do not involves shafts or tunnels into the earth .
Bucket Excavator : A device with a number of bucketlike shovels on a moving belt; it can dig up and dump waste material in a continuous operation.
Open Pit Mine : A surface mine in which working levels, like terraces, are cut into the ground; sometimes called an open cut mine.
Bench : A working level in an open pit mine.
Rock Mechanics : An attempt at a mathematical analysis of the forces acting along the joint of natural rock formation.
Strip Mining : A form of surface mining in which the overburden is removed so that a vein of ore or seam of coal roughly horizontal to the surface can be removed from open pit mining in the benches are not usually used in strip mining operations.
Contour Strip Mining : Strip mining which follows the contours (lines that separate different heights or elevations) in hilly or mountainous areas.
Alluvial Deposits : Sand, clay, and gravel deposited by flowing water.
Placer Mining : A system of mining in which heavier substances are separated from lighter ones in flowing water by the force of gravity.
Nugget : A solid lump, usually of pure gold.
Hydraulic Mining : A system of mining using a stream of water under pressure to break up alluvial deposits; the nozzle that directs the water is called a hydraulic giant.
Sluice : A channel for directing and controlling the flow of water.
Gravel : Loose material consisting small, rounded fragments of rock.
Pneumatic Drill : A drill that works by means of compressed air.
Wedge : A device with two flat sides that come together at an angle or point; it can be driven into an object to split it.
Aggregate : Crushed rock mixed with cement to produce concrete.

To be continued ...

ب) مواد معدنی طبقه دو _ که عبارتند از :

1. آهن،طلا،کرم،قلع،جیوه،سرب،روی،مس، تیتان،آنتیموان،مولیبدن، کبالت،تنگستن، کادمیوم و سایر فلزات.

2. نیتراتها،فسفاتها،براتها،نمکهای قلیایی،سولفاتها،کربناتها،کلرورها (به استثنای مواد یاد شده در طبقه یک) و نظایر آنها.

3. میکا،گرافیت،تالک، کائولن،نسوزها ،فلدسپاتها ، سنگ و ماسه سیلیسی،پرلیت، دیاتومیت،زئولیت،بوکسیت،خاک سرخ،خاک زرد،خاکهای صنعتی و نظایر آنها .

4. سنگهای قیمتی و نیمه قیمتی مانند الماس، زمرد، یاقوت،یشم، فیروزه،انواع عقیق و امثال آنها .

5. انواع سنگهای تزئینی و نما .

6. انواع زغالسنگها و شیلهای غیر نفتی .

7. مواد معدنی قابل استحصال از آبها و نیز گازهای معدنی به استثنای گازهای هیدروکربوری . (مواد معدنی طبقه دو عبارتند از مواد معدنی فلزی و غیر فلزی)

ج) مواد معدنی طبقه سه _ که عبارتند از کلیه هیدروکربورها به استثنای زغالسنگ .مانند نفت خام، گاز طبیعی، قیر پلمه سنگهای نفتی و سنگ آسفالت طبیعی و ماسه های آغشته به نفت و امثال آنها . (قیر، پلمه سنگهای نفتی و سنگ آسفالت طبیعی در صورتی که مورد عمل وزارت نفت،شرکتها و واحدهای تابعه و وابسته به آن وزارت نباشد، جزو معادن طبقه دو محسوب می شوند.

د) مواد معدنی طبقه چهار _ که عبارتند از کلیه مواد پرتوزا اعم از اولیه و ثانویه.

_تبصره: طبقه آن دسته از مواد معدنی مرتبط با محدوده طبقات یک و دو که در طبقه بندی فوق مشخص نشده یا مورد تردید باشد و نیز طبقه موادی شامل چند ماده از یک طبقه و موادی از طبقه دیگر، بر حسب نوع، اهمیت و ارزش این مواد توسط وزارت صنایع و معادن تعیین می شود.

بر اساس ماده چهار قانون معادن امور مربوط به مواد معدنی طبقات یک و دو به استثنای شن و ماسه معمولی و خاک رس معمولی در چارچوب قانون معادن در حیطه وظایف وزارت صنایع و معادن می باشد.

_تبصره: تشخیص معمولی بودن شن وماسه و خاک رس با وزارت صنایع و معادن است.

منبع: مسئولین فنی در معادن – دکتراردشیر سعد محمدی،مهندس مجید پورمقدم،مهندس علی ابراهیم زاده

Mineral : A naturally occurring inorganic substances, usually crystalline, with relatively definite chemical composition and physical characteristics. Although coal in its rock like form is originally organic, it is sometimes classified as a mineral.
Metal : Any one of a group of chemical elements with similar properties. Metals are usually shiny, malleable, and ductile. They all conduct heat and electricity and can replace hydrogen in certain compounds. Iron, copper, gold, silver, and aluminum are common metals.
Crystal : A solid substance with a symmetrical, repetitive arrangement of surfaces. Quartz, a compound frequently found in rock and sand, has a crystalline structure, like a diamond.
Rock : Hard material on the outer crust of the earth consisting of one or more minerals. There are three kinds of rock : igneous (a familiar example is granite), sedimentary (a familiar example is limestone), and metamorphic (a familiar example is marble).
Mining : The process of extracting minerals from the earth. A mine is the place where this process takes place.
Quarrying : The process of excavating rock to obtain stone usually used for building purposes. A quarry is the place where the process is carried on.
Compound : A chemical state in which two or more elements are joined together. Quartz is a compound of one particle or atom of silicon and two of oxygen; its chemical name is silicon dioxide.
Ore : A mineral  compound that contains a metal or some other element that can be extracted for profit.
Concentration : The process of separating metal from rock in an ore.
Refining : Removing impurities from metal that has been concentrated from its ore. The entire process of extraction, concentration, and purification is often referred to as refining.
Smelting : A process for extracting or refining metal that involves heating until the metal melts.
Outcrop : A rock formation exposed on the surface of the earth.
Shaft : A vertical opening into the earth. Shaft mining is underground mining.
Vein or Seam : A mineral deposit between layers of rock under the ground. Vein usually refers to a metallic ore and seam to coal.
Meteorite : A mineral mass that has entered the earth from space; it often consists of iron or iron and nickel.
Slag : Impurities separated from a metal during the smelting process.
Coke : A product of coal from which gases have been removed by heating; it burns at very high heat.
Electrolysis or Electrolytic Process : A method of reducing ores or refining metals by passing an electric current through a liquid mixture or solution.
Fault : A break in a body of rock where layers or types of rock have moved in relation to each other.
Fossil : A trace of something that lived long ago. Coal, petroleum, and natural gas are called fossil fuels because they were formed from organisms which lived millions of years ago.
Paleontology : The scientific study of evidence of of prehistoric life based on fossil remains.
Topsoil : The upper layer of soil normally suitable for agricultural purposes.

To be continued ...

سيستم مكان ياب جهاني (Global Positioning Systems) يا GPS يك سيستم راهبري و مسيريابي ماهواره اي است كه از شبكه اي با ۲۴ ماهواره ساخته شده است.

به گزارش بخش آموزش شبكه فن آوري اطلاعات ايران ، از خبرگزاری موج، اين ماهواره ها به سفارش وزارت دفاع ايالات متحده ساخته و در مدار قرار داده شده است . اين سيستم در ابتدا براي مصارف نظامي تهيه شد ولي از سال ۱۹۸۰ استفاده ي همگاني از آن آزاد و آغاز شد.
خدمات اين مجموعه در هر شرايط آب و هوايي و در هر نقطه از كره ي زمين در تمام ساعت شبانه روز در دسترس است. پديد آوردنگان اين سيستم، هيچ حق اشتراكي براي كاربران در نظر نگرفته اند و استفاده از آن كاملا رايگان ميباشد.
GPS چگونه كار مي كند؟
ماهواره هاي اين سيستم، در مداراتي دقيق هر روز ۲ بار بدور زمين مي گردند و اطلاعاتي را به زمين مخابره مي كنند. گيرنده هاي GPS اين اطلاعات را دريافت كرده و با انجام محاسبات هندسي، محل دقيق گيرنده را روي كره ي زمين محاسبه مي كنند.
در واقع گيرنده زمان فرستاده سيگنال توسط ماهواره را با زمان دريافت آن مقايسه مي كند. از اختلاف اين دو زمان فاصله گيرنده از ماهواره تعيين مي گردد. حال اين عمل را با داده هاي دريافتي از چند ماهواره ديگر تكرار مي كند و بدين ترتيب محل دقيق گيرنده را با اختلافي ناچيز در ميبابد.
گيرنده به دريافت اطلاعات همزمان از حداقل ۳ ماهواره براي محاسبه ۲ بعدي و يافتن طول و عرض جغرافيايي، و همچنين دريافت اطلاعات حداقل ۴ ماهواره براي يافتن مختصات سه بعدي نيازمند است.
با ادامه ي دريافت اطلاعات از ماهواره ها گيرنده اقدام به محاسبه سرعت، جهت، مسيرپيموده شده، فواصل طي شده، فاصله باقي مانده تا مقصد، زمان طلوع و غروب خورشيد و بسياري اطاعات مفيد ديگر مي نمايد.

ماهواره هاي سيستم
۲۴ ماهواره ي GPS در مدارهايي بفاصله ۳۶۶۰۰ كيلومتري از سطح دريا گردش مي كنند. هر ماهواره دقيقا طي ۱۲ ساعت با سرعت ۱۱ هزار كيلومتر بر ساعت يك دور كامل بدور زمين مي گردد.
اين ماهواره ها نيروي خود را از خورشيد تامين مي كنند ولي باتري هايي نيز براي زمانهاي خورشيد گرفتگي و يا مواقعي كه در سايه ي زمين حركت مي كنند بهمراه دارند. راكتهاي كوچكي نيز ماهواره ها را در مسير درست نگاه مي دارند. به اين ماهواره ها NAVSTAR نيز گفته مي شود.
در اينجا به برخي مشخصه هاي جالب اين سيستم اشاره مي كنيم:
• اولين ماهواره GPS در سال ۱۹۷۸ در مدار زمين قرار گرفت.
• در سال ۱۹۹۴ شبكه ۲۴ عددي NAVSTAR تكميل شد.
• عمر هر ماهواره حدود ۱۰ سال است كه پس از آن جايگزين مي گردد.
• هر ماهواره حدود ۲۰۰۰ پاوند وزن دارد و درازاي باتري هاي خورشيدي آن ۵.۵ متر است.
• انرژي مصرفي هر ماهواره، كمتر از ۵۰ وات ميباشد.
گيرنده ي GPS
بسته به نوع مصرف و بودجه مي توانيد از گستره ي زيادي از گيرنده هاي GPS بهره ببريد. همچنين، بايد از در دسترس بودن نقشه ي مناسب و بروز (up-to-date) براي منطقه ي مورد استفاده تان، اطمينان حاصل كنيد.
امروزه بهاي گيرنده هاي GPS بطور چشمگيري كاهش پيدا كرده و هم اكنون در اروپا با بهايي برابر با يك گوشي متوسط موبايل نيز مي توان گيرنده GPS تهيه كرد.
امروزه در كشورهاي توسعه يافته از اين سيستم جهت كمك به راهبري خودرو، كشتي و انواع وسايل نقليه ي ديگر بهره گيري مي شود.
هر چه نقشه هاي منطقه اي كه در حافظه گيرنده بارگذاري مي شود دقيق تر باشد، سرويسهايي كه از GPS مي توان دريافت داشت نيز بهتر ميشود.
براي نمونه مي توان از GPS مسير نزديكنرين پمپ بنزين، تعميرگاه و يا ايستگاه قطار را پرسيد و مسير پيشنهادي را دنبال كرد. دقت مكانيابي اين سيستم در حد چند متر است كه بسته به كيفيت گيرنده تغيير مي كند.
از سيستم مكان ياب جهاني مي توان در كارههايي چون نقشه برداري و مساحي، پروژه هاي عمراني، كوهنوردي، كايت سواري، سفر در مناطق ناشناخته، كشتي راني و قايقراني، عمليات نجات هنگام وقوع سيل و زمينلرزه و هر فعاليت ديگر كه نيازمند محل يابي باشد، بهره برد.

موقعيت جغرافيايي معدن:
   معدن مس سرچشمه با مختصات "20 '52° 55 طول شرقي و "40 '56° 29 عرض شمالي در 160 كيلومتري جنوب غربي كرمان و 50 كيلومتري رفسنجان قرار دارد. اين معدن از طريق جاده‌ي آسفالته به رفسنجان و سيرجان مرتبط بوده و فاصله آن تا بندرعباس 437 كيلومتر است. ارتفاع اين ناحيه از سطح دريا به‌طور متوسط 2620 متر است و بلندترين نقطه‌ي آن از سطح دريا 3280 متر ارتفاع دارد. تغييرات ساليانه‌ي درجه‌ي حرارت در اين ناحيه از 15- تا 32+ درجه‌ي سانتي‌گراد مي‌باشد. ميزان بارندگي در ارتفاعات 550 ميلي‌متر در سال گزارش شده‌ و سرعت باد در اين ناحيه گاهي به 100 كيلومتر در ساعت مي‌رسد (پرند و همكاران، 1376).
   وضعيت اسكان:
   از نظر تسهيلات زندگي در معدن يك شهرك با 2500 واحد مسكوني براي خانواده‌ها با مساحتي معادل 280000 متر مربع زيربنا براي سكونت 2500 خانوار احداث گرديده و 150 دستگاه كاروان مسكوني با تجهيزات كامل جهت اسكان مجردين در نظر گرفته شده است.
   اين شهرك داراي تسهيلات آموزشي از قبيل مهدكودك، كودكستان، دبستان، راهنمايي و دبيرستان، مسجد، فروشگاه، رستوران، استاديوم ورزشي، بانك، سرويس‌هاي اياب و ذهاب جهت كاركنان مي‌باشد (پرند و همكاران، 1376).
   سابقه‌ي معدن:
   اين محل از قديم به‌دليل جاري بودن آب‌هاي زنگاري‌رنگ و تشكيل رسوبات آبي‌رنگ در كف‌ دره‌ها و جويبارها مورد توجه بوده است. اين رسوبات نمك كه سولفات مس مي‌باشند، هم اكنون نيز در كف آبراهه‌هاي اطراف معدن قابل مشاهده مي‌باشند. اين كانسار براي اولين‌بار توسط مهندس انتظام در سال 1928 كشف شد. او در اين منطقه به‌دنبال سرب و روي بود كه مشاهده سرباره‌هاي مربوط به قرن‌هاي گذشته و آزمايش آن‌ها در منطقه او را به اين معدن راهنمايي كرد.
   اولين كارهاي اكتشافي و پي‌جويي در سال 1966 توسط سازمان زمين‌شناسي كشور در اين منطقه انجام شد. كارهاي دقيق‌تر اكتشافي با حفاري‌هايي به‌طول 12000 متر ادامه يافت.

عمليات معدن‌كاري در اين معدن از سال 1345 با صدور پروانه‌ي اكتشاف به نام «شركت سهامي معادن كرمان» آغاز شد. در سال 1346 اين شركت به همراه يك شركت مهندسي مشاور انگليسي به تهيه نقشه‌هاي زمين‌شناسي منطقه به مقياس 1:50000 و 1:10000 و 1:2500 پرداخته و به‌دنبال آن شبكه‌ حفاري 200 متري بر روي نقشه 1:2500 ايجاد شد.
   با انحلال مشاركت شركت‌هاي ايراني - انگليسي در سال 1349 ادامه‌ي‌ عمليات اكتشافي به «شركت سهامي معادن مس سرچشمه» سپرده شد و اين شركت توانست تا سال 1354 عمليات حفاري عمقي در شبكه‌هاي 100 متري قائم و 50 متري زاويه‌دار را به انجام رساند.
   در سال 1355، به دنبال تحولات پديد آمده در شيلي، شركت آناكاندا (Anaconda) از كمپاني‌هاي اصلي بهره‌‌برداري مس شيلي، طي مشاركت با «شركت ملي صنايع مس ايران» - كه جايگزين شركت سهامي معادن مس سرچشمه شده بود - طرح 20 ساله بهره‌برداري از معدن و طراحي كارخانه را آغاز نمود كه اين برنامه‌ها با وقوع انقلاب اسلامي متوقف شد.
   ادامه‌ي فعاليت‌ها در سال 1357 توسط كارشناسان ايراني پيگيري شد و آنان توانستند طي سال‌هاي 1360 تا 1362 به ترتيب واحدهاي «معدن و تغليظ»، «ذوب و ريخته‌گري»، «استحصال موليبدن» و «پالايشگاه» را راه‌اندازي كنند (عباسي كليماني، 1383). 
   در حال حاضر مجتمع مس سرچشمه اولين توليدكننده‌ي مس در ايران است كه تحت پوشش شركت ملي صنايع مس ايران قرار دارد. بهره‌برداري از معدن از سال 1380 براساس طرح توسعه‌ي معدن كه توسط كارشناسان ايراني تدوين شده، صورت مي‌گيرد. ميزان كانسنگ خروجي روزانه از جبهه‌هاي مختلف معدن كه به روش روباز استخراج مي‌شود 41000 تن و ساليانه حدود 14 ميليون تن با عيار 1% مي‌باشد. ميزان توليد نيز 120000 تن در سال بوده كه در طرح توسعه به 200000 تن افزايش يافته‌است. براساس اين طرح ظرفيت استخراج روزانه از حدود 40000 تن به 80000 تن رسيده و عمر مفيد معدن با اين طرح از 15 سال به 27 سال افزايش يافته و تا سال 1403 شمسي ادامه خواهد يافت