Field Notes
The biggest mines, the top companies, the software that runs the industry — and how-to guides written the way a senior engineer would actually teach them: steps, traps, and rules of thumb.
The Rankings
The 10 Most Impressive Mines on Earth
The deepest shaft, the biggest hole, the heaviest tonnage: ten mines that define the outer limits of what humans dig, from Bingham Canyon to Mponeng...
READ →Top 10 Mining Companies in the World
The biggest mining companies on Earth ranked by market heft as of mid-2026: BHP, Rio Tinto, Zijin, Glencore, Vale, Freeport, Agnico, and the new Anglo...
READ →Top 10 Aggregates Companies in the World
The biggest crushed stone, sand, and gravel producers on Earth as of 2026: CRH, Vulcan, Martin Marietta, Heidelberg, Holcim, Amrize, Cemex, Quikrete, ...
READ →Top 10 Mine Planning Software Packages
The mine planning software that actually runs the industry: Deswik, Maptek Vulcan, Surpac, Datamine, Hexagon MinePlan, Micromine, Leapfrog, Whittle, C...
READ →Top 10 GIS Software for Mining & Land Work
The best GIS software for mining and land work in 2026: QGIS, ArcGIS Pro, Global Mapper, Surfer, Google Earth Pro, Civil 3D, Metashape, Regrid, PostGI...
READ →The 10 Deepest Mines on Earth
How deep can humans dig? The ten deepest mines on Earth, from Mponeng's 4-kilometer gold workings to Kidd Creek, the deepest base-metal mine...
READ →The 10 Biggest Open Pits Ever Dug
The largest open-pit mines ever excavated: Bingham Canyon, Chuquicamata, Hull-Rust, the Super Pit, Mir, Garzweiler and more — dimensions and stories...
READ →The 10 Largest Haul Trucks in the World
The biggest mining haul trucks ever built, ranked by payload: BelAZ 75710, Cat 798 AC, Komatsu 980E, Liebherr T 284, Hitachi EH5000 and more...
READ →10 Mining Disasters That Changed the Industry
The mining disasters that rewrote safety law: Monongah, Courrières, Benxihu, Sunshine, Farmington, Aberfan, Buffalo Creek, UBB, San José, Brumadinho...
READ →Top 10 Gold Mines by Production
The biggest gold mines on Earth by annual output as of 2026: Nevada Gold Mines, Muruntau, Grasberg, Olimpiada, Lihir, Cadia, Pueblo Viejo and more...
READ →Top 10 Copper Mines by Production
The biggest copper mines on Earth as of 2026: Escondida, Grasberg, Collahuasi, Kamoa-Kakula, Cerro Verde, Morenci, El Teniente, Antamina, Oyu Tolgoi...
READ →The 10 Biggest Mining Machines Ever Built
The largest mining machines in history: Bagger 293, Bagger 288, Big Muskie, The Captain, the F60 conveyor bridge, BelAZ 75710, and more giants...
READ →Top 10 Mining Schools in the World
The best mining engineering schools on Earth: Colorado School of Mines, Missouri S&T, Curtin WASM, McGill, Queensland, Wits, Camborne, Freiberg and mo...
READ →The 10 Highest-Paying Jobs in Mining
The best-paid mining careers as of 2026, with approximate US salary ranges: mine managers, drilling superintendents, PE mining engineers, metallurgist...
READ →Top 10 Mining Countries in the World
The world's biggest mining nations ranked: China, Australia, USA, Russia, Canada, Brazil, Chile, Peru, Indonesia, South Africa — what each dominates a...
READ →The 10 Most Valuable Metals & Ores on Earth
The most valuable metals and mined commodities per pound as of 2026: rhodium, iridium, gold, palladium, platinum, rhenium, silver, uranium and more...
READ →10 Legendary Mines You Can Actually Visit
The best mine tours and preserved mining sites on Earth: Wieliczka, Big Pit, Kennecott Alaska, Sterling Hill, Soudan, Falun, Zollverein, Quincy and mo...
READ →The 10 Largest Underground Mines in the World
The biggest underground mines on Earth: El Teniente, Kiruna, Grasberg's caves, Olympic Dam, Cadia, Oyu Tolgoi, Kamoa-Kakula and more giants below surf...
READ →Top 10 Drones for Mine Surveying
The best drones for mine surveys and stockpile volumetrics in 2026: DJI Matrice 350/400, Mavic 3 Enterprise, WingtraOne, eBee X, Skydio X10, Freefly A...
READ →The 10 Best Mining Movies Ever Made
The greatest films about mining and miners: The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, October Sky, The 33, Harlan County USA, Matewan, North Country and more...
READ →The Field Manual
How to Use a Brunton Compass
A field-ready guide to the Brunton pocket transit: setting declination, taking a bearing, and measuring strike and dip like a geologist...
READ →How to Choose the Right Powder for a Shot
ANFO, emulsion, or blend? How blasters choose the right explosive product for a shot based on water, rock, diameter, and cost per ton broken...
READ →How to Run High-Level Economics on a Greenfield Site
A step-by-step first-pass economic screen for a greenfield mine or quarry: resource, capex, opex, revenue, simple DCF, and the kill criteria...
READ →How to Calculate a Stripping Ratio
Stripping ratio explained with worked math: instantaneous vs. overall SR, break-even stripping ratio (BESR), and the decision rule that governs open p...
READ →How to Calculate Powder Factor
Powder factor calculation step by step: pattern volume, explosive load per hole, lb/CY math, typical ranges by rock type, and the classic unit traps...
READ →How to Calculate Stockpile Volume
How to measure stockpile volume: drone photogrammetry, GPS/base-and-cover surveys, and the geometric cone method — with accuracy and when each fits...
READ →How to Read Aggregate Gradation Curves
How to read a sieve analysis gradation curve: percent passing, spec bands, fineness modulus, gap grading, and what curve shapes tell you about a plant...
READ →How to Pass the PE Mining Exam
A study plan for the PE Mining exam: what's on it, the reference strategy, an 8-12 week schedule, problem drilling method, and the traps that fail peo...
READ →How to Size a Haul Truck Fleet
Haul fleet sizing step by step: cycle time, effective hours, trucks required, match factor with the loader, and why you always round up...
READ →How to Design a Basic Blast Pattern
Blast pattern design fundamentals: burden from hole diameter, spacing ratio, stemming, subdrill, timing basics, and the checks before the shot...
READ →How to Value a Quarry
Quarry valuation methods: EBITDA multiples, dollars per annual ton, per reserve ton, DCF, and the five drivers that actually move the price...
READ →How to Prepare for an MSHA Inspection
MSHA inspection preparation for surface mines and quarries: the paperwork inspectors check first, workplace exam discipline, common citations, and rig...
READ →How to Read a Drill Log
How to read core and RC drill logs: collar data, lithology, RQD, recovery, water, assay intervals, and the red flags that hide in the columns...
READ →How to Estimate Reserves with Cross-Sections
The average end-area method step by step: drawing sections, computing areas, volume between sections, tonnage conversion, and when the method breaks...
READ →How to Run a Quarry Site Selection Screen
Quarry and mine site selection step by step: market haul shed, geology, transportation, zoning, environmental fatal flaws, land assemblage, utilities...
READ →How to Evaluate ASR Risk in Aggregate
Alkali-silica reaction testing explained: petrography, ASTM C1260 and C1293 thresholds, C1567 mitigation with SCMs, service records, and DOT framework...
READ →How to Check Mineral Rights Before You Dig
Mineral rights due diligence: severed estates, courthouse title chains, dominant estate doctrine, lease vs purchase, royalty structures, and the check...
READ →How to Do a Mass Balance on a Crushing Plant
Plant mass balance step by step: feed equals products, the two-product split formula, worked example, circulating load, and closing within 2 percent...
READ →How to Get Your Part 107 & Fly Mine Surveys
Part 107 for mine and quarry surveying: the knowledge test, registration, LAANC airspace, site rules, ops over people, and building the survey program...
READ →How to Design a Pit Ramp
Haul road and pit ramp design: width from truck size, maximum sustained grade, berm height, switchbacks, sight distance, and drainage that survives...
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