Mir mine

Discovery and Development:

• Diamond-bearing deposits discovered in 1955 by Soviet geologists during the Amakinsky Expedition.
• Traces of kimberlite, a volcanic rock associated with diamonds, found.
• Second successful kimberlite discovery in Russia after failed expeditions in the 1940s and 1950s.
• Mine development started in 1957 in extremely harsh climate conditions.
• Main processing plant built 20km away from the mine on better ground.
• Workers used jet engines and dynamite to thaw and dig out the permafrost and access kimberlite.

Operations:

• Mir mine was the first and largest diamond mine in the Soviet Union.
• Surface operation lasted 44 years, closing in June 2001.
• Mine operated by Sakha diamond company after the collapse of the USSR, reporting annual profits over $600 million from diamond sales.
• Later operated by Alrosa, the largest diamond producing company in Russia, employing 3,600 workers.
• Construction of underground tunnels for diamond recovery began in the 1970s, with exclusive underground mining by 1999.

Recognition and Awards:

• Yuri Khabardin, one of the geologists who discovered the mine, awarded the prestigious Lenin Prize in 1957 for the discovery.

Related Mines:

• Zarnitsa mine was the first diamond mine discovered in the area in 1954.
• Udachnaya pipe is another diamond mine in the region.

External Links:

• Wikimedia Commons has media related to Mir mine.
• Mirny Diamond Mine at Atlas Obscura.
• United States Mine Rescue Association.
• BBC News Photo journal: Postcards from Russia.
• A Face of Mirny: Aerial view of the Mirny Diamond Mine from Airliners.net.

Mir mine Data Sources