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Bitumen An Athabasca Oil Sands, Alberta, Canada story

Forests  / 
Mining  / 
Natural Disasters
  1. Earthshots
  2. Athabasca Oil Sands, Alberta, Canada
  3. Bitumen
Description

The oil type mined in the Athabasca oil sands region is bitumen. This naturally occurring oil is so viscous that even at room temperature it acts like cold molasses.

The oil sand is quartz sand; each grain of sand is surrounded by a thin film of water, and then covered in the heavy oil. The bitumen is too thick to flow or to be pumped without first being heated.

Of the three oil sands areas in Alberta, only the Athabasca region has reserves shallow enough for surface mining. The Athabasca River, over tens of millions of years, eroded away the sediment that covered the bitumen, making it reachable. Surface mining causes a larger and more visible disturbance of the land surface than other types of mining. The surface mineable area there covers about 4,800 square kilometers (1,850 square miles).

Bitumen

View Related Imagery & Stories

Location

Aug. 6, 1989, Landsat 5 (path/row 42/20) — Athabasca Oil Sands, Alberta, Canada

Aug. 6, 1989, Landsat 5 (path/row 42/20) — Athabasca Oil Sands, Alberta, Canada

Aug. 17, 1993, Landsat 5 (path/row 42/20) — Athabasca Oil Sands, Alberta, Canada

Aug. 17, 1993, Landsat 5 (path/row 42/20) — Athabasca Oil Sands, Alberta, Canada

June 15, 1999, Landsat 5 (path/row 42/20) — Athabasca Oil Sands, Alberta, Canada

June 15, 1999, Landsat 5 (path/row 42/20) — Athabasca Oil Sands, Alberta, Canada

June 28, 2004, Landsat 5 (path/row 42/20) — Athabasca Oil Sands, Alberta, Canada

June 28, 2004, Landsat 5 (path/row 42/20) — Athabasca Oil Sands, Alberta, Canada

July 4, 2006, Landsat 5 (path/row 42/20) — Athabasca Oil Sands, Alberta, Canada

July 4, 2006, Landsat 5 (path/row 42/20) — Athabasca Oil Sands, Alberta, Canada

Sep. 14, 2009, Landsat 5 (path/row 42/20) — Athabasca Oil Sands, Alberta, Canada

Sep. 14, 2009, Landsat 5 (path/row 42/20) — Athabasca Oil Sands, Alberta, Canada

Sep. 20, 2011, Landsat 5 (path/row 42/20) — Athabasca Oil Sands, Alberta, Canada

Sep. 20, 2011, Landsat 5 (path/row 42/20) — Athabasca Oil Sands, Alberta, Canada

Sep. 28, 2014, Landsat 8 (path/row 42/20) — Athabasca Oil Sands, Alberta, Canada

Sep. 28, 2014, Landsat 8 (path/row 42/20) — Athabasca Oil Sands, Alberta, Canada

July 15, 2016, Landsat 8 (path/row 42/20) — Athabasca Oil Sands, Alberta, Canada

July 15, 2016, Landsat 8 (path/row 42/20) — Athabasca Oil Sands, Alberta, Canada

Aug. 6, 1989, Landsat 5 (path/row 42/20) — Athabasca Oil Sands, Alberta, Canada
Aug. 17, 1993, Landsat 5 (path/row 42/20) — Athabasca Oil Sands, Alberta, Canada
June 15, 1999, Landsat 5 (path/row 42/20) — Athabasca Oil Sands, Alberta, Canada
June 28, 2004, Landsat 5 (path/row 42/20) — Athabasca Oil Sands, Alberta, Canada
July 4, 2006, Landsat 5 (path/row 42/20) — Athabasca Oil Sands, Alberta, Canada
Sep. 14, 2009, Landsat 5 (path/row 42/20) — Athabasca Oil Sands, Alberta, Canada
Sep. 20, 2011, Landsat 5 (path/row 42/20) — Athabasca Oil Sands, Alberta, Canada
Sep. 28, 2014, Landsat 8 (path/row 42/20) — Athabasca Oil Sands, Alberta, Canada
July 15, 2016, Landsat 8 (path/row 42/20) — Athabasca Oil Sands, Alberta, Canada

Athabasca Oil Sands, Alberta, Canada Additional Imagery & Stories

Fire
Fire

You might have noticed that fire scars of varying size show up in some of these images. These fire scars show up as red or maroon against the green ve...

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In Situ Mining
In Situ Mining

To extract oil that is too deep for surface mining operations, in situ mining, or “in place” mining, is used. Mining companies use steam and gravity t...

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Mining Operations
Mining Operations

Getting oil from oil sands is fairly straight-forward. But that doesn’t mean it’s easy. In the Athabasca region near Fort McMurray, the oil sands are ...

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Reclamation
Reclamation

The mining companies are required to restore the disturbed land to be at least as productive as it was before it was mined. Overburden that was remove...

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