Gold is arguably the most precious metal in the world, but how rare is it really? We went on our own gold panning expedition to find out.
Correction (6:08): While there was active gold mining around Butte, Montana, the Berkeley Pit mine pictured was primarily a copper mine.
Further reading:
“Gold Panning is Easy” guidebook:
https://www.betterworldbooks.com/search/results?q=gold%20panning%20is%20easy
Article on the cosmic origin of gold:
https://www.quantamagazine.org/did-neutron-stars-or-supernovas-forge-the-universes-supply-of-gold-20170323/
Study on gold-rich asteroid bombardment:
https://www.nature.com/articles/nature10399
Gold Council statistics on gold supply:
https://www.gold.org/about-gold/gold-supply/gold-mining/how-much-gold
Earthworks “No Dirty Gold” campaign:
https://www.earthworks.org/campaigns/no-dirty-gold/retailers/golden_rules/#.Uk3qySR57bo
International mining standards guidance:
https://www.oecd.org/daf/inv/mne/OECD-Due-Diligence-Guidance-Minerals-Edition3.pdf
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