Mining companies conduct mineral exploration to identify areas where there is a high likelihood of finding valuable mineral resources in quantities worth mining.
Room-and-pillar mining, longwall mining, and solution mining are subsurface mining methods.
Open-pit mining, surface coal mining, quarrying, and solar evaporation are surface mining methods.
Minerals are concentrated by wind and water into surface deposits called placer deposits.
Smelting is the process in which ore is melted at high temperatures to separate impurities from the molten metal.