Snap Lake Diamond Mine Snap Lake Diamond Mine Snap Lake Mine is a remote fly-in/fly-out operation located about northeast of Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, and, according to De Beers, was the first De Beers mine outside of Africa. It was also Canada's first completely underground diamond mine. Construction began with the opening of an access winter road in 2005. By the end of 2013, De Beers had spent US$1.8 billion on construction and mine operation. Of that total, De Beers spent US$1.3 billion with Northwest Territories-based contractors and suppliers, including US$723 million with Aboriginal businesses or joint ventures. The mine began commercial production on January
Permafrost evident from temperature measurements in boreholes in North America and Europe. Typically, the below-ground temperature varies less from season to season than the air temperature, with mean annual temperatures tending to increase with depth as a result of the geothermal crustal gradient. Thus, if the mean annual air temperature is only slightly below , permafrost will form only in spots that are sheltered—usually with a northerly aspect—creating "discontinuous permafrost". Usually, permafrost will remain discontinuous in a climate where the mean annual soil surface temperature is between . In the moist-wintered areas mentioned before, there may not be even discontinuous permafrost