Big Dig Challenge

Tati & Emie

Colette

Nailah

Lexi

Riya

Logistics

Challenges

Expectations

Realities

Variables

(Logistics Part 1 & Part 2)

Emieart 1:We are starting at San Andreas Fault Line. We are starting there because its deeper in
P
the ground, its exactly 15 to 20 km deep, 9 to 12 miles.
We will be starting in the spring because its not that hot and not that cold.

Part 2
: The machine we are using is the tunnel boring machine. How we will be transporting our
machine is by hauling it on a big rig truck.

(Logistics Part 3 & 4)

Tati Planned Route-We are going to start at the San Andreas fault line and dig to the
core with our tunnel boring machine that we are using.
Our timeline- will be 3 weeks and 1 day.

(Expectations)
NailahWhat we might find as we pass through each layer

crust - rocks and minerals - oceanic crust - lithosphere

mantle - solid magma - upper mantle - lower mantle
core - iron and nickel - outer core ( molten metal ) - inner core ( solid metal )
the crust is made out of igneous rock metamorphic rock and sedimentary rock.
Earth materials is a
general term that includes
minerals
, rocks,
soil
and water. These are the naturally occurring materials
found on Earth, the
raw materials
upon which our global society exists. Earth materials are resources
that provide the basic components for life, agriculture and industry.

(Challenges)
ColetteBlue = Answer
Running into hard rocks and minerals, such as bedrock -
We need a very strong device that can
drill through the hardest of materials
If you hit the asthenosphere and lithosphere are 2 fiery balls in the center of the , which isnt
very far down, you can burn since it is made out of fire -
We need a fireproof contraption

 It would cost a lot ( Where would we get all that money?) - If you get sick and we are very far
down, how will we get to the surface fast enough? -
Our tunnel boring machine will need to be
half jet half tunnel boring machine
There can be an earthquake, which could send us off track -
We shouldnt be digging near the
epicenter and have a very sturdy machine
Digging down very deep will take a long time ( We need a lot of food and liquids to keep us
healthy) -
We will need a storage area for all of these supplies
Where is all the dirt going to go? -
We will need a contraption for the dirt like a truck
Nobody has ever been to the mantle because the crust is too thick to dig through -
We need a
strong tunnel boring machine
The dirt might close in on us and trap us in the hole -
We need our trucks to have vacuums
connected to them
Digging through the Earth is very dangerous and contains many obstacles that
will stand in our way. To prevent these things from happening we thought
ahead of time. If there is an earthquake, that could send us off track. The
solution for that is we need something very sturdy to dig through the Earth.
When we are digging we might run in to hard materials, such as bedrock. That
means we need a drill that can drill through materials like that hard materials. We also might run into
the lithosphere and asthenosphere, which could cause our tunnel boring machine to burn. Therefore
we need a non flammable tunnel boring machine. The tunnel boring machine is going to pour out dirt
behind us so where will all the dirt go? We will use 25 huge garbage trucks. When there is too much
dirt in our trucks we dump it out into the ocean and start all over again with that process. Another
thing to keep in mind is the supplies we will need. We will need a lot of food, water ,and tools. We
need money to get all this stuff. We also need money for the tunnel boring machine and for our 25
garbage trucks. We will get the money from funding and sponsors. If someone gets sick or injured,
how will we get to the surface fast enough? The solution to this problem is to buy or build a tunnel
boring machine that is half tunnel boring machine half jet. That way, we can fly up to the surface fast
enough.

(Variables)
Riya What could possibly go wrong?
What things are in/out of your control?
While going down the crust our drilling tool can get stuck or break since the crust is
quite hard.
While going down the mantle our drilling tool can bend our team members can burn their
hands.
While going down the core our drilling tool can totally melt because it is so hot.
It is not in our control that the core is so hot.
It is not in our control that the mantle is also quite hot.
I
t is not in our control that the crust is very hard.

(Realities)

Lexie

Limitations (physical, psychological, etc.)

The absolute limit of your project (point of no return)

The Limit Of Our Project

The Earth's diameter is about 8,000 miles, making the radius about 4,000 miles. A mile
is 5,280 ft, and 4,000. There are 525,600 minutes in a year. Now, divide the amount of total
feet (21,120,000) by the number of feet per year (525,600) to get how long it would take to
dig to the center of the Earth, which is a little over 40 years. It would take about 40 years.
Cost, Scale, And Scope
It would be about $1 million to dig to the Earths Core.