SCIENTIFIC DRILLING Vol 28
out now
We are facing amplified global warming since the 1970s, a rising sea level, regional climate shifts, and extreme climate events that severely impact the human habitat. Thus, we have an obligation to conduct research that provides an understanding of present and past variations in regional and global climate.
Each day extraterrestrial matter collides with Earth. Throughout Earth's history, giant impacts created wide craters and devastations affecting the whole planet. These events may have wiped out major portions of the fauna and flora on the Earth. Still, large impacts are the fastest geological events creating new ground for evolution.
Volcanic eruptions may contribute to global climate change by changing the Earth's atmosphere. This can either be warming of the atmosphere through gases such as CO2, or global cooling through suspended volcanic particles. Understanding the interplay between volcanic activities and climate variations requires knowledge of both volcanic and climate history.
Bacteria, viruses and archaea dwell at depths to several thousand meters below ground and in temperatures of more than 120° C. With their metabolism they contribute to the generation of carbohydrates and mineral resources. These rich ecosystems are studied by scientific drilling.
Inside the Earth there is heat so intense that it melts rock and drives tectonic processes and planetary differentiation. Geothermal energy can be tapped from the Earth's natural heat at volcanoes or mantle plumes. Holes drilled into a subsurface geothermal system, or in volcanic areas, can drive turbines and generate electrical power.
Volcanic eruptions are one of Earth's most dramatic and violent agents of change. Powerful explosive eruptions can drastically alter land and water for tens of kilometers around a volcano. Some volcanoes exhibit precursory unrest that if detected, (e.g. by drilling), and analyzed in time allows eruptions to be anticipated.
Currently ca. 170 impact craters are known on Earth; about one third of those structures are not exposed on the surface, and can only be studied by geophysics or drilling. Drill cores yield information on the subsurface structures, and provide ground-truth for geophysical studies.
Plate margins are areas where the most life-threatening geological phenomena occurs. Accompanying ocean-margin geohazards include tsunamis, landslides, powerful volcanic eruptions, and other threats. Scientific drilling has a high potential for risk-mitigation studies, and must be an integral and indispensable part of this effort.
out now
Congratulations to the JET project team lead by PI Steve Hesselbo.
JET operational phase concluded
Congratulations to the JET project team lead by PI Steve Hesselbo. Despite enhanced difficulties due to the pandemic, the team successfully managed the planned coring and logging operations near Prees, finishing by the end of 2020. As of January 2021 the drill hole has been cemented and demobilization is about to be finished next week after which the site will be restored.
The team reached the project’s goal by drilling through the complete Jurassic sequences and well into the Upper Triassic lacustrine red beds (Brooks Mill Mudstone) and, thus, achieving the primary objectives with regard to the Jurassic and Triassic-Jurassic boundary strata.
A total depth of 656 m was reached, receiving 114 cores. Core quality and recovery have been very good to excellent, with only two short intervals of poor quality recovery, in the lowermost Lias Group (1.59 m), and in the Westbury Formation (1.00 m) in both cases due to mechanical failures.
More about the JET project.
For more photos of the drilling, flyer & posters see