We have decided we will not continue to drill in DFDP-2B. The borehole was completed with a cementing operation yesterday evening. We are now commpleting scientific documentation and data archiving, then will disestablish the site. However, we are already thinking about DFDP-2C and hope our Science Team is as well!
We are still trying to work out how to procede given that cementing of the casing didn't go according to plan. However, in the meantime the geological team have 2 m of schist from around 475 m depth to examine and describe.
We have now drilled to 892m and have decided to install casing to this depth. Once that is done we will drill on a few more metres to allow some packer tests to be carried out, and to allow us to test our core processing methods, then will break over Christmas and recommence on 6 Jan 2015. More details are available on Rupert's blog: rupertsnztectonics.blogspot.co.nz
We have now drilled to 828 m. At present we've tripped out to check the bit and BHA and a wireline run is in progress. We're looking forward to finding out about downhole temperatures at this depth, as well as borehole geometry and imaging of the borehole walls.
We continue to drill. We started today at just past 700m and have now reached 717m at 08:20am. The microstructures of the cuttings indicate the sequence is becoming progressively more mylonitic, which we expect as we approach the fault. We're now trying to decide when it is best to switch to coring.
At 11:16 this morning we reached 600 m drilled depth. We are drilling through fairly micaceous protomylonites and collecting good samples of the cuttings.
At 11:16 this morning we reached 600 m drilled depth. We are drilling through fairly micaceous protomylonites and collecting good samples of the cuttings.
We started drilling again just before 2300 last night in a storm with hurricane force winds. We are now progressing at a rate of 1-2 m per hour. Current depth is 558m.
We are still awaiting return of the newly-machined drill bit from Christchurch, but we expect the bit to swing into town tomorrow (Wednesday) morning and to be drilling again by afternoon. In the meantime it seems to be raining fairly heavily again.
We still expect to start drilling again on Monday evening. Today's photo illustrates some of the associated science that the Science Team present here are engaging in during this down time. However, it is n't from today as today it has rained solidly for the entire day.
The slow rate of progress inspired us to trip out this morning, and send the drill bit and BHA for some serious re=engineering. We won't be drilling again for a few days, but will keep posting here about the state of operations.
We are drilling again as of 1700. At first we progressed very rapidly, drilling over 5 metres in the first hour, but the rate has now slowed to around 3 metres per hour. The team are just managing to keep up with sampling and description of the protomylonite chips.
We continue to drill, but are now using a PCD (polycrystalline diamond) bit which is making nice striations on the cuttings. By 10pm we had reached 514 m.
Its been a squally day - Swerly winds and episodic hailstorms. In the midst of this, the BHA is being run back in and we expect to generated new cuttings in the next few hours.
