Drilling to Earth's Mantle May Now Be Possible

New technology may enable ultra-deepwater drilling to the Moho

Press release from August, 2009 by the Integrated Ocean Drilling Program.

Technology for Drilling to the Moho

The Integrated Ocean Drilling Program (IODP , in collaboration !ith industry "artner A#$ Drilling %er&ices, has engineered an ultra'dee"!ater drilling technology for use by IODP drilling &essels in scientific research.

Originally de&elo"ed for shallo!'!ater oil and gas e("loration, the )riserless mud reco&ery) technology ($*$T holds great "romise for scientists stri&ing to reach the long'held goal of Pro+ect *ohole in the ,9-0s. drilling all the !ay through ocean crust into the /arth0s mantle1 a frontier not yet e("lored today. Drilled cores from the mantle could "ro&ide scientists !ith ans!ers to 2uestions about the structure, com"osition, mineralogy, and in situ "hysical "ro"erties of oceanic crust and the geological nature of the seismic *oho. Technology untu3 Pengeboran 3e *oho Integrated Ocean Drilling Program (IODP , be3er+asama dengan mitra industri Agr Drilling %er&ices, telah

merancang sebuah te3nologi "engeboran ultra dee"!ater untu3 diguna3an oleh 3a"al "engeboran IODP dalam "enelitian ilmiah. A!alnya di3embang3an untu3 minya3'air dang3al dan e3s"lorasi gas, )lum"ur "emulihan riserless) te3nologi ($*$T memegang +an+i besar bagi "ara ilmu!an berusaha untu3 menca"ai tu+uan +ang3a di"egang Proye3 *ohole "ada tahun ,9-0. "engeboran semua +alan melalui 3era3 laut 3e mantel bumi1 "erbatasan yang belum die3s"lorasi hari ini. inti bor dari mantel bisa memberi3an "ara ilmu!an dengan +a!aban untu3 "ertanyaan tentang stru3tur, 3om"osisi, mineralogi, dan sifat fisi3 situ 3era3 samudera dan sifat geologi *oho seismi3.

Implementation s Early s !uly" #$%%

)4ith A#$ Drilling %er&ices0 su""ort, IODP led an engineering effort to ada"t e(isting technology to drill &ery dee" holes in &ery dee" regions of the ocean,) says /ngineering *anager #reg *yers. )5" to no!, riserless mud reco&ery drilling !as limited to shallo!er !ater de"ths. This ultra'dee"!ater drilling technology allo!s scientists to in&estigate subseafloor areas in great de"ths, !here oceanic crust may be thinner'such as in !aters off 6a!aii.) According to *yers, an ultra'dee"!ater $*$T system could be im"lemented as early as 7uly 20,,. The $*$T technology, o!ned by A#$, is e("ected to o"erate in hy"er'dee"!ater de"ths greater than ,2,000 feet. 8unding for "reliminary engineering !as "ro&ided by the Dee"%tar 9onsortium, a dee"!ater industry grou" that su""orts dee"!ater technology de&elo"ment "ro+ects and le&erages the industry0s financial and technical resources. )This ultra'dee"!ater drilling technology is en&ironmentally friendly,) says Da&id 6ine, A#$ :ice President of %ales and *ar3eting. )It o"erates !ith a 0;ero'discharge0 system, lea&ing no cuttings or mud behind.)

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Pre-ious Near-Mantle Depth Drilling

In December 200-, scientists aboard IODP /("edition <,2 a""roached mantle de"ths !hile drilling to in&estigate su"erfast seafloor s"reading rates. The research e("edition "enetrated &olcanic roc3 (gabbros and reached a fossil magma chamber lying ,.= 3ilometers beneath the seafloor. The *oho, or mantle, lies beneath the gabbros layer of ocean crust at de"ths that &ary from about -',0 3m. beneath the ocean floor, to about =0 3m. beneath the continents, to as much as >0 3m. beneath some mountain ranges. The Integrated Ocean Drilling Program (IODP is an international marine research "rogram led by the ?ational %cience 8oundation in the 5.%. !ith su""ort from another 2< countries. IODP ad&ances scientific understanding of /arth by drilling, sam"ling, and monitoring subsea floor en&ironments. 5sing multi"le "latforms and technologies, the !orld0s "reeminent scientists !or3ing in the "rogram e("lore climate change, the dee" bios"here, and geodynamics. $e"ublished from a "ress release from the Integrated Ocean Drilling Program issued in August, 2009.

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