Blogs

ARRIVING ON STATION     We arrived over the first drill site close to the end of day shift on March 14.  Paul, Jens, Carl, and I watched as the crew lowered the thrusters into the water below the ship.  There are several thrusters distributed over the length of the ship that are used to counteract the motion of ocean currents and wind, which would

PRESENT ACTIVITY: Update as of 0900 hr 17 March 2009.  XCB coring from 147.6 mbsf to 157.3 mbsf.  This hole was piston cored to 138.2 mbsf with 102.0 % recovery before opting to switch over to the XCB in anticipation of running into chert.

PRESENT ACTIVITY: Update as of 1000 hr 16 March 2009 After recovering the XCB core barrel, we pumped down a clean out plug (“pig”) and dropped and recovered another XCB core barrel to scrape and clean the drill string.

LOCATION: Site U1331: Hole U1331A (PEAT-1C) Preliminary Position: 12°04.089’ N, 142°09.698’ W. Preliminary Water Depth: 5143 meters below rig floor (mbrf).

I'm so excited I can hardly focus.  I've worked as education director for the Integrated Ocean Drilling Program's operations in the United States since August 2004.  I had the privilege of sailing aboard The JR twice before her massive renovation. 

PRESENT ACTIVITY: Update as of 0800 hrs 14 March 2009: Underway for PEAT-1C at 10.5 knots. The vessel is pitching and rolling easily in light seas under overcast skies. For the last few days we have been under the influence of the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) which is characterized by unstable moist air, frequent showers, and overcast skies.

Underway: We have been traveling southeast for a little over two days at speeds between 10-12 knots. We still have a little over 390 nautical miles to go, so there will be a few more days of quiet before the first core makes it on deck. Then we will all be very busy.

PRESENT ACTIVITY: Update as of 0900 hrs 13 March 2009. Underway for PEAT-1C at 11.1 knots. The vessel is pitching and rolling easily in light seas with confused swell of 4 to 6 feet under overcast skies. Visibility is good with frequent rain showers. Scientific, technical, and drilling teams continue preparations for on-site operations. No shipping traffic observed.

PRESENT ACTIVITY: Update as of 0830 hr 12 March 2009 Underway at 11.1 knots. The vessel is pitching and rolling moderately in light seas with rough swell under overcast skies. Visibility is excellent. If we continue our present speed, we will arrive on location during the late evening hours of Saturday night.

As publications specialist for the expedition, Kelly VonDrehl also serves as our social director.  Knowing we'll be away from friends and family for nearly eight weeks, a bit of fun is a real necessity.  Kelly's festivities began at the 1500 coffee break with a birthday party for "twins" Hiroyuki Takata, a micropaleontologist from Shimane University (Japan), and sedimentolog