A Saturday on Sunday

Our drill on the right way again. Here, the top of our drill is about to disappear into the borehole. The diameter of the drill is about 125 mm. It drills a 98 mm diameter ice core.

No, we haven’t got the calendar wrong; but because of the three days delay of the last plane, we decided to move the week-end one day. Sarah got her day off and Myriam, Nanna and Christopher volunteered to make a nice dinner for us all.

In the science trench there is now a flurry of activity as people are setting up for processing the remaining part of the NEEM deep ice core and a part processing of the 420 m core that is being drilled in the storage garage.

The drillers hit two birds with one stone today. First, they completed the repairs on the winch and spooled on a new 500 m cable, and then they made a perfect drill run with the experimental drill head with a perfect chip collection. After adjustments of drilling procedures and adjustments to the cutters, the new drill head seems to work fine. Drillers are ready for some serious drilling now.

What we have done today:
1.   Mounted new 500 m cable on shallow winch.
2.  Cleaned up in science trench and straightened tables.
3.  Horizontal band saw now operational. ECM bench mounted.
4.  Groomed and tilled central sections of taxiway, apron and skiway.
5.  Setting up equipment in CFA laboratory (Fast I.C.) and in gas and isotope laboratory.
6.  One perfect drilling run at the end of the day.

Weather: Clear. Temp. - 17 °C to - 23 °C, 10 knots from E. Visibility unrestricted (chilly and windy).

FL, J.P. Steffensen