How Far Have Humans Been Able to Drill Into the Earth
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At a basic level, there's something irresistible about digging a hole. A visit to any beach will see kids frantically digging holes, trenches, and tunnels to see how deep they can get before they fill with water, often with their parents digging just as enthusiastically alongside them.
Perhaps it's the lure of mythical pirates' treasure or the thought of a goldrush-style discovery just waiting to be uncovered in the sand or soil. For researchers in the field of scientific drilling, however, the real treasure lies in the hope of scientific discovery.
What Is the Purpose of Scientific Drilling?
Like sending probes into outer space, scientific drilling is a way to find out about places that humans can't reach.
Obtaining samples from deep in the earth's crust allows us to gather geophysical data, understand the nature of deep biospheres (microbial life and fossils), investigate environmental and climate change, learn more about earthquakes and volcanic eruptions, understand how mineral, metal ore, and fossil fuel deposits form, investigate clean energy (sustainable georesources), and determine the physics of plate tectonics.
Internationally, scientific drilling on land is funded and supported by the International Continental Scientific Drilling Program (ICDP), and by the Integrated Ocean Drilling Program (IODP) at sea. Most advances in drilling technology have come from the oil and gas industry.
The World's Deepest Drillings
The Earth's crust averages about 18 miles in thickness under the continents but can be as thin as 3 miles beneath the oceans. Below this is the Earth's mantle, extending down to 1,800 miles below the surface. Between the two layers lies the Moho Discontinuity, an area where seismic waves and chemical composition changes dramatically.
As a rule, scientific drilling experiments have been forced to cease when the crust becomes too hot to drill any deeper, and drilling becomes extremely difficult at depth when the superheated rock begins to behave like plastic.
Kola Superdeep Borehole
The deepest penetration of the Earth's surface is the Kola Superdeep Borehole in Russia at 40,230 feet. Originally a Soviet project and a source of pride for the USSR, the aim was simply to drill as deep as possible into the Earth's crust. The borehole is 9 inches in diameter. The project began in 1965 and terminated in 1995 when unexpectedly porous rock and high temperatures at this depth (356oF) made drilling unfeasible.
The Kola Borehole gave rise to the "Well to Hell" urban myth about scientists accidentally breaking through into a chamber of fire in Hell and hearing the sounds of demonic laughter through a microphone.
The German Continental Deep Drilling Program
Active from 1987 to 1995, this Bavarian borehole ultimately reached a depth of 29,859 feet into the crust. Post-drilling, the borehole housed a seismic deep observatory from 1996 to 2001. This project inspired the foundation of the German-run International Continental Scientific Drilling Program (ICDP).
San Andreas Fault Observatory at Depth (SAFOD)
Drilled from 2002 to 2007 near Parkfield, California, the San Andreas Fault Observatory at Depth project aimed to collect geological data about the San Andreas Fault to help predict, analyze, and mitigate the effects of future earthquakes. The main hole reaches 10,560 feet.
Chikyū (Earth Discovery) Scientific Drilling Ship
This Japanese scientific drilling ship was built for the IODP program with the aim of drilling through seabeds where the Earth's crust is significantly thinner than in under continents. The drill ship targets seismically active regions for drilling into the Earth's mantle. In 2012 the Chikyū drilled to 25,400 feet below sea-level, in a water depth of 6960 m.
Image Credit: I am a Stranger / Shutterstock.com
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How Far Have Humans Been Able to Drill Into the Earth
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