Abstract:

From the Project Mohole in the 1961, scientific ocean drilling (known as IODP) explored the Earth’s history and structure and research findings fundamentally transformed our understanding of the planet. Following the highly successful German Continental Deep Drilling Program (KTB) drilled to the 9109 m in 1987, parallel drilling program ICDP was launched in 1996 in focus of onshore drilling projects throughout continents.

Primarily drilling in the deepwater challenging environments, scientific ocean drilling pioneered in offshore drilling technology ahead of oil industry. For the challenging ultra deepwater targets, logging and drilling engineering play important role than traditional full coring and analysis onboard labs, in real-time monitoring of the unstable borehole conditions and drilling optimization.

Learnt lessons from two decades of multiple attempts in the global seismogenic zones, most complex project named Nankai Trough Seismogenic Zone Experiment (NanTroSEIZE) was launched in 2007, and continues deepening the primary riser hole to reach the mega-splay fault as deep as 7 km from the sea level. Various challenges forced multiple failures and delays, from very strong current, difficult hole condition across tectonically active faulting environment to the mechanical failures related to those natural challenges. Another challenge in Tohoku-oki earthquake (M9.0) area achieved drilling, sampling and monitoring the shallow, active slip zone at the 7 km water depth.

Mohole drilling was progressed in Pilot hole drilling proposal is in review stage following the site survey offshore Hawaii and more realistic activities are in horizon with new drillship from China this year. Deep and extreme biosphere studies challenged into hydrothermal environment and deep coal-bed biosphere in offshore Japan. Pioneering gas hydrates exploration was achieved in offshore production tests in Japan and China.

In this talk, overview of 65 years challenges in ultra deep scientific projects will be summarized, and the ambitious future super deep projects to set world records will be introduced.

Bio:

Dr. Kyaw Moe is principal researcher at the Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC), Yokosuka, Japan. His three decades service as a marine geoscientist covers university teaching, offshore oil and gas exploration, and international program lead in challenging complex projects at global locations. He holds a Ph.D. in marine geoscience from the University of Tokyo.