The Ocean Drilling Program I: Overview and science plans

Abstract

The Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) commenced its field operations in January 1985. Texas A&M University (TAMU), as Science Operator, has as its ultimate task to collect cores from the floor of the oceans and to ensure that adequate scientific analyses are performed on those samples. The Science Operator implements the science plans, provides logistical and technical support for the shipboard science team, manages post-cruise activities and the long term curation and distribution of core samples, and coordinates, edits, and publishes the final research product. The scientific program uses a dynamically positioned commercial drillship, the JOIDES RESOLUTION, which has a much more expansive research and drilling facility than previously employed for scientific ocean drilling. TAMU receives scientific guidance from an international scientific organization called the Joint Oceanographic Institutions for Deep Earth Sampling (JOIDES). The primary scientific objectives of the ODP lie in studying the origin and evolution of the oceanic crust, the tectonic evolution of the continental margins, the origin and evolution of marine sedimentary sequences, studies of long term changes in the atmosphere, oceans, cryosphere, biosphere, and magnetic field, and in the development of new tools and technology for deep ocean exploration and drilling. This paper describes the future science plans and an overview of the Ocean Drilling Program.