International Ocean Discovery Program

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The International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP) is an international marine research collaboration dedicated to advancing scientific understanding of the Earth through drilling, coring, and monitoring the subseafloor. The research enabled by IODP samples and data improves scientific understanding of changing climate and ocean conditions, the origins of ancient life, risks posed by geohazards, and the structure and processes of Earth's tectonic plates and uppermost mantle. IODP began in 2013 and builds on the research of four previous scientific ocean drilling programs: Project Mohole, Deep Sea Drilling Project, Ocean Drilling Program, and Integrated Ocean Drilling Program. [1] [2] Together, these programs represent the longest running and most successful international Earth science collaboration. [3] [4]

Contents

Scientific scope

The scientific scope of IODP is laid out in the program's science plan, Illuminating Earth's Past, Present, and Future. The science plan covers a 10-year period of operations and consists of a list of scientific challenges that are organized into four themes called Climate and Ocean Change, Biosphere Frontiers, Earth Connections, and Earth in Motion. [5] [6] The science plan was developed by the international scientific community to identify the highest priority science for the program. [7] [8]

IODP funding and operations

JOIDES Resolution docked in Panama, October 2012 JoidesPanama2012.jpg
JOIDES Resolution docked in Panama, October 2012

IODP uses multiple drilling platforms ( JOIDES Resolution , Chikyū , and mission-specific platforms) to access different subseafloor environments during research expeditions. These facilities are funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF), Japan's Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT), and the European Consortium for Ocean Research Drilling (ECORD), alongside the Ministry of Science and Technology of the People's Republic of China (MOST), Australian-New Zealand IODP Consortium (ANZIC), and India's Ministry of Earth Science (MoES). Together, these entities represent a coalition of over two dozen countries. The IODP funding model differs from the Integrated Ocean Drilling Program in that NSF, MEXT, and ECORD each manage their own drilling platform. International partners directly contribute to the operating costs of the drilling platforms in exchange for scientific participation on the expeditions and seats on the advisory panels. [9] [10]

The research vessel JOIDES Resolution (JR) is managed and operated for NSF by the JOIDES Resolution Science Operator (JRSO), which is based at Texas A&M University (TAMU). The JRSO was formalized as the implementing organization for IODP in 2014. [11] [12]

The drilling vessel Chikyū was constructed and operated for MEXT by Japan's Center for Deep Earth Exploration (CDEX), which was established within the Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC) in October 2002. [13] In 2019, JAMSTEC merged CDEX with its Marine Technology and Engineering Center (MARITEC) to create a new department, the Institute of Marine-Earth Exploration and Engineering (MarE3). [14] MarE3 is the current implementing organization for Chikyū. [15]

The ECORD Science Operator (ESO), established in 2003, is the implementing organization for mission-specific platform expeditions. [16] ESO is also responsible for managing the IODP Bremen Core Repository. [17]

IODP expeditions are based on research proposals submitted by scientists that address the objectives described in the program's science plan. Advisory panels of international experts then rigorously evaluate the proposal for science quality, feasibility, safety, and any environmental issues. Proposals that are determined to be of high quality are forwarded to the appropriate facility board (JOIDES Resolution Facility Board, Chikyū IODP Board, and ECORD Facility Board) for scheduling.

IODP publishes a detailed account of findings and makes all samples and cores freely available. [18] IODP's open data policy assures global access to the information collected by the program, and it allows scientists to use data from multiple expeditions to investigate new hypotheses.

Cores collected during expeditions are stored at the IODP core repositories in Bremen, Germany (IODP Bremen Core Repository), College Station, Texas (IODP Gulf Coast Repository), and Kochi, Japan (Kochi Core Center). Scientists may visit any one of the facilities for onsite research or request a loan for teaching purposes/analysis. Archived cores include not only IODP samples, but also those retrieved by the Deep Sea Drilling Project, Ocean Drilling Program, and Integrated Ocean Drilling Program. [19]

Outcomes

IODP expeditions have investigated a wide range of Earth science topics, including past climate and ocean conditions, monsoon systems, seismogenic zones, the formation of continental crust and ocean basins, major extinction events, the role of serpentinization in driving hydrothermal systems, and the temperature limits of life in the deep biosphere.

An early outcome of the program harkens back to the original motivation for scientific ocean drilling with Project Mohole – drilling and sampling across the Mohorovičić discontinuity (Moho) and into the upper part of Earth's mantle. Expedition 360 was the initial part a multiphase project whose goal, among others, is to directly sample the mantle for the first time. The expedition took place near the Southwest Indian Ridge at a location where the crust is particularly thin due to the formation of an oceanic core complex. Expedition 360 completed 790 meters of drilling and IODP plans to return to the site in the coming years to continue the research. [20] [21]

Expedition 364 sampled the peak ring of the Chicxulub impact crater, which is buried offshore near the Yucatán Peninsula. Chicxulub is the only well-preserved crater on Earth with a peak ring and was formed when an asteroid slammed into the planet 66 million years ago, killing off non-avian dinosaurs and most life on the planet. Analysis of the collected samples and data shows that the asteroid's impact caused rocks from deep in the Earth to shoot up and form the large mountains of the peak ring in a matter of minutes. The sediments overlying the peak ring also provide a record of how life returned to the area after the mass extinction event. [22] [23] [24]

In addition to studying how the Earth moves in response to impact events, IODP also studies the processes that cause earthquakes. For example, Expedition 362 brought new insight to the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami through the sampling and analysis of sediments and rocks from the oceanic plate that feeds the Sumatra subduction zone. The science team discovered that the sediment's minerals dehydrated before reaching the subduction zone, resulting in a strong fault that allowed for a larger than previously expected earthquake to occur. [25] [26]

IODP's early climate studies focused on efforts to understand the Asian monsoon system. Expeditions 353, 354, 355, and 359 collected sediments from the Bay of Bengal, the Andaman Sea, and the Arabian Sea. These sediments were eroded from the land and primarily carried by rivers to the ocean, where some of the sediments have laid buried for millions of years. By analyzing the chemical and physical properties of the sediments, scientists are learning about the evolution of mountain growth, monsoonal precipitation, weathering and erosion, and climate across the region and across multiple time scales. For example, one such study discovered that the monsoonal winds that drive the region's climate began suddenly 12.9 million years ago. [27]

Scientific studies from subseafloor instruments and IODP's core archives, which contain samples from this and previous ocean drilling programs, are also yielding insights into the Earth's climate and tectonic history. A study examining samples collected from around the world concluded that the rate of carbon release today is 10 times greater than during the Paleocene Eocene Thermal Maximum or anytime during the past 66 million years. [28] [29] And, measurements taken in the Nankai Trough near Japan show that slow slip earthquakes are releasing about 50% of the subduction zone's energy, which has implications for understanding tsunami hazards. [30] [31]

Coring statistics

October 2013 to April 2022 (Expeditions 349–392) [32]

Expeditions completed:Operations days:Distance traveled (nmi):Sites visited:Holes drilled:Cores recovered:
362,053116,14916346011,617
Latitude, LongitudeGeographic area & cruise
Northernmost site:68.8°N, 5.8°EMid-Norwegian Continental Margin Magmatism, Expedition 396
Southernmost site:76.6°S, 174.8°WRoss Sea West Antarctic Ice Sheet, Expedition 374
MetersFeetMilesGeographic area & cruise
Deepest hole penetrated:1,8065,9251.12IBM Rear Arc, Expedition 350, Hole U1437E
Shallowest water depth:983210.06Indonesian Throughflow, Expedition 356
Deepest water depth:5,02316,4813.12Tasman Frontier, Expedition 371
Total penetration (cored & drilled):131,934432,85582.0
Total cored interval:89,389293,27155.5
Total core recovered:65,860216,07740.9
Most core recovered on a single cruise:6,95622,8224.3Western Pacific Warm Pool, Expedition 363

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mohorovičić discontinuity</span> Boundary between the Earths crust and the mantle

The Mohorovičić discontinuity – usually called the Moho discontinuity, Moho boundary, or just Moho – is the boundary between the crust and the mantle of Earth. It is defined by the distinct change in velocity of seismic waves as they pass through changing densities of rock.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Japan Trench</span> Oceanic trench part of the Pacific Ring of Fire off northeast Japan

The Japan Trench is an oceanic trench part of the Pacific Ring of Fire off northeast Japan. It extends from the Kuril Islands to the northern end of the Izu Islands, and is 8,046 metres (26,398 ft) at its deepest. It links the Kuril–Kamchatka Trench to the north and the Izu–Ogasawara Trench to its south with a length of 800 kilometres (497 mi). This trench is created as the oceanic Pacific plate subducts beneath the continental Okhotsk Plate. The subduction process causes bending of the down going plate, creating a deep trench. Continuing movement on the subduction zone associated with the Japan Trench is one of the main causes of tsunamis and earthquakes in northern Japan, including the megathrust Tōhoku earthquake and resulting tsunami that occurred on 11 March 2011. The rate of subduction associated with the Japan Trench has been recorded at about 7.9–9.2 centimetres (3.1–3.6 in)/yr.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Deep Sea Drilling Project</span> Ocean drilling research program between 1968–1983

The Deep Sea Drilling Project (DSDP) was an ocean drilling project operated from 1968 to 1983. The program was a success, as evidenced by the data and publications that have resulted from it. The data are now hosted by Texas A&M University, although the program was coordinated by the Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the University of California, San Diego. DSDP provided crucial data to support the seafloor spreading hypothesis and helped to prove the theory of plate tectonics. DSDP was the first of three international scientific ocean drilling programs that have operated over more than 40 years. It was followed by the Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) in 1985, the Integrated Ocean Drilling Program in 2004 and the present International Ocean Discovery Program in 2013.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ocean Drilling Program</span> Marine research program between 1985–2003

The Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) was a multinational effort to explore and study the composition and structure of the Earth's oceanic basins, running from 1985 to 2004. ODP was the successor to the Deep Sea Drilling Project initiated in 1968 by the United States. ODP was an international effort with contributions of Australia, Germany, France, Japan, the United Kingdom and the ESF Consortium for Ocean Drilling (ECOD) including 12 further countries. The program used the drillship JOIDES Resolution on 110 expeditions (legs) to collect about 2,000 deep sea cores from major geological features located in the ocean basins of the world. Drilling discoveries led to further questions and hypotheses, as well as to new disciplines in earth sciences such as the field of paleoceanography.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Earth's mantle</span> A layer of silicate rock between Earths crust and its outer core

Earth's mantle is a layer of silicate rock between the crust and the outer core. It has a mass of 4.01×1024 kg (8.84×1024 lb) and thus makes up 67% of the mass of Earth. It has a thickness of 2,900 kilometers (1,800 mi) making up about 46% of Earth's radius and 84% of Earth's volume. It is predominantly solid but, on geologic time scales, it behaves as a viscous fluid, sometimes described as having the consistency of caramel. Partial melting of the mantle at mid-ocean ridges produces oceanic crust, and partial melting of the mantle at subduction zones produces continental crust.

The Integrated Ocean Drilling Program (IODP) was an international marine research program, running from 2003 to 2013. The program used heavy drilling equipment mounted aboard ships to monitor and sample sub-seafloor environments. With this research, the IODP documented environmental change, Earth processes and effects, the biosphere, solid earth cycles, and geodynamics.

Scientific drilling into the Earth is a way for scientists to probe the Earth's sediments, crust, and upper mantle. In addition to rock samples, drilling technology can unearth samples of connate fluids and of the subsurface biosphere, mostly microbial life, preserved in drilled samples. Scientific drilling is carried out on land by the International Continental Scientific Drilling Program (ICDP) and at sea by the Integrated Ocean Drilling Program (IODP). Scientific drilling on the continents includes drilling down into solid ground as well as drilling from small boats on lakes. Sampling thick glaciers and ice sheets to obtain ice cores is related but will not be described further here.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Project Mohole</span> Attempt to drill through Earths crust

Project Mohole was an attempt in the early 1960s to drill through the Earth's crust to obtain samples of the Mohorovičić discontinuity, or Moho, the boundary between the Earth's crust and mantle. The project was intended to provide an earth science complement to the high-profile Space Race. While such a project was not feasible on land, drilling in the open ocean was more feasible, because the mantle lies much closer to the sea floor.

Chikyū Japanese drill ship

Chikyū (ちきゅう) is a Japanese scientific drilling ship built for the Integrated Ocean Drilling Program (IODP). The vessel is designed to ultimately drill 7 km beneath the seabed, where the Earth's crust is much thinner, and into the Earth's mantle, deeper than any other hole drilled in the ocean thus far.

JOIDES Resolution Ship built in 1978

The riserless research vessel JOIDES Resolution, often referred to as the JR, is one of the scientific drilling ships used by the International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP), an international, multi-drilling platform research program. JOIDES Resolution was previously the main research ship used during the Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) and was used along with the Japanese drilling vessel Chikyu and other mission-specific drilling platforms throughout the Integrated Ocean Drilling Program. She is the successor of Glomar Challenger.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nankai Trough</span> Trough off the coast of Japan

The Nankai Trough is a submarine trough located south of the Nankaidō region of Japan's island of Honshu, extending approximately 900 km (559 mi) offshore. The underlying fault, the Nankai megathrust, is the source of the devastating Nankai megathrust earthquakes, while the trough itself is potentially a major source of hydrocarbon fuel, in the form of methane clathrate.

The European Consortium for Ocean Research Drilling (ECORD) is a consortium of 14 European countries and Canada that was formed in 2003 to join the Integrated Ocean Drilling Program (IODP) as a single member. ECORD is now part of the International Ocean Discovery Program, which addresses crucial questions in Earth, Ocean, Environmental and Life sciences based on drill cores, borehole imaging, observatory data, and related geophysical imaging obtained from beneath the ocean floor using specialized ocean-going drilling and research vessels and platforms. As a contributing member of IODP, ECORD is entitled to berths on every IODP expedition.

Nankai Methane Hydrate Site is located in the Nankai Trough, Japan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology</span>

The Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology, or JAMSTEC (海洋機構), is a Japanese national research institute for marine-earth science and technology. It was founded as Japan Marine Science and Technology Center (海洋科学技術センター) in October 1971, and became an Independent Administrative Institution administered by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) in April 2004.

The Japan Trench Fast Drilling Project (JFAST) was a rapid-response scientific expedition that drilled oceanfloor boreholes through the fault-zone of the 2011 Tohoku earthquake. JFAST gathered important data about the rupture mechanism and physical properties of the fault that caused the huge earthquake and tsunami which devastated much of northeast Japan.

Carlota Escutia Dotti is a Spanish geologist, best known for her work on the geologic evolution of Antarctica and the global role of the Antarctic ice cap. Escutia is based at the Instituto Andaluz de Ciencias de la Tierra, Universidad de Granada and the High Council for Scientific Research (CSIC).

Fumio Inagaki is a geomicrobiologist whose research focuses on the deep subseafloor biosphere. He is the deputy director of the Research and Development Center for Ocean Drilling Science and the Kochi Institute for Core Sample Research, both at the Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC).

The deep biosphere is the part of the biosphere that resides below the first few meters of the surface. It extends down at least 5 kilometers below the continental surface and 10.5 kilometers below the sea surface, at temperatures that may reach beyond 120 °C (248 °F) which is comparable to the maximum temperature where a metabolically active organism has been found. It includes all three domains of life and the genetic diversity rivals that on the surface.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rosalind Coggon</span> English scientist

Rosalind Mary Coggon is an English scientist who is a Royal Society University Research Fellow at the University of Southampton. She is the co-editor of the 2050 Science Framework, which guides multidisciplinary subseafloor research. She was awarded the 2021 American Geophysical Union Asahiko Taira International Scientific Ocean Drilling Research Prize.

Richard W. Murray, a geologist and oceanographer, is the Deputy Director and Vice President for Research at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) in Woods Hole, Massachusetts. Murray was previously a professor of earth and environment at Boston University (1992-2019), where he served as Chair of the Department of Earth Sciences (2000-2005), and Director of Boston University's Marine Program (2006-2009).

References

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  27. ↑ Sumner, Thomas (2016-08-24). "India's monsoon winds trace back nearly 13 million years". Science News. Retrieved 2017-07-23.
  28. ↑ "What we're doing to the Earth has no parallel in 66 million years, scientists say". Washington Post. Retrieved 2017-07-23.
  29. ↑ Zeebe, Richard E.; Ridgwell, Andy; Zachos, James C. (April 2016). "Anthropogenic carbon release rate unprecedented during the past 66 million years". Nature Geoscience. 9 (4): 325–329. Bibcode:2016NatGe...9..325Z. doi:10.1038/ngeo2681. hdl:1983/d9f7791f-7a9a-445e-acc0-4dd3d7680409. ISSN   1752-0894. S2CID   54493709.
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