NEWS FROM THE JOINT OCEANOGRAPHIC ......Chair: ODP’s latest and greatest hits 23 USSAC membership 24 K/T boundary cores JOI/USSAC N E W S L E T T E R NEWS FROM THE JOINT OCEANOGRAPHIC

March 1997, Vol 10, No 1 1

INSIDE...4 Fellowship Profile

5 ODP publications

6 FY 98 ODP scienceplan and drillingschedule

8 Subseafloormicrobial biosphere

12 Announcements

14 ODP sampledistribution policy/Janus update

16 Borehole fluidsampling

19 COMPOST-II report

20 NSF: Assessingfuture needs

22 Letter from theChair: ODP’s latestand greatest hits

23 USSAC membership

24 K/T boundary cores

JOI/USSACJOI/USSACN E W S L E T T E RNEWS FROM THE JOINT OCEANOGRAPHIC INSTITUTIONS/U.S. SCIENCE SUPPORT PROGRAM ASSOCIATED WITH THE OCEAN DRILLING PROGRAM • MARCH 1997, Vol 10, No 1

African climate and human evolution: the ODP linkcontributed by Peter deMenocal

id changes in Africa’s climate influence the evolutionary paths of our ances- tors? As early as the 1850s CharlesDarwin recognized this possibility throughcorresponding changes in ecology (so-calledvicariance) and genetic isolation. In recentyears, scientists have built on those basicmacroevolutionary principles to propose ahotly debated hypothesis: that major junc-tures in the Pliocene-Pleistocene evolution ofearly hominids (and other African verte-brates) correlate with changes in Africanclimate [Vrba, 1995; Vrba et al., 1989]. Criticshave been quick to point out that the ideacould not be adequately tested becausepaleoclimate records were even more scant,discontinuous and poorly dated than thefossil record itself.

Detailed records of African paleoclimatechange during the Plio-Pleistocene are rarefrom exposed terrestrial sequences because oferosion, non-deposition and active tectonics.But the ocean has proven a rich repository ofancient climate data. New ocean drillingresults have produced a set of continuous,well-dated and detailed records of Africanpaleoclimate variability spanning the past fivemillion years [Bloemendal and deMenocal, 1989;Clemens et al., 1996; deMenocal, 1995;deMenocal et al., 1993; Ruddiman and Janecek,1989; Tiedemann et al., 1994]. These data linkclimate changes in Africa and the NorthernHemisphere, and they make specific predic-tions about Pliocene-Pleistocene African eco-logical change that can be used to formallytest African climate-evolution hypotheses.

Ocean drilling of marine sedimentary se-quences off West Africa (ODP Leg 108, Sites659, 661, 662, 663, 664) and East Africa/Arabia (Leg 117, Sites 721 and 722) hasproduced several continuous and well-dated

records of wind-borne (eolian) dust variabil-ity, which serve as proxies of subtropicalAfrican climate change over the past severalmillion years. These legs were drilled specifi-cally to reconstruct past variations in African/Asian climate and monsoonal circulation.Because of its highly seasonal monsoonalclimate, subtropical West Africa exports overone billion tons of mineral aerosol (dust) tothe adjacent tropical Atlantic each year [Pye,1987]. Perhaps presciently, Darwin com-mented on these African dust storms duringhis 1846 Beagle voyage off Cape Verde[Darwin, 1846]: “…During our stay of threeweeks at St. Jago (Cape Verde), the wind wasNE as is always the case this time of year; theatmosphere was often hazy, and very finedust was constantly falling, so that theastronomical instruments were roughenedand a little injured.”

Annual variations in Africa dust export areclosely tied to the climate of the dust sourceareas. Not surprisingly, drier years aredustier. Over geologic timescales, shifts inAfrican aridity are recorded stratigraphicallyas variable concentrations of mineral dust inoffshore sediments. Continuous stratigraphicsequences were developed by “splicing” asingle complete record from multiple-holesites. These spliced records were thensampled at high-resolution and a sequentialgeochemical extraction procedure was usedto isolate the mineral (dust) fraction fromother sedimentary components. Once theserecords were constrained by oxygen isotopicstratigraphies, time-dependent changes in theamplitude, phase, and frequency of wind-borne African dust concentration and fluxvariability were used to constrain how (andwhy) African climates varied during thePliocene-Pleistocene.

D

2 JOI/USSAC Newsletter

Previous results have shown that Pliocene-Pleistocene was most notably punctuated bythe onset of Northern Hemisphere glacialcycles near 2.8 Ma, with subsequent in-creases in climate variability after ~1.0 Ma[Raymo, 1994]. The entire subpolar climatesystem evidently marched in step to theregular 41-kyr orbital tilt cycle after the initialgrowth of polar ice sheets at ~2.8 Ma, withsynchronous glacial increases in abundancesof coarse ice-rafted debris, cooler subpolarsea-surface temperatures, and associatedchanges in deep ocean circulation.

But how did African climate vary during thissame interval? Analysis of the eight eoliandust records off subtropical West and EastAfrica reveals a consistent pattern of variabil-ity (Figure 1, [deMenocal, 1995]). The recordsshow a cooler and drier African climate after2.8 Ma, and intensification of these condi-tions after 1.7 Ma and 1.0 Ma. Before 2.8 Ma,African aridity varied dominantly at the 23-19-kyr periods corresponding to low-latitudeinsolation variations due to earth orbitalprecession. The longest record (Arabian SeaSite 721/722) shows that this pattern ofvariability persisted at least into the late

variations in low-latitude seasonalinsolation due toEarth precession[Kutzbach and Guetter,1986; Prell andKutzbach, 1987].Monsoonal circula-tion is essentially aheat engine responseto solar insolation:increased summerseason insolationwarms land surfacesmore efficiently thanthe ocean’s mixedlayer, the strongerocean-to-landpressure gradientthat develops drivesthe inflow of moist,maritime air, in turn,supplies the summermonsoonal rainfall.Hence, the dominant23-19-kyr Africanpaleoclimate cyclesbefore 2.8 Ma reflectdirect precessionalforcing of Africanmonsoonal climate;

Hominid Evolution African ClimateVariability

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23-19 kyr

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100 kyr

41 kyr

0

1

2

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0

1

2

3

4

659

0 40 80

6610 30

662/663

0 20 40

66420 40

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231

West/East African eolian dust (%)Age(Ma)

Fig. 1: Pliocene-Pleistocene records of terrigenous (eolian) percentage variations at West African Sites 659, 661,662, 663, and 664 [Bloemendal and deMenocal, 1989; deMenocal et al., 1993; Ruddiman and Janecek, 1989;Tiedemann et al., 1994] and East African/Arabian Sea Sites 231, 721, and 722 [Bloemendal and deMenocal, 1989;deMenocal, 1995]. Pronounced shifts in African climate variability occur in all records near 2.8 Ma, 1.7 Ma, and 1.0Ma (shaded bars). These variability shifts, with corresponding changes in eolian flux, document aridification ofsubtropical Africa due to dynamical effects related the onset and intensification of high-latitude glacial cyclesafter 2.8 Ma. Marine and terrestrial pollen data [Bonnefille, 1983; Dupont and Leroy, 1995] and carbon isotopicanalyses of East African soil carbonates [Cerling, 1992] also support these trends toward more open and aridconditions. Major junctures in the evolution of African hominids and other vertebrates coincide with these shiftssuggesting that some speciation events may have been climatically mediated.

Oligocene. However, after 2.8 Ma the marineAfrican eolian dust records shifted abruptly toa dominant 41-kyr period of variation,mimicking the high-latitude signature ofglacial climate cycles. After 1.7 Ma, the dustrecords exhibit higher amplitude 41-kyraridity cycles. After 1.0 Ma, the dust recordsindicate a further shift to the higher-ampli-tude and longer-period 100-kyr cycles, againmimicking high-latitude ice sheet variability.Glacial dust flux values during the latestPleistocene were between three to five timesgreater than during interglacials, and greatlyincreased abundances of dumbbell-shapedgrass phytoliths (siliceous structural bodies insavannah grasses also blown offshore)document a more southward position of theAfrican savannah grasslands. Marine pollenrecords from West African Site 658 confirmthe onset of “glacial-arid” African climatecycles after 2.8 Ma [Dupont and Leroy, 1995].

Climate model experiments have been used tounderstand these shifts in African climatevariability. In the absence of significantchanges in high-latitude climate, climatemodels have shown that African (and Asian)monsoonal climate respond directly to

Peter deMenocal is apaleoclimatologist at

Lamont-Doherty EarthObservatory of

Columbia University. Hebalances his regularODP seagoing withoccasional trips to

Africa for safari, sun,and science.

March 1997, Vol 10, No 1 3

Site 721/722Arabian SeaTerrigenous %

3.0

3.5

4.0

4.5

Age(Ma)

Site 231Gulf of Aden

Terrigenous %

8040 60155

160

165

170

175

180

185

190

195

200

205

Wargolo3.75-3.78 Ma

Turkana Basin (N. Kenya) Tuff Beds

20 4010 30

(after Brown et al., [1992])

V V V V V V V V

V V V V V V V V V V V

V V V V V V V V

V V V V V V V V V V

V V V V V = Ash shards present

Australo-pithecus afarensis

*A.L. 417

Moiti3.89 Ma

β-Tulu Bor3.38 Ma

Unnamedtephra

that is, direct low-latitude forcing of low-latitude climate.

Glaciation of the Northern Hemisphere,beginning at 2.8 Ma, forever changed thisrelationship. Cold “glacial” North Atlantic seasurface temperatures (SSTs) cause subtropi-cal Africa to become cooler, drier and windier[deMenocal, 1995; deMenocal and Rind, 1993].Climate model results show that the imposi-tion of cold SSTs cooled subtropical Africa by1-3° C, reduced African summer monsoonalrainfall by ~30%, and nearly doubled thestrength of the winter (dust-transporting)trade winds (Figure 2). These same linkagesare also characteristic of modern droughtoccurrences in the Sahel. When ice sheetsexpanded after 2.8 Ma, and large glacial-interglacial oscillations were sustained,African climate became partially dependentupon the amplitude and rhythm of high-latitude climate.

Major events in early hominid evolutionappear to be coeval with these Africanclimate shifts. Marine records support previ-ous assertions that certain junctures inhuman evolution may have been climaticallymediated [Vrba, 1995; Vrba et al., 1989].Although the fossil record is still too fragmen-tary to establish precise correlations withpaleoclimate records, the marine eolianrecords provide an exciting new opportunityto examine the available African fossil recordof hominid and other vertebrate evolutionwithin the context of regional paleoenviron-mental change.

The most significant development in earlyhominid evolution occurs between 3.0-2.5Ma, when at least two distinct lineagesemerge from a single bipedal ancestral line(Figure 1). Earliest members of the “robust”australopithecine lineage first occur in thefossil record near 2.7 Ma and are distin-guished by their stout, large-boned frame andapparently unique masticatory adaptations(for example, extremely large chewing teeth).A second lineage, represented by the earliestmembers of our genus Homo, first occurs near2.5 Ma [Wood, 1992] (Figure 1). Earliestfossils of the Homo clade are characterized bylarger absolute cranial volumes and moregraceful frames. The earliest known stonetools (crude choppers and scrapers) occurnear 2.4-2.6 Ma. The synchronous existenceof two distinct hominid lineages has beeninterpreted by some to reflect separate

adaptations to amore arid, variedenvironment. FossilAfrican bovid androdent assemblagesalso indicate shiftstoward arid-adaptedspecies between 2.7-2.5 Ma. By 1.6 Ma,Homo habilis becameextinct and itsimmediate successor,and our directancestor, H. erectus,first occurs in thefossil record near 1.8Ma. H. erectus mayhave migrated tosoutheast Asia asearly as 1.8-1.6 Ma.At 1.7 Ma EastAfrican bovid assem-blages includegreater numbers ofarid-adapted species.Earliest occurrencesof the more sophisti-cated tools (i.e.,bifacal handaxes)occur near 1.4 Ma.By 1 Ma, finalmembers of the“robust” australop-ithecine lineagebecame extinct.

Fig. 2: Tephrostratigraphic correlations between EastAfrican hominid fossil localities in Ethiopia and Kenyaand marine sediment records. The Tulu Bor tuff definesthe age of the A. afarensis specimen A.L. 417. Micro-probe analyses of ash shards from this tuff and fromsparse ash layers in Sites 231 and 721/722 enablecorrelation of the marine and terrestrial records [Brownet al., 1992].

The Arabian Sea sediments also containnumerous very thin, sparse ash layers fromvolcanic eruptions in Ethiopia and Kenya.Microprobe analyses of extracted ash shardsallow us to use a geochemical fingerprintingtechnique to directly intercorrelate the fossil-bearing East African sedimentary sequenceswith the marine paleoclimate records [Brownet al., 1992]. For example, Figure 2 shows theprecise placement of hominid fossil specimenA.L. 417 (belonging to A. afarensis, a “firstfamily” member similar to Lucy) within theSite 231 and 721/722 precessional Africanaridity cycles using tephrostratigraphiccorrelation of the Tulu Bor tuff.

The drilling results, by placing specific con-straints on the changing paleoenvironmentsof subtropical Africa, not only reveal the stageon which a fascinating evolutionary dramaunfolded, they may help us understand howand why the story turned out as it did.


References:

Bloemendal, J., and P.B. deMenocal, Evidence for a change in theperiodicity of tropical climate cycles at 2.4 Myr from whole-coremagnetic susceptibility measurements, Nature, 342, 897-899, 1989.

Bonnefille, R., Evidence for a cooler and drier climate in the EthiopianUplands towards 2.5 Myr ago, Nature, 303, 487-491, 1983.

Brown, F.H., A.M. Sarna-Wojcicki, C.E. Meyer, and B. Haileab,Correlation of Pliocene and Pleistocene tephra layers between theTurkana Basin of East Africa and the Gulf of Aden, QuaternaryInternational, 13/14, 55-67, 1992.

Cerling, T.E., Development of grasslands and savannas in East Africaduring the Neogene, Paleogeog., Paleoclimatol., Paleoecol., 97, 241-247, 1992.

Clemens, S.C., D.W. Murray, and W.L. Prell, Nonstationary phase ofthe Plio-Pleistocene Asian Monsoon, Science, 274, 943-948, 1996.

Darwin, C., An account of the fine dust which often falls on vessels inthe Atlantic Ocean, Q. J. Geol. Soc. Lond., 2, 26-30, 1846.

deMenocal, P.B., Plio-Pleistocene African Climate, Science, 270, 53-59,1995.

deMenocal, P.B., and D. Rind, Sensitivity of Asian and African climateto variations in seasonal insolation, glacial ice cover, sea-surfacetemperature, and Asian orography, J. Geophys. Res., 98 (4), 7265-7287, 1993.

deMenocal, P.B., W.F. Ruddiman, and E.M. Pokras, Influences of high-and low-latitude processes on African climate: Pleistocene eolianrecords from equatorial Atlantic Ocean Drilling Program Site 663,Paleoceano., 8 (2), 209-242, 1993.

Dupont, L.M., and S.A.G. Leroy, Steps toward drier climatic conditions

ODP Leg 153 drilled along the western medianvalley wall of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge (MAR) at theKane transform (MARK Area, 23°N) in the firstattempt at deep crustal “offset drilling” in slow-spreading crust. By integrating magnetic, paleo-magnetic, and structural data adapted fromstudies of continental extensional terranes, Idemonstrated that the serpentinites in thedetachment footwall at Site 920 have not beenrotated since acquiring remanence. Hence, thefootwall and structures within it (including themajor detachment faults) are in their originalorientations. These results provide definitivekinematic constraints on the large-scale tectonicsof the slow-spreading MAR.

As known for decades, slow-spreading ridgesdisplay a characteristic rift valley morphology.However, their structural development remainspoorly understood. My fellowship researchfocused on quantifying displacement along andtectonic rotation associated with major detach-ment faults that define the rift valley walls of somespreading segments. Paleomagnetic studies onSite 920 serpentinites constrain the kinematics ofthe fault zone that exposes hydrated uppermantle peridotites. Magnetite, formed duringserpentinization, is the sole magnetic carrier.Although magnetite occurs in a number ofparagenetic settings, a consistent (~30° dipping)metamorphic fabric imparts a pervasive anisotropy

Paleomagnetic and rock magnetic constraints inlarge-scale normal faults on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge

RóisínLawrence

Ph.D. Student:Duke University

Faculty Advisor:Jeffrey A. Karson

of magnetic susceptibility (AMS). Paleomagneticremanence studies demonstrate a consistentunivectorial remanence (inclination = 32.7°±1°).Distinct from the predicted inclination of 41°, thissuggests a finite tectonic rotation. Anisotropy ofremanence experiments show, despite the strongAMS, only a small deflection of the remanenceacquisition, resulting in a corrected inclination of38.2°±1.5°. Either secular variations or deviationof the drill hole from vertical explain this smallremaining difference. The magnetic resultsindicate no significant tectonic rotation of theserpentinites implying that the low-angleserpentinite detachment fault slipped in itspresent orientation and that the footwall upliftoccurred without significant rotations.

This integrated structural and paleomagneticapproach was applied at two asymmetric slow-spreading segments in the MARK area. The majormechanism of extension appears to be a singlenon-rotational, low-angle detachment fault. (Theother study used oriented Alvin submersiblesamples of diabase dikes from a spreading seg-ment 100 km to the south.) Together these resultsimply that low-angle, detachment faults accom-modate mechanical extension at different MARsegments where a range of rock types and crustalassemblages occur, further improving our under-standing of the geometry and kinematics of exten-sional tectonics along slow-spreading ridges.

FellowshipProfile

in northwestern Africa during the Upper Pliocene, in Paleoclimate andEvolution With Emphasis on Human Origins, edited by E. Vrba, G.Denton, L. Burckle, and T. Partridge, Yale University Press, NewHaven, 1995.

Kutzbach, J.E., and P.J. Guetter, The influence of changing orbitalparameters and surface boundary conditions on climate simulationsfor the past 18,000 years, J. Atmos. Sci., 43, 1726-1759, 1986.

Prell, W.L., and J.E. Kutzbach, Monsoon variability over the past150,000 years, J. Geophys. Res., 92, 8411-8425, 1987.

Pye, Eolian Dust and Dust Deposits, Acamedic Press, New York, 1987.Raymo, M.E., The initiation of Northern Hemisphere glaciation, Ann.

Rev. Earth and Planet. Sci., 22, 353-383, 1994.Ruddiman, W.F., M.E. Raymo, D.G. Martinson, B.M. Clement, and J.

Backman, Pleistocene evolution: Northern Hemisphere ice sheetsand North Atlantic Ocean, Paleoceanography, 4, 353-412, 1989.

Tiedemann, R., M. Sarnthein, and N.J. Shackleton, Astronomictimescale for the Pliocene Atlantic δ18O and dust flux records ofODP Site 659, Paleoceanography, 9 (4), 619-638, 1994.

Vrba, E., The fossil record of African antelopes (Mammalia, Bovidae) inrelation to human evolution and paleoclimate, in Paleoclimate andEvolution With Emphasis on Human Origins, edited by E. Vrba, G.Denton, L. Burckle, and T. Partridge, pp. 385-424, Yale Univ. Press,New Haven, 1995.

Vrba, E.S., G.H. Denton, and M.L. Prentice, Climatic influences on earlyHominid behavior, Ossa, 14, 127-156, 1989.

Wood, B., Origin and evolution of the genus Homo, Nature, 355, 783-790, 1992.

March 1997, Vol 10, No 1 5

ver the last few months, JOI set up a Publications Steering Committee (PUBCOM) whose mandate is toadvise JOI in the implementation of the ODPPublications Strategy. A PUBCOM is explicitlymentioned in this strategy (see the NovemberJOI/USSAC Newsletter for a summary), whichstates that the shift to electronic publicationof the ODP “Initial Reports” or “ScientificResults” volumes will proceed only if JOIreceives a positive recommendation fromPUBCOM and the endorsement of the JOIDESScientific Committee (SCICOM). Specifically,PUBCOM’s mandate is to:• Provide an ongoing evaluation of the ODP

Publications Strategy and recommend toJOI any changes that should be made;

• Ensure that the Strategy is in step with thedirection of the scientific publishing worldand the needs of the scientific community;

• Make recommendations on the design andfunction of formats for electronic ODPProceedings volumes;

• Evaluate new formats for electronic CD-ROM volumes as well as a WWW (Inter-net) version of the ODP Proceedings;

• Recommend a timetable to move forwardtoward a complete or mostly electronicpublishing of ODP scientific data andresults; and

• Develop a strategy to ensure an archivalrecord of all ODP Proceedings materials.

PUBCOM membership is now complete (seethe box), and the committee will hold its firstmeeting April 3-4 in Washington, DC. One ofthe key items to be addressed is whether thePublications Strategy, as it currently stands,will satisfy the current publication/informa-tion needs of the community. If not, howshould the Strategy be changed? Any changeswould have to be endorsed by SCICOM attheir late April meeting. The full meetingagenda also includes discussions on howPUBCOM can best reach out to our constitu-ency to get an accurate assessment of thecurrent and anticipated practices and prefer-ences in assimilating and electronically usingODP information. PUBCOM will help educatethe community about information-transferenhancements that are uniquely provided byelectronic publications, but are impossiblethrough the print medium. Finally it is vitallyimportant that PUBCOM become fully in-

formed about electronic publication withrespect to its real powers and current limita-tions, if this committee is to make educatedrecommendations to JOI.

To begin the education process, at the Aprilmeeting, there will be several guests who willshare with PUBCOM their experiences in theelectronic publication world. Special presen-tations will be made by:• Judy Holoviak, Director, American Geo-

physical Union (AGU) Publications, whowill discuss AGU electronic publications —business and economic realities of pub-lishing premier earth science journals;

• Jim Smith, U.S. Geological Survey (USGS),who will discuss USGS electronic publica-tions — products/major benefits to cus-tomers/strategies to avoid pitfalls and baddecisions/how our libraries will work inthe future;

• Norm MacLeod, Natural History Museum,London, core organizer of PaleoNet andPalaeontologica Electronica, who willdiscuss electronic paleontology — thegoals and products for a visualizingresearch community; and

• Carolyn Ruppel, Georgia Tech, who willdiscuss electronic scientific publications ofthe AGU — views and insights from anAGU advisor and ODP scientist.

Publish (on paper) or perish?

OJOI

PublicationsSteering

Committee

MEMBERSChair: David Scholl (USGS/Stanford U.)Warner Bruekmann (GEOMAR, Germany)Christian France-Lanord (CRPG-CNRS, France)Bob Garrison (UCSC/CSU, Moss Landing)Nils Holm (Stockholm U., Sweden)Itaru Koizumi (Hokkaido U., Japan)Greg Moore (U. of Hawaii)Ted Moore (U. of Michigan)Julian Pearce (U. of Durham, UK)David Piper (GSC, Canada)Isabella Premoli-Silva (U. di Milano, Italy)Jim Smith (USGS)Lisa Tauxe (SIO)

LIAISONSEllen Kappel (JOI)Susan Humphris (SCICOM)Ann Klaus (ODP/TAMU)Jennifer Rumford (ODP/TAMU)Carl Richter (ODP/TAMU)Mary Reagan (LDEO/BRG)

PUBCOMM E M B E R S H I P


n December 1996, the JOIDES Planning Committee finalized the drillship operations schedule for the fiscal years 1998and early 1999. Brief descriptions of Legs177-183 as taken from the JOIDES SciencePlan follow. We encourage you to contactthe leg co-chief scientists and/or Jamie Allanif you are interested in obtaining moreinformation about a particular leg.

Leg 177: S. Ocean PaleoceanographyCo-Chiefs: Hodell (U.S.), Gersonde (FRG)To investigate the paleoceanographic andclimatic history of the southern high lati-tudes, Leg 177 will drill a latitudinal anddepth transect across the Atlantic sector ofthe Antarctic Circumpolar Current. Thesedrill sites will provide sedimentary se-quences essential to expanding the knownCenozoic history of the Southern Ocean.Another major leg objective, inspired by highsedimentation rates at several target drillsites, is to obtain Neogene sediment sectionsto help resolve the timing of SouthernHemisphere climatic events relative to thosedocumented in the Northern Hemisphere (anarticle on this subject will be printed in theJuly 1997 issue).

Leg 178: Antarctic PeninsulaCo-Chiefs: Barker (UK),Camerlenghi (ESF/Italy)During Leg 178, the Antarctic Peninsula’swestern margin will be drilled to fulfill thescientific objectives of two programs: one toinvestigate Antarctic glacial history and sea-level change, and the other to explorepaleoproductivity in the Antarctic coastalocean. The target sediments in the firstprogram were transported by grounded icesheets to the Antarctic continental marginand deposited on the rise as drifts and onthe shelf and slope as progradationalwedges. The planned drill sites should yieldan unprecedented high-resolution record ofcontinental climate over the past 6-10million years as well as a direct check on thepresumed glacio-eustatic origin of globalsea-level change over the same period.Potentially, our understanding of the Antarc-tic ice sheet’s role in global climate dynamicswill be significantly advanced by Leg 178.

Leg 179: NERO/Hammer DrillingCo-Chiefs: TBNBy drilling on the Ninety East Ridge in theIndian Ocean, Leg 179 will provide a site forinstalling a broadband ocean seismometerand instrument package for the InternationalOcean Network (ION). This Ninety East RidgeObservatory (NERO) will fill a gap in theGlobal Seismic Network and permit study ofIndian Plate dynamics. During Leg 179, Leg121’s Site 756 (primary target) or Site 757(alternate target) will be reoccupied, andbasement will be penetrated to at least 100 mto allow for the subsequent installation of theinstrument package by submersible.

Leg 180: Woodlark BasinCo-Chiefs: Taylor (U.S.), TBNLeg 180 drilling in the Woodlark Basin (nearPapua, New Guinea) will address the natureof low-angle faulting, continental breakup,and the evolution of conjugate rifted margins.Lateral variation from active continentalrifting to seafloor spreading within a smallregion makes the western Woodlark Basinideal for investigating the mechanics oflithospheric extension. The proposed drillingwill: (1) initially characterize, and latermonitor, the in situ properties of the activefault zone; and (2) reveal the vertical motionhistory of both the down-flexed upper plateand the unloaded lower plate allowing theestimation of the timing and amount ofextension prior to spreading.

Leg 181: Southwest Pacific GatewayCo-Chiefs: TBNLeg 181 aims to reconstruct the Neogenehistory of stratigraphy, paleohydrology, anddynamics of the Pacific Ocean’s Deep West-ern Boundary Current (DWBC) and relatedwater masses. Today, 40% of AntarcticBottom Water enters the world ocean throughthe SW Pacific Gateway as the thermohalineDWBC. A latitudinal and depth transect onthe eastern margin of the New ZealandPlateau will yield information about theDWBC’s development, which is fundamentalto understanding global oceanic and climatichistories. Recovered sedimentary sequenceswill also allow other high-priority problems tobe addressed.

Summaries of upcoming ODP Legs 177-183

If you would like toparticipate on an ODP

leg, contact:

Dr. James AllanScience Operations

Ocean Drilling ProgramTexas A&M University1000 Discovery Drive

College Station, TX77845-9547

tele: (409) 845-0506e-mail: james_allan@

odp.tamu.edu

The ODP/TAMU web sitehas shipboard scientistapplications on line at:

http://www-odp.tamu.edu/sciops/

cruise_application_info.html

I

OceanDrilling

Program

March 1997, Vol 10, No 1 7

Leg Region Co-Chiefs Dep. Port Date

172 NW Atlantic Keigwin Charleston 2/97Sed. Drifts Rio

173 Iberia Margin Beslier Lisbon 4/97Whitmarsh

174A New Jersey Austin Halifax 6/97Shelf Christie-Blick

174B CORK/ Becker New York 7/97Engineering Pettigrew

175 Benguela Berger Las Palmas 8/97Current Wefer

176 Return to 735B Dick Cape Town 10/97Natland

177 S. Ocean Gersonde Cape Town 12/97Paleocean. Hodell

178 Antarctic Barker Punta 2/98Peninsula Camerlenghi Arenas

179 NERO/Hammer TBN Cape Town 4/98Drilling

180 Woodlark Taylor Singapore 6/98Basin TBN

181 SW Pacific TBN Townsville 8/98Gateway

182 Great Feary Wellington 10/98Australian HineBight

183 Kerguelen TBN Freemantle 12/98Plateau

Leg 182: Great Australian BightCo-Chiefs: Hine (U.S.), Feary (Australia)Leg 182 will drill a ten-hole array across theCenozoic shelf of the Great Australian Bightin order to: (1) document this carbonateplatform’s evolution since 65 Ma in responseto oceanographic and biotic change; and (2)study global sea-level fluctuations, physicaland chemical paleocean dynamics, bioticevolution, hydrology and diagenesis. Thisdrilling will complement other ODP sea-leveltransects and will contribute to our under-standing of climate and deepwater circulationthroughout the Cenozoic evolution of theSouthern Ocean. Leg findings will also con-tribute to modeling ancient open platformsand ramps.

Leg 183: Kerguelen PlateauCo-Chiefs: TBNLeg 183 is the first leg in a proposed two-legprogram to investigate the origin, growth,compositional variation, and subsidencehistory of the Large Igneous Province (LIP)formed by the Kerguelen Plateau and BrokenRidge in the southeastern Indian Ocean. Anarray of holes in portions of the LIP willpenetrate approximately 200 m of basement,and offset drilling is planned in the vicinity ofmajor fault scarps where tectonic processeshave exposed deeper crustal levels. Thedrilling will examine magma volumes andgrowth mechanisms—as well as the relativeroles of the plume, asthenosphere, andcontinental lithosphere—as functions of timein forming this LIP.

Scientific Objectives

To reconstruct a high-resolution, deep- to intermediate-depth hydrographic record forthe western subtropical North Atlantic during the last glacial maximum.

To investigate the history of this non-volcanic rifted margin, including timing/natureof melt generation during breakup and earliest generation of “normal” oceanic crust.

To investigate the Oligocene-Holocene history of sea-level change by determining thegeometry and age of the Oligocene-to-Miocene depositional sequences.

To install a borehole seal (CORK) at Hole 395A and to conduct engineering tests.

To reconstruct the history of the Benguela Current and coastal upwelling of the regionbetween 5° and 32° S.

To deepen hole 735B and investigate the nature of magmatic, hydrothermal, andtectonic processes in the lower ocean crust at a slow-spreading ocean ridge.

To investigate the Cenozoic and Neogene paleoceanographic and climatic history ofthe southern high latitudes.

To explore Antarctic glacial history and sea-level change and to investigate thepaleoproductivity in the Antarctic coastal ocean.

To install a broadband ocean seismometer and instrument package which will fill agap in the Global Seismic Network and permit study of Indian Plate dynamics.

To investigate lithosphere extension, specifically the nature of low-angle faulting,continental breakup, and the evolution of conjugate rifted margins.

To reconstruct the stratigraphy, paleohydrology, and dynamics of the Pacific’s DeepWestern Boundary Current and related water masses since the early Miocene.

To document this carbonate platform’s evolution since 65 Ma in response to oceano-graphic and biotic change and to study global sea-level fluctuations, physical andchemical paleocean dynamics, biotic evolution, hydrology and diagenesis.

To investigate the origin, growth, compositional variation, and subsidence history ofthe Large Igneous Province (LIP) formed by the Kerguelen Plateau and Broken Ridge.

JOIDES Resolution Schedule for Legs 172-183


Contributed by John A. Baross, Melanie Summit, and James F. Holden

Is there a microbial biosphere in the subseafloor?ScienceResults

t has been known for decades that microorganisms inhabit the deep terrestrial subsurface. Recent studies have demon-strated the presence of unique microbialcommunities in deep aquifers, as well asthermophilic and hyperthermophilic microor-ganisms (growth at 55 and 90° C, respec-tively) in oil wells and boreholes. In contrastto the terrestrial subsurface, much less isknown about the incidence, microbial diver-sity, and nutritional requirements of themicrobial communities in the subseafloor.However, three separate lines of evidencefrom deep-sea environments support thenotion that a significant biomass may existwithin the brittle portion of the Earth’s crustand sediments, particularly near zones ofactive volcanism. The evidence includes thepresence of thermophiles and hyper-thermophiles in fluids released from theseafloor following submarine volcanic erup-tions, the presence of these same organismsin 5-30° C diffuse vent fluids at other hydro-thermal vent sites and in oil wells, and thedetection of microorganisms in deep coresfrom oceanic sediments.

Eight volcanic eruptions have been detectedin the Pacific Ocean in the last 15 years.Massive amounts of white floc materialreferred to as “snow” have been observed atfour of these sites, and thermophilic and/orhyperthermophilic microorganisms werecultured from three sites within days tomonths after the initial eruption (Table 1;Figure 1). At the CoAxial segment “Floc” site,thermophilic and hyperthermophilic anaero-bic microorganisms were cultured from 18° Cdiffuse hydrothermal fluids in 1993, threemonths after the eruption. However, onlymoderate thermophiles could be detected indiffuse fluids in 1994 through 1996 as thesystem cooled and venting subsided. Thedetection of hyperthermophilic microorgan-isms in fluids from new eruption sites orother diffuse flow vents that are 40-50° Cbelow the minimum growth temperature forthese organisms signifies that they originatedfrom a hot subseafloor habitat. In general,analyses of the low-temperature fluids atCoAxial (geochemical and microbial activitymeasurements and electron micrographs ofmicroorganisms) indicate that a physiologi-cally diverse microbial community inhabitsthe subseafloor and includes iron- and sulfur-oxidizing bacteria as well as methane produc-ers and consumers (Table 2). Anomalouslyhigh methane levels and high sulfide and lowsulfate levels in only low-temperature diffusefluids from the three eruption sites suggestthat vigorous biogenic methanogenesis andsulfate-reduction occur in the subseafloorfollowing an eruption.

One of the characteristics of new eruptionevents is that they are often associated withlarge, symmetrical plumes of heated water(“megaplumes”) believed to form rapidly bythe catastrophic release of a preexistingsubseafloor fluid reservoir [Baker et al., 1989].Therefore, these plumes may provide a recordof the subseafloor prior to the event. WhenMacDonald Seamount erupted, hyperthermo-philes were found in a plume within hours ofthe event [Huber et al., 1990]. The origin ofthese microbes is uncertain, as MacDonaldSeamount is too shallow to form a classicevent plume. However, an event plumeresulting from the February 1996 NorthGorda Ridge eruptive event provided anotheropportunity to peer into the subseafloor. The

John A. Baross isProfessor at the School

of Oceanography,University ofWashington.

Melanie Summit isGraduate Student at

the School ofOceanography,

University ofWashington.

James F. Holden isPostdoctoral Research

Associate at theDepartment of

Biochemistry, TheUniversity of Georgia.

Blanco F.Z.

Juan de Fuca Plate

Gorda Plate

PacificPlate

Explorer Plate

Canada

USA

132° 128° 124°

50°

46°

42°

NootkaSovanco

CoAxial1993

North Gorda1996

Cleft1987

Middle Valley1996

Axial1994

Fig. 1: NorthPacific spreadingcenters, high- lighting new eruption sites and seafloor events (modified from D. Kelley). CoAxial and North Gorda are the sites that have been most extensively sampled micro- biologically.

I

March 1997, Vol 10, No 1 9

ENERGY REACTION CARBON/ENERGY SOURCES EVIDENCE FOR CONVERSIONCHEMICAL BIOLOGICAL

Heterotrophy buried C, in situ production? ND isolation of all thermal groups(<20° to >90° C)

Sulfate reduction complex organics, high H2S and low SO

4 relative to end isolation of mesophilic species

organic acids, CO2, H

2member fluids (10 to >40° C)

Sulfur reduction complex organics, ND isolation of hyper-thermophilic S°organic acids, acetate, H

2reducers (>90° C)

Sulfide oxidation CO2, complex organics, high particulate S° morphotypes observed and

organic acids, acetate isolation of mesophiles

Methanogenesis formate, acetate, CO2, H

2high CH

4 and low H

2 relative to end autofluorescent cells2 and isolation

member fluids of hyper-thermophiles

Methane oxidation CH4 and other C

1 compounds 14C-CH

4 oxidation to 14C-CO

2morphotypes observed

Hydrogen oxidation CO2, C

1 and C

2 compounds 3H-H

2 oxidation to 3H-H

2O ND

Nitrification CO2, acetate? ND morphotypes observed

(oxidation of NH3 to

NO2- and NO

3-)

Iron oxidation organic acids, acetate, CO2

iron-oxidation enzyme activity morphotypes observed andisolation of mesophiles

ND=No data, 1from Holden et al., in preparation, 2methanogens have signature flavins that autofluoresce at specific wavelengths

Table 2: Microbially-mediated chemical conversions at new-eruption sites and diffuse-flow vents1

SITE DATE TEMPERATURE FLOC OBSERVED THERMOPHILES IDENTIFIED

MacDonald Seamount, 1988 no temperature measure- no observations diverse assemblage of thermophiles1 fromSE Pacific ments of source fluids plume and surface slick

9° N, East Pacific Rise 1991 30° C vent sampled Yes hyperthermophiles1 and methanogens(1994)2 cultured2

CoAxial, October 1993 18° C at Floc site; Yes at Floc hyperthermophiles1 and diverse thermo-Juan de Fuca Ridge 36° C at Flow site No at Flow philes cultured from Floc; none from Flow

Axial, July 1994 30° C vent sampled at Yes thermophiles cultured but noJuan de Fuca Ridge nearby ASHES vent field hyperthermophiles2

(7/95)2

Cleft, first observed 5° C at Pipe Organ; no observations No growth detected at 55° C or 90° CJuan de Fuca Ridge in 1987 27° C at Vent I site (6/94)

North Gorda Ridge February to no temperature measure- No thermophiles and hyperthermophilesApril 1996 ments of source fluids isolated from 2° C plume water

17° S, East Pacific Rise observed in 150° C fluid at one site No no observations1983, 1984

Middle Valley, October 1996, ~250° C No no observationsJuan de Fuca Ridge drilling

creates vents

Loihi Seamount, August 1996 3° -4° C yes thermophiles and hyperthermophilesHawaii cultured (>50,000 per liter)

1 including pure cultures of the hyperthermophiles Pyrococcus and Thermococcus2 microbes cultured three years and one year after the events, respectively

Table 1: Microbial observations at new ocean eruption sites


plume was sampled less than one week afterits formation, making it the most rapidresponse to a new event. Enrichment culturesprepared shipboard yielded anaerobicmoderate thermophiles and hyperthermo-philes in 9 of 10 samples located throughoutthe plume at levels higher than 200 organ-isms per liter (Figure 2). No thermophiles orhyperthermophiles were cultured in 12samples of seawater surrounding the plume.Hydrothermal plumes typically have dilutionfactors of at least one thousand, and as theseanaerobic thermophiles cannot grow underplume conditions (low temperature anddissolved oxygen) their numbers must haveexceeded 200,000 per liter in the originalfluid that formed the plume. A novel group ofthermophilic microorganisms (Figure 3) wasgrown from this event plume in an anaerobicmedium containing simple organic acids andis currently being studied. Characterization ofthese organisms will help place thermal andchemical constraints on the subseafloorenvironment they inhabit.

The second line of evidence supporting asubseafloor microbial biosphere is thatthermophiles and hyperthermophiles arerepeatedly isolated from many 8-30° C diffuseflow vent sites which have not been impactedby eruptions. In diffuse-flow vents, theoverall abundances of microorganismsremains relatively constant at different sites

0.10

0.080.06

0.04

0.02

1800

2000

2200

2400

2600

2800

42˚36' 42˚39' 42˚42' 42˚45'latitude (N)

wat

er

Fig. 2: 1996 North GordaRidge event plume 96A asof March 1996. Contoursare temperature anomaly(.01°C/contour, modifiedfrom E. Baker). Dotsindicate locations in theplume where thermo-philes were cultured.

but the levels of culturable thermophiles andhyperthermophiles can vary by more thanfour orders of magnitude. The reason for thisvariation in abundance is unknown but maybe related to the vertical and horizontaldimensions of the diffuse vent subseafloorfluid circulation zone. The depth of the highporosity extrusive layer at the Endeavour andat the CoAxial eruption site is greater than500 meters [Pruis and Johnson, 1996]. Seismicevidence points to active cracking to depthsof 5 km along the Endeavour segment, Juande Fuca Ridge implying that hydrothermalfluid could circulate to these depths throughcracks [Archer and Wilcock, 1996]. Does thisimply that microorganisms could colonize thecracks in deep basalt associated with activeridges? Potentially, though more work isneeded to verify that fluid actually doescirculate in these cracks and whether thecarbon, nitrogen and energy sources neededto sustain life are available (Table 2). Therecent reports of microorganisms apparentlyliving in basaltic glass [Fisk et al., 1996]underscore the need to maintain an openmind about the physiological versatility ofmicroorganisms.

Thermophilic and hyperthermophilic microor-ganisms have also been isolated from deep(>2000 m) petroleum reservoirs on land andat sea [Stetter et al., 1993, L’Haridon et al.,1995]. The presence of high-temperature

March 1997, Vol 10, No 1 11

organisms in wells uncontaminated byseawater, which is sometimes introduced aspumping fluid, strongly suggests that they areindigenous and not seawater contaminants.

The third line of evidence for subseafloororganisms comes from drill cores. Drillingaffords a more comprehensive sampling ofthe environment than fluid sampling, wheremicroorganisms are removed from theirhabitat and flushed to the seafloor. Microbeshave been repeatedly observed in drill coresfrom deep ocean sediments obtained throughthe Ocean Drilling Program (ODP). In fact,sediment cores from over ten sites have beenexamined for microbes, and all those coresharbored microorganisms. The deepest coresexamined for microbes extended below 500mbsf in the Japan Sea. Not only were mi-crobes present throughout these cores, butfurther measurements showed the presenceof active microbial sulfate reduction (seeParkes et al., [1994]). Microbial abundancesshow a strong negative correlation with depthin the spatially extensive deep sedimentarybiosphere [Parkes et al., 1994], though thecontrolling factors are unknown. Activity ofmicrobes in these sediments has not yet beensystematically addressed, but the supportingchemical and physical measurements maderoutinely on ODP legs would be invaluable ininterpreting such results.

Many questions exist regarding the chemicaland physical nature of the subseafloorhabitat, but the most fundamental questionsconcern its dimensions. The vertical extent ofthe subseafloor biosphere in the hydrother-mally influenced brittle crust remains contro-versial and completely unconstrained. Thelateral extent of the subseafloor biospherehinges on whether it must be localized toactive vent fields or could be spatially exten-sive. The implication from results at neweruption sites and diffuse flow vents is thathydrothermal activity, mining energy sourcesfrom basalt, may be a prerequisite for anactive subseafloor microbial biosphere. Fastspreading rates and propagating heat sourcesguarantee high intake of seawater and adynamic heat source would result in continu-ous changes in the spatial and temporaldimensions of the subseafloor. As the com-munity shifts its perception from the para-

digm of localized vent fields to the realizationthat hydrothermal activity in the seaflooroccurs fairly commonly, the possibility hasopened that the subseafloor associated withridges may harbor spatially vast microbialcommunities.

It is clear that understanding the ecology ofthe subseafloor microbial habitats associatedwith volcanism is very complex and involvesinsight into decade-long questions about thenature and dynamics of the heat source, rockand magma chemistry, cracking behavior,hydrothermal fluid circulation, crustal poros-ity and thermal gradients. The interrelation-ships between these variables and microbialcommunities are not known other than thatindividually they constrain the ability ofmicroorganisms to colonize and grow in thesubseafloor. The verification of a vastsubseafloor biosphere will require interdisci-plinary measurements and models, andparticularly at new eruption sites anddrillholes strategically located near ridges.

Fig. 3: Electron micrograph of microbes cultured fromthe North Gorda event plume. These microbes weregrown anaerobically at 70°C in a growth mediumcontaining .03% (w/v) formate, acetate, propionate,and citrate, as well as .01% yeast extract.

References:

Archer, S.D., E. Baker,z andW.S. Wilcock, Mi-croearthquake activityassociated withhydrothermal circulationon the Endeavoursegment of the Juan deFuca Ridge, EOS, Trans.AGU, 77, F727, 1996.

Baker, E.T., W. Lavelle, R.A.Feely, G.J. Massoth andS.L. Walker, Episodicventing on the Juan deFuca Ridge, J. Geophys.Res. 94, 9237-9250, 1989.

Fisk, M., S. Giovannoni andI. Thorseth, ODP recovers“live” volcanic rocks, JOI/USSAC Newsletter, 9(3),10-12, 1996.

Huber, R., P. Stoffers, J.L.Cheminee, H.H. Richnowand K.O. Stetter,Hyperthermophilicarchaebacteria within thecrater and open-seaplume of eruptingMacDonald Seamount,Nature, 345, 179-182,1990.

L’Haridon, S. L., A.-L.Reysenbach, P. Glenat, D.Prieur and C. Jeanthon,Hot subterraneanbiosphere in a continentaloil reservoir, Nature, 377,223-224, 1995.

Parkes, R.J., B.A. Cragg, S.J.Bale, J.M. Getliff, K.Goodman, P.A. Rochelle,J.C. Fry, A.J. Weightmanand S.M. Harvey, Deepbacterial biosphere inPacific Ocean sediments,Nature, 371, 410-413,1994.

Pruis, M. J. and H.P.Johnson, Time dependentporosity of very youngupper oceanic crust fromocean bottom gravitymeasurements, EOS Trans.AGU, T22D-1, 172, 1996.

Stetter, K.O., R. Huber, E.Bloechl. M. Kurr, R.D.Eden, M. Fielder, H. Cashand I. Vance,Hyperthermophilicarchaea are thriving indeep North Sea andAlaskan oil reservoirs,Nature, 365, 743-745,1993.


A N N O U NN N O U NAJOI/USSAC is seeking graduate students of unusualpromise and ability who are enrolled in U.S. institutionsto conduct research compatible with that of the OceanDrilling Program. Both one- and two-year fellowships areavailable. The award is $22,000 per year to be used forstipend, tuition, benefits, research costs, and incidentaltravel, if any. Masters and doctoral degree candidatesare encouraged to propose innovative and imaginativeprojects. Research may be directed toward the objectivesof a specific leg or to broader themes.

PROPOSAL DEADLINEShorebased Work (regardless of leg) 11/15/97

For more information and/or to receive an applicationpacket please contact Andrea Johnson at:

Schlanger Ocean Drilling Fellowship ProgramJoint Oceanographic Institutions1755 Massachusetts Ave., NW, Suite 800Washington, DC 20036-2102Tel: (202) 232-3900 x213Fax: (202) 232-8203E-mail: [email protected]

FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM

Tentative dates: June 3-6, 1997Tentative venue: Kona, HawaiiConvenors: Greg Moore, Casey Moore, Tom Shipley, Miriam Kastner

Subduction zone thrusts produce the largest and potentially the most destruc-tive earthquakes and tsunamis on our planet by shear along converging plateboundaries. Despite the societal and economic importance of great earthquakeson the subduction zone megathrust, little is known about the seismogenic zonethat produces them. An International Lithosphere Program Workshop onDynamics of Lithospheric Convergence, held in September, 1995 in Japanhighlighted the importance of an interdisciplinary international effort toeffectively investigate this seismogenic zone. Although the problem has beenwell outlined, the field techniques and geographic areas for field studies requireconsiderable community input. We will be funded by the U.S. National ScienceFoundation and the JOI/U.S. Science Support Program (JOI/USSSP) to hold aworkshop to address these issues.

Important research objectives of SEIZE are: (I) to establish the relationshipsbetween earthquakes and: (1) structural geometry, (2) distribution of stress andstrain, (3) thermal structure, and (4) nature and fluxes of the fluids and solidsin and across key seismogenic zones; and (II) to formulate and test quantitativemodels of how the shallow subduction cycle works, including the complexinteractions among the multiple processes. Investigations will require observa-tions of active tectonic, seismic, and geochemical processes that occur frommilliseconds to decades and document their accumulated geologic record.These characterizations will help define the conditions and materials thatcontrol earthquake cycles and improve evaluation of natural hazards.

The purpose of this workshop is to bring together a group of scientists who willbroadly represent the greater community studying the seismogenic zone. Wewill discuss the kinds of experiments that are necessary to achieve the objec-tives listed above. An important component will be to identify the best geo-graphic areas in which to carry out experiments.

The workshop addresses all interested scientists and engineers, in the U.S. andabroad. Funding will be available for approximately 25 U.S. participants. Thetotal number of attendees should be limited to approximately 50 in order tokeep the workshop at a manageable size.

Participants will be chosen by the U.S. MARGINS Steering Committee, based onscientific expertise and potential contribution to the workshop. Interestedindividuals should send a one-page letter outlining their potential contributionas soon as possible to the MARGINS Office via: e-mail to [email protected];fax to (713) 285-5214; or mail to Dr. Dale Sawyer, MARGINS Planning Office,Department of Geology and Geophysics, MS 126, 6100 South Main St.,Houston, Texas 77251, USA.

THE SEISMOGENIC ZONE EXPERIMENT

SCHLANGER OCEAN DRILLING

CONFERENCE ON COOPERATIVEOCEAN RISER DRILLING

Date: July 22-24, 1997Place: National Olympics Memorial Youth Center

Tokyo, Japan

The workshop’s goal is to formulate the mainscientific objectives outlined in the ODP LongRange Plan that require riser drilling, and to definethe strategies and technology needed to achievethese goals. The workshop report will summarizeand document the main problems and goals butwill not specify the research-implementation planwhich will be proposal-driven.

Approximately 25 members of the U.S. scientificcommunity will be chosen to attend. Expenseswill be supported by the JOI/U.S. Science SupportProgram. For more information contact theCONCORD Steering Committee Secretariat at:JAMSTEC e-mail: [email protected] ORI e-mail: [email protected]

March 1997, Vol 10, No 1 13

LEG 172: NW ATL. SED. DRIFTSU.S. Co-Chief: L. Keigwin, WHOIODP Staff Scientist: G. ActonW. Borowski, U of North CarolinaB. Clement, Florida International UW. Chaisson, UC Santa CruzR. Flood, SUNY Stony BrookB. Haskell, U of MinnesotaM. Horowitz, MITE. Laine, Bowdain CollegeS. Lund, U of Southern CaliforniaM.-S. Poli, U of South CarolinaM. Reuer, WHOI/MITD. Winter, Florida State U

LEG 173: IBERIA MARGINODP Staff Scientist: P. WallaceJ. Beard, VA Mus. of Nat. HistoryK. Kudless, Ohio State US. Smith, U of HoustonM. Tompkins, Purdue UB. Turrin, Berkeley Geochron. Ctr.R. Wilkens, U of HawaiiS. Wise, Florida State UX. Zhao, UC Santa Cruz

JOI/USSSP SUPPORTEDSHIPBOARD PARTICIPANTS

C E M E N T SC E M E N T S

U.S. MEMBERSHIP

Susan Humphris, WHOI, SciCom ChairGerard Bond, LDEO (Greg Mountain, LDEO)Kevin Brown, Scripps (Lisa Tauxe, Scripps)Emily Klein, Duke (John Bender, UNC, Charlotte)Roger Larson, URI (Steve D’Hondt, URI)Ken Miller, Rutgers (Greg Mountain, LDEO)Casey Moore, UC Santa Cruz (Jim Zachos, UC Santa Cruz)Greg Moore, U of Hawaii (Patty Fryer, U of Hawaii)Jonathan Overpeck, NOAA (Larry Peterson, RSMAS)Maureen Raymo, MIT (Ed Boyle, MIT)

(SciCom alternates)

Letters of nomination for U.S. membership on SciCom weresolicited from the scientific community. The U.S. SciCommembers were nominated by the JOIDES Nomination Commit-tee (J. Kennett, Chair; M. Leinen; M. McNutt; D. Clague) andapproved by the JOI board of Governors.

JOIDES

Marine Coring at Margins

Shallow water sediments contain unique information about nearshore pro-cesses, sediment stability/transport, paleoclimate, diagenesis, and the history ofsea level. Sampling these sediments forms a key component of the ODP LongRange Plan plus the ONR STRATAFORM and NSF Margins initiatives. However, thetechnology required to recover samples from tens to hundreds of meters belowthe seafloor in shelfal water depths is not widely recognized or exploited withinthe scientific community. A workshop initiated by ONR STRATAFORM will beheld May 1-2 at the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory to promote dialoguebetween potential scientific users and commercial providers of shallow-watersampling technologies: vibra-coring, wireline coring from floating platforms, andcoring and logging from jack-up rigs. The meeting will frame the scientificjustification for such sampling. Case histories will be examined. Availablesampling technologies will be presented and discussed, and the cost andperformance of these methods will be compared to desired scientific objec-tives. Technological developments that may be needed to achieve theseobjectives will also be identified. The goal will be to prepare a written strategyintended to culminate in high-recovery coring and logging tens of meters intothe shallow-water seabed.

MarineCAM is cosponsored by JOI/USSSP and ONR. For additional informationcontact the convenor, Gregory Mountain, LDEO, Palisades, NY 10964([email protected]).

U.S. MEMBERSHIP

JOIDES

AND

EARTH’S ENVIRONMENT

Jamie Austin, UTIGPeter deMenocal, LDEOSteve D’Hondt, URIJeff Gee, SIOJon Martin, U of FloridaTed Moore, U of MichiganBrian Popp, U of HawaiiAna Ravelo, UCSCEllen Thomas, Yale/WesleyanMike Underwood, U of Missouri

EARTH’S INTERIOR

Nathan Bangs, UTIGGarry Karner, LDEODebbie Kelley, U of WashingtonJohn Mahoney, U of HawaiiCraig Manning, UCLAJulie Morris, Washington UCarolyn Ruppel, Georgia TechJohn Tarduno, U of RochesterDoug Wiens, Washington UTBN

Letters of nomination for U.S. membership on the SSEPs were solicitedfrom the scientific community. The U.S. SSEP members were selected bythe JOI/U.S. Science Advisory Committee.


The rumors are true. A new ODP sampledistribution policy will soon go into effect.This policy, a fundamental rewrite of the oldone, is designed to maximize the scientificreturn from sample distribution in a respon-sive and flexible manner.

Last year, JOI/ODP personnel decided thatcuratorial and core sample distributionprocedures should be reviewed in light ofcommunity suggestions, recent advances inshipboard laboratories and scientific ap-proaches, as well as in procedures (e.g., newpublication policy and changes in the JOIDESadvisory structure) and thematic directions(e.g., the 1996 ODP Long Range Plan). Inresponse, JOI hosted a workshop in Washing-ton, D.C. on November 18-19, 1996. It wasattended by 20 participants* from the inter-national scientific community, representingODP/TAMU, several JOIDES panels, JOI, andother groups. The participants reviewedextant policy, discussed its scientific andprogrammatic implications, and ultimatelydecided to fundamentally revise the policy.The participants drafted a new set of proce-dures which was endorsed by the PlanningCommittee at their December 1996 meeting.After a second round of minor editing, thepolicy was presented to, and approved by theExecutive Committee this past February. Thefinal edits are being made and then, once NSFapproval is received, the policy will go intoeffect. It will be posted on the curation pageof the ODP/TAMU web site at: http://www-odp.tamu.edu/curation.

Major differences between policies

ISSUE: curatorial supervision and authorityOld: ultimately resided with ODP Curator,who received advice and guidance from theInformation Handling Panel, now disbanded.New: ODP Curator will supervise and imple-ment the new policy. As we go to press, theinterim Curator at ODP/TAMU is Dr. JohnFirth. Ultimate curatorial and samplingauthority will reside with a Curatorial Advi-sory Board (CAB), a standing body, which willserve as an appeals board and will consist ofthe ODP Deputy Director of Services (Dr. JackBaldauf), the ODP Manager of Science Ser-vices (interim Manager is Dr. Jamie Allan),and two JOIDES-appointed members of thescientific community (serving four-yearterms). These two will be selected by the newScientific Measurements panel (SCIMP).

Drill BitsOn a leg-by-leg basis, sampling will bedetermined by a Sampling Allocation Commit-tee (SAC). One will be formed for each leg andwill consist of the two Co-Chief Scientists, theODP Curator/Curatorial Representative, andthe ODP Staff Scientist. Because the SAC bestunderstands the scientific needs of their leg,they will be vested with the authority andresponsibility of making leg-specific decisionson sampling. This includes consideringsampling requests from the scientific party,both before and during the leg. The SAC willdisband and its authority will end at theconclusion of the moratorium, which extendsfrom the beginning of the leg (i.e., when theship sails), to 12 months after it ends (i.e., theship returns to port). SAC decisions may beappealed to the CAB. Evenly split votes in theSAC and the CAB will be decided by the ODPCurator and the ODP Deputy Director ofServices, respectively. SCIMP will be theguardian of the new policy and will provideadvice and guidance as necessary.

ISSUE: sample limitsOld: 50 cc/meter (lifetime) in non-igneousmaterials, and 100 shipboard igneoussamples per person per leg.New: no preconceived set limit; will dependon scientific objectives, availability of mate-rial, and the SAC.

ISSUE: archive coreOld: half of every DSDP and ODP core(except from rarely cored “dedicated” holes)was conserved and preserved in the reposito-ries as archive material and has rarely (ifever) been sampled.New: policy defines a “minimum archive” foreach site, which will often be significantlyless than is currently archived. This minimumcan be expanded, depending on the intentionsof the SAC. This policy change will immedi-ately increase the volume of core materialaccessible to sample requesters and mayreduce coring time by requiring fewer holes.New policy will also permit sampling of thearchive, under certain circumstances, andwith CAB authorization.

ISSUE: “Sampling Strategy”Old: evolved informally as the ScientificProspectus was written, and fortuitouslyduring (and sometimes after) the leg.New: will formalize the development of a“Sampling Strategy.” JOIDES proposal propo-nents, and ultimately the SAC, will be charged

New ODP sample distribution policy

March 1997, Vol 10, No 1 15

with the responsibility of constructing asampling plan that is coordinated with drillingand logging strategies. This plan will beflexible and will evolve as scientific objectivessolidify before, and even during the leg,depending upon core recovery. The strategywill consider all aspects of sampling, such aswhat core material will be designated “work-ing” versus “archive” (beyond the requiredminimum), the anticipated number andfrequency of samples to be taken by investi-gators and whether the samples will be takenon ship or shore, special sampling methods,needs, and storage. The purpose of develop-ing a specific strategy is to best meet scien-tific needs.

Name: JanusDOB: January 8, 1997Weight: eight terabytes, six gigabytes (and

growing)Height: DEC AlphaServer 2100 with 64-bit

hardware

Like new parents, we’re proud to announcethe birth of Janus, the new ODP computerdatabase system. Of course, as with anybaby, the prenatal period was fraught withplanning, interaction with experts and sooth-sayers (hence Oracle), and even a little handwringing. However, thanks to the hard workof the dedicated delivery team of ODP/TAMUand Tracor Inc. personnel, this baby wassuccessfully delivered (not contractuallyspeaking of course) on the JOIDES Resolutionin Barbados, at the beginning of ODP Leg171B. All went well, despite the fact that theship’s doctor was busy conducting radiopatches, and sparks flew when the cord wascut (on the old S1032 database).

The baby’s not bad looking, as babies go, butit’s still just a baby. It’ll grow and do morewith time. Patience is required. At this stageof development, Janus is doing a great job ofcapturing data through both manual andinstrumented interfaces. This makes the livesof shipboard scientists easier because itreduces errors and the entry of redundantdata and it decreases data collection time.Data from the following areas are beingdirectly entered into the Oracle relationaldatabase: drilling, operations, core/sample,paleontology, multi-sensor track, physicalproperties, chemistry, and x-ray. A newvisual core description package, Applecore, is

ISSUE: post-cruise sampling (within themoratorium)Old: occurred on a case-by-case basisNew: will be strongly encouraged whensampling demand is high (e.g.,paleoceanographic legs). This will promotethe best possible use of core and morejudicious distribution of sample.

* Patricia Fryer, Brian Huber, WarnerBrueckmann, Kate Moran, Tom Janecek,Kathy Gillis, Mitch Lyle, Jean-Pierre Valet,Alan Kemp, Kay Emeis, Rick Murray, DamonTeagle, Eve Arnold, Jamie Allan, Russ Merrill,Chris Mato, John Firth, Ellen Kappel, DaveFalvey, and John Farrell

The debut of Janus, the new kid on the boatnow in use for digital capture of these dataand an interface to Janus from Applecore isunder development. Additional applicationsare being written to enter data from: age-depth models (new), sediment and hard rockdescription, color reflectance, thin sections,paleomagnetics, thermal conductivity, andthe Adara tool. For details, see the article“Janus in January” in the most recent issue ofthe JOIDES Journal (vol. 23, no. 1) or at http://www-odp.tamu.edu/janus/joi/janus.html.

As babies grow and discover, so do theirparents. ODP/TAMU personnel, shipboardscientists, and shorebased investigatorsaccessing Janus online, will have to learn howto use this powerful research tool. Enteringdata into Janus is one thing, getting data out,and in a useful manner, is another thing, butthat’s where the power of a relational data-base becomes apparent. ODP/TAMU israpidly providing reporting tools for easyaccess to Janus data. These reports providesimple steps for a shipboard scientist to pulldata from Janus, in a relational fashion (e.g.,“give me all the weight percent carbonatedata and the dry density data from Mioceneintervals drilled in the Atlantic at waterdepths between 3 and 3.3 km”). Currently,ODP/TAMU is developing reports using Java-based scripts that directly query the data-base. The most intriguing interface beingexamined at this moment is using JanusWeb/Netscape, a web browser approach.

Stay tuned. We’ll provide a Janus update inthe next issue of this newsletter, focusing ondigital images, visual core description, andother developments from the toddler phase.


Fluid sampling in basement boreholes: Facts and prospectscontributed by Joris M. Gieskes

BOREHOLEREPORT

In memory of Marcus Langseth whosevisions have led to many innovations inoceanic borehole science.

Introduction

Scientific interest in fluid circulation throughmarine sediments and oceanic crust hasincreased significantly during the past 20years as researchers have realized thatflowing water plays an essential role in globalgeochemical cycles and geothermal budgets.Perhaps the most spectacular example of flowis hydrothermal circulation associated withthe creation of new oceanic crust. This flowresults in the expulsion of hydrothermal fluidsat ridge crests affecting oceanic mass bal-ances of the elements to a significant degree.Scientists now know that hydrothermal fluidflow through off-axis basaltic basementcontinues for periods of time that can spanwell over 20 million years. This interpretationis based on measurements of heat flowanomalies and on changes in the geochemis-try of pore fluids in the overlying sediments.

Despite this recent recognition of the impor-tance of fluid circulation, recovery of liquidsfrom active circulation systems has generally

Joris Gieskes isProfessor of Ocean-

ography at ScrippsInstitution of Oceano-

graphy. He is an avidsea-goer on drillships(Legs 15, 25, 35, 64,

92, 102, 110, 131, 152,169) or any other ships,

particularly those onthe Quixotic Quest for

borehole fluids.

been hampered by our technological inabilityto retrieve in situ formation fluids directlyfrom the sediments and basalts. Most of thefluid samples recovered from sediments areobtained shipboard, by squeezing porewaters from core samples. The only in situsampling methodology currently possible, andonly in soft sediments, is by means of theWater Sampling Temperature Probe (WSTP)(e.g., Barnes [1988]). In situ recovery offormation fluids has been difficult to impos-sible in basaltic basement, or in hardersediments, with low porosities (<30%) orcharacterized by fracture porosities.

Accurate estimates of chemical exchangebetween the ocean and the basaltic basementdepend on direct measurements of basementformation fluids. Until such measurementsare accomplished by borehole reentry tech-niques, as discussed below, we will continueto rely on the indirect information extractedfrom the pore fluids from the overlyingsediments.

Fluid sampling in oceanic crustthrough borehole reentry

The challenges of sampling of fluids inbasement and in sedimentary rocks werediscussed in detail during a JOI/USSSPsponsored workshop, “Science OpportunitiesCreated by Wireline Reentry of Deep SeaBoreholes” [Langseth and Spiess, 1987].Workshop participants considered two modesof sampling: “active,” which involves the useof packers that isolate a portion of theborehole and directly sampling formationfluids (e.g., by suction into an evacuatedchamber); and “passive,” by sampling andanalyzing “open” borehole fluids and indi-rectly inferring the nature of in situ basalticformation waters. Although several Deep SeaDrilling Project attempts were made tosample actively in Hole 504B on the CostaRica Rift, all efforts failed to recover trueformation fluids [Mottl and Gieskes, 1990].Since the beginning of the ODP, only passivesampling has been attempted during boreholereentries, whether from JOIDES Resolution[Magenheim et al., 1992, 1995; McDuff, 1984;Mottl and Gieskes, 1990; ODP Legs 168 and169], or from tools lowered from other plat-forms [Gable et al., 1992; Spiess et al., 1992].

Fig. 1: Pore waterchemistry at Site

677 on the CostaRica Rift Flank.

Curvature at 180-200 mbsf is

probably due tolateral advection

of fluid. Nearbasement change

in calcium andmagnesium

concentrations,just below 300 m,

are the result ofdiffusive exchange

with fluidscirculating in the

top of basement.Hatched boxes

indicate depth ofbasement.

400

300

200

100

00 10 20 30 40 50 60 70

mb

sf

mM

677

Ca Mg

March 1997, Vol 10, No 1 17

One of the major scientific objectives ofsubsurface fluid research has been to estab-lish the nature of fluid flow through oceancrust basaltic basement. In practical terms,this requires representative sampling from aborehole. Nevertheless, the act of drilling ahole for access, ends up perturbing the verysystem we wish to study, and this introducesa series of complications that must be ac-counted for. Among these are: flow into theformation as a result of underpressure in theupper part of basement as a result of crackingof the formation during cooling (prior todrilling); mixing in the hole caused by thermaland physical instabilities; and mixing down-hole caused by the lowering of large instru-ment packages into the hole. Undaunted, Ipress on, and present here a summary ofresults that were obtained from the CostaRica Rift region. Fluid flow in the upperreaches of basement in Hole 504B wasinferred from heat flow values that werelower than expected [Langseth et al., 1988]and from pore water variations in dissolvedcalcium and magnesium (Figure 1) fromnearby Site 677 [Mottl, 1989].

Unfortunately, the upper part of basement atHole 504B has a history of accepting inflow ofbottom water down the hole and mixing withthe in situ waters. This precluded us fromsampling pristine basement formation waters,which we expect will have a composition thatis markedly different from abyssal waters,based on the pore water profiles observed atnearby Site 677 (Figure 1).

On an encouraging note, borehole fluidsamples from deeper portions of Hole 504Bdid indeed show substantial changes incomposition. Progressive trends in chemicalcomposition were observed from deepersamples during revisits to extend the drillhole[Mottl and Gieskes, 1990; Magenheim et al.,1995]. Examples of these trends are presentedin Figure 2. Because downhole gradients aredisturbed, e.g., through sampler problems,downhole mixing, trends versus the concen-tration of magnesium are used for compara-tive purposes (e.g., Magenheim et al. [1995]).The progressive trends in the geochemicalchanges are attributed to alteration of basalticrubble in the bottom part of the hole at

70

55453525150

10

20

30

Mg (mM)

SO4

(mM

)

8392/111

137

Mg (mM)

10

50

90

5545352515

Ca *

(mM

)

70

83

13792

55453525155

7

9

11

Mg (mM)

K (m

M)

92

137

83

Mg (mM)5545352515

380

440

500

Na

(mM

)

83

92111

137

Fig. 2: Comparison of element vs. Mgmixing lines of borehole fluidcomponents from Hole 504B [c.f.,Magenheim et al., 1995]. Trendstowards lower Mg concentrations(perhaps to zero concentration) areexpected in hydrothermalinteractions. Note the progressivechanges in Na+ (larger decreases asthe bottom of the hole gets hotter)and K+ (smaller decreases withincreasing temperatures).Observations are compatible withexperimental data of Bischoff andSeyfried [1978] and Seyfried andBischoff [1979]. Numbers refer todrillings legs dedicated to re-entruiesof Hole 504B. Temperatures atbottom of the hole: Leg 70: 80°C; Leg83: 112°C; Leg 92/111: 145°C; Leg137: 162°C. Ca* indicates calciumconcentration corrected for calciumsulphate precipitation.


ODP’s Greatest HitsODP’s Greatest Hits

increasing temperatures. Potential fluidexchange with formation waters at theextremely low porosities of the deeper partsof the hole are considered unimportant.

Despite the problem of seawater flowing intomany open drillholes (this has been observedin Holes 333A, 395A, 396A, 504B), there havebeen cases where water has been found to beflowing up, out of the holes, e.g., Hole 858Gin the Juan de Fuca Ridge Area [Davis andBecker, 1994]. A major problem in hightemperature holes, however, has been thepartial functioning of downhole water sam-plers under extreme conditions of tempera-ture and pressure [Lysne, 1991; Magenheim etal., 1995]. This became apparent during arecent reentry attempt of Hole 858G duringODP Leg 169, in which case fluids flowupward from the basement with temperaturesas high as 272° C (c.f., Zierenberg et al.[1996]). Therefore, the development ofappropriate downhole water samplers re-mains a priority.

The principal question to be addressed by thefluid sampling program remains: “Cangeochemical evidence be gathered on ex-change processes between formation watersand borehole fluids, which indicate thechemical composition of formation fluids andthe processes that have led to these composi-tions?” Results obtained hitherto have beentantalizing, but a much more systematicapproach will be necessary to obtain infor-mation on geochemical processes occurringin areas where fluid processes are consideredto be of primary importance.

The next opportunity for wireline boreholereentry will be in the OSN-I Hole off Hawaii inlate 1997/early 1998. Both downhole loggingand fluid sampling will be carried out.

References:

Barnes, R.O., ODP in situ sampling and measurement: A newwireline tool, Proc. ODP, Init. Reports, 110, 55-63, 1988.

Bischoff, J.L. and W.E. Seyfried, Hydrothermal chemistry ofseawater from 25° C to 350° C, Am. Journal of Science, 278,838-860, 1978.

BOREHOLE: A plan to advance post-drilling, subseafloorscience, JOI/USSAC Workshop, Miami, December 13-14, 1994.

Davis, E.E and K. Becker, Formation temperatures and pressuresin a sedimented rift hydrothermal system: 10 months of CORKobservations, Hole 857D and 858G, Proc. ODP, Sci. Results,139, 649-666, 1994.

Gable, R. and DIANAUT Scientific Shipboard Party, Introductionto the DIANAUT Program: A scientific wireline reentry in deepocean boreholes, Geophysical Research Letters, 19, 493-496,1992b.

Langseth, M.G., M.J. Mottl, M.A. Hobart, and A. Fisher, Thedistribution of geothermal and geochemical gradients nearSite 501/504: Implications for hydrothermal circulation in theoceanic crust, Proc. ODP, Init. Reports, 111, 23-32, 1988.

Langseth, M.G. and F.N. Spiess, Science opportunities created bywireline reentry of deep sea boreholes, Report on a workshopheld at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, La Jolla, February23-24, 1987, Joint Oceanographic Institutions, Washington, DC,1987.

Lysne, P., Pressure, volume, and temperature states within theVC-2B borehole, Valles Caldera, New Mexico, U.S.A, Appl.Geochem., 6, 665-670, 1991.

Magenheim, A.J., G. Bayhurst, J.C. Alt, and J.M. Gieskes, ODPLeg 137, Borehole fluid chemistry in Hole 504B, GeophysicalResearch Letters, 19, 521-523, 1992.

Magenheim, A.J., et al., Borehole fluid chemistry in Hole 504B,Leg 137: Formation water or in situ reaction? Proc. ODP, Sci.Results, 137/140, 141-154, 1995.

McDuff, R.E., The chemistry of interstitial waters from the upperoceanic crust, Site 395, Init. Reports DSDP, 78B, 795-799,1984.

Mottl, M.J., Hydrothermal convection, reaction, and diffusion insediments on the Costa Rica Rift Flank: Pore-water evidencefrom ODP Sites 677 and 678, Proc. ODP, Sci. Results, 111, 195-213, 1989.

Mottl, M.J. and J.M. Gieskes, Chemistry of waters sampled fromoceanic basement boreholes, 1979-1988, J. of Geophys. Res.,95, 9327-9342, 1990.

Seyfried, W.E. and J.L. Bischoff, Low temperature basaltalteration by sea water: an experimental study at 70° C and1250° C, Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta, 43, 1937-1947, 1979.

Spiess, F.N., D.E. Boegeman, and C.D. Lowenstein, First ocean-research ship supported fly-in reentry to a deep ocean drillhole, Marine Technology Society Journal, 26, 3-10, 1992.

Zierenberg et al., Post-drilling experiments and observations ofa hydrothermal system, JOI/USSAC Newsletter, Nov 1996.

JOI/USSSP is pleased to announce that well over 85 abstracts have been received for the “ODP Greatest Hits”volume. Many thanks to those who took the time to submit their abstracts. This volume should prove a valuableasset in the renewal process for scientific ocean drilling. It will be available to all for free upon publication.

A list of the abstract authors and titles has been placed on the JOI web site at http://www.joi-odp.org/joi/usssp/greathits/abstracts1.html. Please take the time to look at the list and give us your opinion on the volumecontents — if you have any comments, contact the JOI/USSSP Director, Ellen Kappel, at ekappel@ brook.edu.We expect the volume to be completed in June.

ABSTRACT VOLUME

March 1997, Vol 10, No 1 19

This article was re-printed from theExecutive Summaryof the COMPOST-IIdraft report.

COMPOST-II, the U.S.COMmittee to ConsiderPOST-2003 ScientificOcean Drilling, met inMiami, Florida, onFebruary 16-17,1997.COMPOST-II was taskedwith defining the roleocean drilling will playto help fulfill thescientific objectivesenvisioned by the U.S.community for the 21st

century. COMPOST II is aUSSAC Subcommittee.

COMPOST-II Co-ChairsJames A. Austin, Jr.U of Texas at Austin,Institute for GeophysicsNicklas G. PisiasOregon State U

COMPOST-II Members:Michael A. ArthurPenn State UKeir BeckerU of MiamiBobb CarsonLehigh UMary H. FeeleyExxon ExplorationCompanyDennis V. KentLamont-DohertyEarth ObservatoryJames H. NatlandU of MiamiDale S. SawyerRice UMark D. ZobackStanford U

Post-2003ScientificOceanDrilling

DRAFTThe natural rhythms of Earth’s climate, plate motions,and volcanism vary on a variety of timescales;understanding the reasons for such changes posesan urgent challenge. Ocean drilling, used to confirmthe theory of plate tectonics and to documentchanges in ocean circulation and climate, is now alsoneeded as part of a larger global strategy to solvepressing problems facing humankind. The Deep SeaDrilling Project (DSDP), the International Phase ofOcean Drilling (IPOD), and the Ocean Drilling Program(ODP) together span more than a quarter century ofscientific achievements that are impressive by anystandard. Through scientific ocean drilling,paleoceanographers have begun to documentchanges in the ocean’s carbon budget, oscillations inrates of formation, depth of penetration, andchemistry of deep water masses, and abrupt shifts inclimate response to orbital forcing. ODP has drilledinto active hydrothermal systems in the oceaniccrust, where volcanic- and sediment-hosted sulfidemineral deposits are forming, to provide insight intothe development of these deposits which may aid inland-based mineral exploration efforts. In subductionzones, drilling scientists are using innovativetechniques to understand processes of rockdeformation and the role of fluids in faulting andseismicity. Most recently, ODP has uncoveredspectacular evidence of the cataclysmic meteoriteimpact that may have led to the demise of thedinosaurs at the end of the Cretaceous. Yet,unraveling phenomena such as long-term ocean andclimate change and the nature of the deep oceaniclithosphere (which comprises more than half ofEarth’s surface) will require a global observationalframework and new technological developments. Wemust take a more expansive, ambitious approach toocean drilling for study of many of the activegeologic processes, like earthquakes, volcaniceruptions, and sea-level changes that will help toshape the future of humankind on Earth.

RECOMMENDATIONSThe scientific objectives envisioned by the U.S.community for the 21st century, as outlined in the1993 National Research Council (NRC) report entitled“Solid-Earth Sciences and Society,” the 1996 JOIDESLong Range Plan (LRP), and other recent scientificplanning documents (many of which are summarizedin this report), can only be addressed through anintegrated approach, of which a drilling program is acritical component. Accordingly:1. COMPOST-II, acting on behalf of the U.S. commu-

nity, affirms its commitment to a new internationalscientific ocean drilling program post-2003 tosolve outstanding scientific problems of a globalnature.

2. COMPOST-II thinks that scientific ocean drilling inthe 21st century must be defined more broadly,to include predrilling site assessment, drilling andsampling, and post-drilling observations andexperiments. Scientific ocean drilling represents acascade of diverse activities and investments,

from the formulation of scientific hypotheses topost-drilling analysis, integration and publication.If the U.S. community is to participate fully in anenhanced scientific ocean drilling program, wemust expand and integrate:• site-appropriate predrilling characterization

(e.g., high-quality 2-D and 3-D geophysics,piston coring, multibeam bathymetry and side-scan sonar, submersible/ROV characterizationof the seafloor, etc.);

• post-drilling utilization of boreholes forobservation, monitoring, and testing of activeprocesses and studies of whole-Earth struc-ture; and

• post-drilling support of scientific experimentsand personnel, which results in data synthesisand formulation of new hypotheses.

3. COMPOST-II endorses the LRP multi-platformapproach to the accomplishment of U.S. scientificobjectives. This will require a capability to drilland sample in water depths from the beach tothe abyss, including:• complete recovery of continuous, undisturbed,

high-sedimentation-rate sections across adiverse suite of geologic environments andages;

• improved recovery and penetration of difficult-to-sample lithologies (e.g., young, fracturedbasalts) and geologic environments (e.g.,overpressured sections); and

• new capability to reach subseafloor depths inexcess of 2 km.

4. COMPOST-II recognizes that the U.S. communityremains committed to investigator-driven science.While 21st century scientific ocean drilling willoften be allied with major geoscience initiatives,JOIDES or its succeeding advisory structure mustbe responsive to new ideas from individuals aswell as from these collectivized efforts.

5. COMPOST-II supports education and outreachprograms that aim to advance the understandingof earth processes through drilling-related effortsfor K-12, undergraduate and graduate learningprograms. Specific efforts include:• CD-ROM and web-based learning exercises;• distinguished lecturer series, with integrated

earth-studies opportunities seminars; and• private, public, and industry-sponsored

fellowships to advance exceptional mastersand doctoral candidates.

6. COMPOST-II encourages development of activepartnerships with diverse sectors of the U.S.business community (e.g., petroleum, computing,communications), which will focus on directparticipation in scientific ocean drilling:• as proponents of drilling proposals;• through industry funding of drilling- and

science-related activities;• by means of data exchange for site augmenta-

tion, drillsite design, etc.; and• through cooperative development and testing

of new technologies.

Ocean drilling’s future grows from COMPOST-II


NSF asks U.S. community to assess future needsContributed by J. Paul Dauphin, Associate Program Director, NSF/ODP

NSFREPORT

s I write this article, spring has arrived in Washington, and the cherry trees are about to go through their annualtransformation, bursting into bloom. ODP hasalso been undergoing a major transformationin preparation for Phase III (1998-2002),including a restructuring of the JOIDESadvisory structure and a major reorganizationof ODP at Texas A&M University. There is asense of renewed vigor, enthusiasm, andchallenge associated with these changes. Thehope is for a Program that will more effi-ciently deliver the exciting science envisionedin the 1996 ODP Long Range Plan (LRP).

The February 1997 meeting of the interna-tional ODP Council, our international partnersexpressed optimism that the decision tocontinue participation in ODP for the next fiveyears would be a positive one. They willprovide official notification this summer whenthe Council meets again.

Well it’s official, not that we expected any-thing different, but renewal of the U.S.Science Support Program (USSSP) for ODPhas been approved by NSF’s National Science

Board (NSB) for another three-year period.The NSB was very enthusiastic about theUSSSP, and ODP in general. As I stated in anearlier article, the NSF blue ribbon panelwhich reviewed the USSSP, prior to seekingNSB approval, also had very positive com-ments to make about the USSSP. Much of thecredit for the success of the USSSP lies withthe efforts of the U.S. Science AdvisoryCommittee (USSAC) and in particular to thehard work and dedication demonstrated byEllen Kappel as the Program Director at JOI.

In the previous newsletter, I said that I wouldprovide some details in this newsletter on FY97 funding levels for the USSSP, the ODP andthe Division of Ocean Sciences at NSF. Thesecan be viewed in the table below. The USSSPis funded at the level of $5.65 million for FY97, an increase of 5.6% over FY 96. Part ofthis increase is intended to fund participationof U.S. scientists attending the Conference onCooperative Ocean Riser Drilling (CONCORD)workshop this July in Japan (see the ad onpage 12). This workshop is one of many stepstowards developing a scientific ocean drillingprogram for the year 2003 and beyond.

A

Actual Current RequestedFY 96 FY 97 FY 98

Ocean Science Research 106.5 109.3 112.2

Oceanographic Facilities 47.5 52.3 52.3

Ocean Drilling Program 39.6 40.3 41.8

Ocean Sciences Division 193.6 201.8 206.2

Actual CurrentFY 96 FY 97

Operations and Management 27.7 27.4

U.S. Science Support Program 5.4 5.7

Unsolicited Proposals 6.0 5.9

Other Foundation Activities 0.5 1.3

NSF - OCEAN DRILLING PROGRAM

NSF - OCEAN SCIENCES DIVISIONAnother crucial step,in preparation for thefuture, was taken byUSSAC at NSF’srequest. NSF askedUSSAC to assess theneeds and expecta-tions of the U.S.scientific communityfor scientific oceandrilling beyond 2003.A subcommittee ofUSSAC prepared areport (COMPOST II)which USSAC isrevising prior to itsdelivery to NSF. Thisreport will be pub-lished on the worldwide web and widelyavailable to anyonewishing copies. Thedraft ExecutiveSummary of thisdocument is printed

$M $M $M

$M $M

March 1997, Vol 10, No 1 21

on page 19 of this newsletter. When thisdocument is published we strongly encouragecomments and suggestions from the scientificcommunity, so that we may develop, asaccurately as possible, an understanding ofthe needs and rationale for future scientificocean drilling.

At a December 1996 meeting in Ashland,Oregon, sponsored by NSF, a representativecross section of the marine geosciences metto discuss the “Future of Marine Geosciences”(FUMAGES). One conclusion which emergedfrom this group was that scientific oceandrilling figured prominently in most visions ofthe future. The need for multiple drillingplatforms was very clear. Some segments ofthe community felt that a continuing need fora platform, like the JOIDES Resolution, whichallows them to take long cores from a varietyof environments, would be essential. Thesolid earth groups expressed a need for avessel with riser-type capabilities that wouldallow them to sample generally inaccessible

lithologies, to control hole stability, and todrill deep holes.

At the February 1997 meeting of ODP’sExecutive Committee, our Japanese col-leagues reported on developments with theirproposal to build a riser-drilling vessel toaugment international scientific ocean drillingin the future. Consonant with that proposaland the LRP, we are pursuing the funding andcommitments required for a two ship programin which Japan and the U.S. would be equalpartners. In addition, NSF and Japan haveagreed to work together in seeking additionalpartners for the future program.

On a different matter, we have reopened thesearch for a rotator in the Ocean DrillingProgram at NSF (see the ad above). If youqualify and think you would like to experi-ence the Washington scene, or if you know ofanyone who might be suited to this position,let us know.

NSF’s Division of Ocean Sciences is seeking qualified applicants for the position of Associate Program Directorin the Ocean Drilling Program. This position will be filled under the Intergovernmental Personnel Act (IPA) in thespring/summer 1997. IPA applicants must be permanent, career employees of their current employer for atleast 90 days prior to entering into a mobility assignment agreement with a federal agency. Duration of theassignment is one year, although it may be extended for a second year. Reimbursement of salary and otherrelated costs are negotiated between NSF and the individual’s institution.

The Associate Program Director has primary responsibilities which involve proposal evaluation, project develop-ment and support, program planning and budgeting, and related administrative duties.

Applicants for this position must have a Ph.D. or equivalent experience in marine geology or geophysics or arelated disciplinary field. Four or more years of research experience beyond the Ph.D. and a broad understand-ing of the current status of the relevant U.S. academic scientific community and its relationship with NSF, otherfederal agencies, and international planning efforts are also required. Previous involvement with ocean drillingwould be an advantage, but is not required.

Interested applicants must submit a letter of recommendation and a curriculum vita to the National ScienceFoundation, Division of Human Resource Management, Attn: Catherine Handle, 4201 Wilson Blvd., Suite 315,Arlington, VA 22230. For technical information, call Dr. Bruce Malfait, Ocean Drilling Program, (703) 306-1581.Hearing-impaired individuals should call TDD at (703) 306-0189.

NSF is an equal opportunity employer committed to employing highly qualified staff that reflects the diversityof our nation.

POSITION AVAILABLE

Associate Program Director,Ocean Drilling Program/National Science Foundation


ODP’s latest and greatest hitsA letterfrom the

Chair

Dr. Roger Larson isProfessor of Marine

Geophysics, GraduateSchool of Ocean-

ography, University ofRhode Island.

he last few times I wrote here it was on organizational matters, such as including non-JOI representation on PCOM/SCICOMand my “two cents worth” on the new JOIDESAdvisory Structure. Furthermore, USSAC, asthe U.S. “national committee” for JOIDES,spent the majority of our last meeting select-ing U.S. representatives for the new AdvisoryStructure, a job that previously was relin-quished to PCOM. All of this has temporarilybored me with organizational matters, and Iwould rather return to the science itself.Bruce Heezen once told me that ODP (thenDSDP) was an organization that got sciencedone, while JOIDES was an organization thatkept science from getting done. Well, that’s abit extreme, but Bruce cared only about thescience, and had no interest in committeememberships or organizational wiring dia-grams. In that spirit then, let’s have a look atODP’s latest and greatest scientific hits.

We won’t have far to look. Last month, Leg171B returned from the Blake Nose off SouthCarolina where they recovered three spec-tacular sections of the K/T boundary by APC/XLB coring only 180 m deep into the section(see p. 24 of this newsletter). In true BruceHeezen fashion, this happened by serendip-ity, and not as a planned major leg objective.To quote Jim Ogg who was onboard, “Ourcoring of the K/T boundary yielded a spec-tacularly complete and superbly preserveddramatic record of the impact event. Shockwave, 15 cm of glass spherules, fallout dustlayer, Strangelove ocean — a museum-quality illustration of the death and destruc-tion.” Jim wasn’t exaggerating; theSmithsonian is interested in the possibility ofpublicly displaying one of these sections.

Off the west coast of the U.S. last Fall, Leg169 scientists opened two new hydrothermalvents with the drillstring, thus reactivating adormant hydrothermal system on the Juan deFuca Ridge. This gives us the unprecedentedopportunity in future years to study thehydrological evolution of a deep-sea ventsystem from inception, with its attendantmineralization and biological evolution. Thelatter will be of great interest in learning howdeep-sea vent communities are colonized,

somewhat like the coral colonization studiesof World War II ships sunk in Truk Lagoon in1942. The mineralization studies can bebenchmarked with the discovery of huge, ore-grade deposits of iron, copper, zinc and otherheavy metals associated with other vents.

But we all know ODP is no “flash in the pan”operation. Solid, broad-based, global sciencehas always characterized scientific oceandrilling, maybe due in part (even Heezenmight admit) to panels and committeesreviewing proposals and planning ahead. Inpreparation for the U.S. renewal of ODP from1998 through 2002, JOI is publishing avolume of “ODP’s Greatest Hits,” a compen-dium of illustrated, one-page abstractssuitable for consumption by NSF’s NationalScience Board. I first worried that this wouldfall far short of the Top 40 Tunes on mycountry radio station, but the list has nowgrown to over 85 abstracts, and about 20more are promised. They document how ODPhas recovered unique evidence for scientificphenomena ranging from the Pliocene onsetof glaciation to Paleocene global warming toCretaceous large igneous provinces. Hydro-thermal circulation through mid-ocean ridgesand their flanks is as pervasive as cyclostrati-graphy throughout the sedimentary record.This volume will be a real measure of thestrength and diversity of the Program, andrecalls to me a remark by Orville Wright:“Isn’t it astonishing that all these secrets havebeen preserved for so many years, just sothat we could discover them.”

Roger L. LarsonChairman, USSAC

T

March 1997, Vol 10, No 1 23

JOI/USSAC

*USSAC Executive Committee

Membership term isthree years.

Fall 1997

MEMBERSHIPROTATION

ROTATING ON:Steve Carey, URIRick Murray, Boston UDavid Naar, USFLisa Tauxe, Scripps

ROTATING OFF:John BarronRoger Larson*Jim OggBernd Simoneit

* Mike Arthur will takeover the USSACChairmanship fromRoger Larson.

Dr. Michael Arthur*Department of GeosciencesPennsylvania State University503 Deike BuildingUniversity Park, PA 16802tele: (814) 863-6054fax: (814) [email protected]

Dr. James A. Austin, Jr.Institute for GeophysicsUniversity of Texas at Austin8701 North Mopac ExpresswayAustin, TX 78759-8397tele: (512) 471-0450fax: (512) [email protected]

Dr. John BarronU.S. Geological Survey, MS910345 Middlefield RoadMenlo Park, CA 94025tele: (415) 329-4971fax: (415) [email protected]

Dr. Rodey BatizaDept. of Geology & GeophysicsUniversity of Hawaii2525 Correa RoadHonolulu, HI 96822tele: (808) 956-5036fax: (808) [email protected]

Dr. William CurryDept. of Geology & GeophysicsWoods Hole Oceanographic Inst.Woods Hole, MA 02543tele: (508) 457-2000 x2591fax: (508) [email protected]

Dr. Margaret DelaneyOcean Sciences DepartmentUniversity of California, Santa Cruz1156 High StreetSanta Cruz, CA 95064-1077tele: (408) 459-4736fax: (408) [email protected]

Dr. Robert DunbarDept. of Geology & GeophysicsRice UniversityPO Box 1892Houston, TX 77251tele: (713) 527-4883fax: (713) [email protected]

Ms. Mary FeeleyExxon Exploration CompanyPO Box 4778Houston, TX 77252-4778tele: (713) 423-5334fax: (713) [email protected]

Dr. Tim HerbertDept. of Geological SciencesBrown UniversityProvidence, RI 02912-1846tele: (401) 863-1207fax: (401) [email protected]

Dr. Roger Larson, Chair*Grad. School of OceanographyUniversity of Rhode IslandNarragansett, RI 02882tele: (401) 874-6165fax: (401) [email protected]

Dr. Marvin LilleyBox 357940School of OceanographyUniversity of WashingtonSeattle, WA 98195tele: (206) 543-0859fax: (206) [email protected]

Dr. Carolyn MutterGeoscience 103Lamont-Doherty Earth ObservatoryPalisades, NY 10964tele: (914) 359-2900 x628fax: (914) [email protected]

Dr. James OggDept. of Earth & Atmos. SciencesPurdue UniversityWest Lafayette, IN 47907tele: (317) 494-8681fax: (317) [email protected]

Dr. Terry Plank*Department of GeologyUniversity of Kansas120 Lindley HallLaurence, KS 66045tele: (913) 864-2725fax: (913) [email protected]

Dr. Bernd SimoneitCol. of Oceanic and Atmos. Sci.Oregon State UniversityOceanography Building 104Corvallis, OR 97331-5503tele: (541) 737-2155fax: (541) [email protected]

JOI/USSACN E W S L E T T E R

Editors: Ellen Kappel and John FarrellLayout and Design: Johanna Adams

The JOI/USSAC Newsletter is issued three times a year by Joint Ocean-ographic Institutions, Inc. (JOI) and is available free of charge. JOI managesthe international Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) and the U.S. ScienceSupport Program (USSSP) which supports U.S. participation in ODP.Funding for JOI/USSSP is provided through a cooperative agreement withthe National Science Foundation (NSF).

Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in thispublication do not necessarily reflect the views of NSF or JOI. Please contactthe editors for more information or to subscribe:JOI/USSAC Newsletter, Joint Oceanographic Institutions, Inc., 1755Massachusetts Avenue, NW, Suite 800, Washington, DC 20036-2102;tele: (202) 232-3900; fax: (202) 232-8203; Internet: [email protected]

Dr. J. Paul DauphinAssociate Program DirectorOcean Drilling ProgramNational Science Foundation4201 Wilson Boulevard, Rm. 725Arlington, VA 22230tele: (703) 306-1581fax: (703) [email protected]

Dr. Ellen S. KappelProgram Director, JOI/USSSPJoint Oceanographic Inst., Inc.1755 Massachusetts Ave., NWSuite 800Washington, DC 20036-2102tele: (202) 232-3900 x216fax: (202) [email protected]

Dr. James AllanAsst. Manager, Science OperationsOcean Drilling ProgramTexas A&M University1000 Discovery DriveCollege Station, TX 77845-9547tele: (409) 845-0506fax: (409) [email protected]

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K/T BOUNDARY

orange-brown limonitic clay(Ir-anomaly, microkrystites)

Fireball and fallout

UppermostMaastrichtianChalkM. prinsii ZoneA. mayaroensis Zone

Layer of graded, green glassyspherules (altered tektites)

Impact ejecta

G. cretaceaP0 Zone (base of Tertiary)

“Strangelove” oceandevoid of most life

PaG. eugubina Zone

First repopulationof the “empty” seas

P1aP. pseudobulloides Zone

Hypothesis:Intense shock waves fromChicxulub impact inducedslumping of Florida margin

Slump

Photograph and interpretation of three coresspanning the K/T boundary provided by theOcean Drilling Program Leg 171B shipboardscientific party. The ODP press release quotesCo-Chief Scientist, Dr. Richard Norris (WHOI),as saying, “We recovered three coresspanning the last 65 million years that includenot only a fantastic record of the meteorite’simpact and resultant debris that was blastedinto the upper atmosphere, but also a 2 to 4inch thick sedimentary record of globalrepopulation of microorganisms in the oceanduring that time period.” Dr. Dick Kroon(University of Edinburgh), the other Co-Chief,commented that the highly disturbedsediments immediately below the debris layer“could be a result of an impact-relatedearthquake. We envision a massive tidal wavebreaking over the Florida platform and stirringup enormous quantities of sediment along theAtlantic seaboard.”

Meteorite impact at Cretaceous/Tertiary boundary (~65 Ma)Cores from Atlantic margin of Florida (ODP Leg 171B)

Documents

NEWS FROM THE JOINT OCEANOGRAPHIC ......Chair: ODP’s latest and greatest hits 23 USSAC membership 24 K/T boundary cores JOI/USSAC N E W S L E T T E R NEWS FROM THE JOINT OCEANOGRAPHIC