The National Science Foundation has requested that the National Research Council appoint an ad hoc committee to review the scientific accomplishments of U.S.-supported scientific drilling (Deep Sea Drilling Project [DSDP], Ocean Drilling Program [ODP], and Integrated Ocean Drilling Program [IODP]) and assess the potential for future transformative scientific discoveries. The study committee will undertake two tasks:
1) Analysis of DSDP, ODP, and IODP scientific accomplishments and their significance, with an emphasis on evaluating how scientific drilling has uniquely shaped understanding of the Earth system, including Earth history, dynamic processes, climate change, and the deep biosphere. Additional emphasis should be placed on assessing the extent to which the availability of deep drilling facilities has enabled creation of new fields of inquiry. The analysis will include consideration of the drilling programs? contributions to science education and outreach activities. It will not consider organizational framework.
2) Assessment of the potential for transformative scientific discovery resulting from implementation of the draft science plan for post-2013 international ocean drilling. This assessment will include advice on opportunities resulting from stronger integration of ocean drilling with other NSF-supported science programs and research facilities.
The broader impacts of this study are very significant, as the ocean drilling program contributes directly to matters that have large societal relevance, such as climate chage, hazards, and the history of sea-level change.
and assess the potential for future transformative scientific discoveries. The committee identified scientific accomplishments from each stage of the drilling program and analyzed their significance and how the program enabled new fields of inquiry. The committee also assessed the potential for transformative scientific discovery resulting from implementation of the draft science plan for the next proposed phase of international scientific ocean drilling (2013-2023). The committee found that the U.S.-supported scientific ocean drilling programs (DSDP, ODP, and IODP) have been very successful, contributing significantly to a broad range of scientific accomplishments in a number of Earth science disciplines. In addition, the programs’ technological innovations have strongly influenced these scientific advances. To a large extent, the success of IODP and prior scientific ocean drilling programs has been a result of strong international collaboration. The committee recommended that formal evaluation of education, outreach, and capacity-building activities should be implemented to demonstrate the broader impacts of scientific ocean drilling. Using legacy data and samples to their maximum capabilities will continue to increase the scientific value of the scientific ocean drilling programs. Expanded use of legacy materials could help, for example, with prioritization of drilling objectives in the next phase of scientific ocean drilling. The committee recommended that from the earliest stages of proposal development and evaluation, possibilities for increasing program efficiency through integration of multiple objectives into single expeditions should be considered by proponents and panels. It also recommended that pathways for innovations in technology should be encouraged. In addition, setting aside some resources specifically to promote technological research and development could increase the potential for transformative science. Each of the four themes within the science plan identifies compelling challenges with potential for transformative science that can only be addressed by scientific ocean drilling. Some challenges within these themes appear to have greater potential for transformative science than others. The committee recommended that the scientific ocean drilling community should establish a mechanism to prioritize the challenges outlined in the science plan in a manner that complements the existing peer-review process. Specific comments on the themes of the science plan were as follows: Theme 1 - The science described in these challenges has potential to be transformative and, in most cases, can only be achieved through a continuation of scientific ocean drilling. The climate theme has a strong focus on achievements, specifically those within the past 10 years, and suggests that more related work is needed, especially on certain targeted topics (e.g., polar regions, permanent El Niño states, monsoon patterns). Theme 2 - Although not specifically identified in the science plan, identifying the synergies in understanding ecosystem dynamics in the deep sea – from microbes to viruses to eukaryotes, both living and fossil – is a fertile way to advance the science. Theme 3 - Drilling intact ocean crust with high recovery rates would allow much to be learned, although a specific target of drilling to the Moho may not be technically viable and could be cost-prohibitive. Better understanding of oceanic mantle serpentinization is essential, and could be achieved through shorter holes drilled in disrupted ocean crust. A wide range of opinions exist regarding the viability of using existing scientific ocean drilling platforms to drill the Moho. The committee believes that the technical capabilities of the riser drillship Chikyu are insufficient to ensure success in this endeavor. If the goal of drilling to the Moho is to be achieved, additional resources for new technologies and perhaps alternate drilling platforms would need to be considered. Theme 4- Recent developments in ocean observing systems that facilitate data communication to shore-based laboratories and in simpler, cheaper, specialized sensor packages are likely to enable further growth of borehole observatories. The report can be downloaded at: www.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=13232. In addition, a brief booklet summarizing the results is available from the National Academies.
