The Agile Sub-Ice Geological (ASIG) Drill is based on a commercially available minerals exploration rig, which IDP adapted for drilling through ice and for ice coring. The system is designed to drill access holes through ice less than 700 meters thick and subsequently collect bedrock cores from beneath glaciers. A minerals exploration rig was purchased from Multi-Power Products Ltd., and IDP designed auxiliary systems for fluid handling. The drill system was deployed to Pirrit Hills, Antarctica for the 2016-2017 field season where it was successfully used to drill through approximately 150 meters of ice and collect 8 meters of 39 mm (1.5-inch) diameter excellent quality rock core. Nearly 5 meters of ice core was also collected near the ice-bedrock transition, but the core quality was poor. System maintenance was subsequently conducted, and an electronic pressure relief valve and a shaker table for separating ice chips and drill fluid were implemented. The system was shipped to Thule Air Base (now known as Pituffik Space Base) in Greenland in July 2022 via military vessel for use on the GreenDrill project.
In 2023, IDP Engineers/Drillers successfully drilled one borehole to 516 meters depth near Prudhoe Dome, Greenland, for the GreenDrill project. 7.4 meters of subglacial material was retrieved, including 4.5 meters of bedrock core. IDP conducted post-season maintenance and upgrades, including the design and purchase of new full-face PDC bits, purchase of Kubota engine and rig spares, purchase of a manual level winder, and improvements to the shaker filtration table. To reduce downtime during inclement weather, the engines will be placed in a ventilated Arctic Oven tent, and an Eskimo tent was procured to keep drill rod and threads free of blowing snow. Use of the drill for GreenDrill season two was postponed after determination that the LC-130 aircraft could not land at the drill site.
For information on another sub-glacial rock coring drill in the IDP inventory, see the Winkie Drill.
Equipment Details
| Name | Agile Sub-Ice Geological Drill |
|---|---|
| Type |
Type
Rock coring; ice coring/augering
|
| Number in Inventory |
Number in Inventory
1
|
| Max. Practical Depth |
Max. Practical Depth
700 m (maximum drilling depth through ice)
|
| Hole Diameter |
Hole Diameter
62.5 mm
|
| Rock Core Diameter |
Rock Core Diameter
39 mm
|
| Rock Core Length |
Rock Core Length
1.5 m
|
| IDP Driller Required? |
IDP Driller Required?
Yes, 2 drillers (4 people required for drill assembly)
|
| Drill Fluid Required? |
Drill Fluid Required?
Yes
|
| Trench Required? |
Trench Required?
No |
| Power Requirements/Source |
Power Requirements/Source
120 V, 5 kW generator
|
| Estimated Drilling Time |
Estimated Drilling Time
Ice: 1m/minute |
| Time to Move (breakdown and setup) |
Time to Move (breakdown and setup)
2 days
|
| Helicopter Transportable? |
Helicopter Transportable?
Yes (see system weight/cube below)
|
| Light Aircraft Transportable? |
Light Aircraft Transportable?
Yes (see system weight/cube below)
|
| Shipping Weight |
Shipping Weight
19,000 lbs (200 m); |
| Shipping Volume (Cube) |
Shipping Cube
700 |
| Restrictions |
Restrictions
In light of use of a drilling fluid, it is critical to select sites where the ice is frozen to the bedrock and is free of cracks and/or the presence of liquid water. Any voids within the ice or near the bed will result in a pressure drop and loss of fluid flow and would halt drilling. In addition, site selection should favor areas where the bed geometry and ice flow minimize pre-existing stresses present in the ice, reducing the risk of hydro fracture during drilling. |
| Comments |
Documents
| Citation | Year |
|---|---|
| Mary R Albert, Kristina R Slawny, Jay A Johnson, Elliot Moravec, Tanner W Kuhl (2024) Drilling Ice and Subglacial Rock Cores for Scientific Discovery in a Changing Climate. In: Glaciers - Recent Research, Importance to Humanity and the Effects of Climate Change. IntechOpen. Edited by Emeritus Prof. Stuart Arthur Harris, doi: 10.5772/intechopen.1004695. https://doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.1004695 | 2024 |
| Tanner W Kuhl, Chris J Gibson, Jay A Johnson, Grant Boeckmann, Elliot Moravec, Kristina R Slawny (2021) Agile Sub-Ice Geological (ASIG) Drill development and Pirrit Hills field project. Annals of Glaciology, 62, (84), 53-66. doi: 10.1017/aog.2020.59. https://doi.org/10.1017/aog.2020.59 | 2021 |
| Pavel Talalay, Hong J (2021) Perspectives for development of ice drilling technology: continuation of the discussion. Annals of Glaciology, 62, (84), 143-156. doi: 10.1017/aog.2020.81. https://doi.org/10.1017/aog.2020.81 | 2021 |
| Mary R Albert, Kristina R Slawny, Grant Boeckmann, Chris J Gibson, Jay A Johnson, Keith Makinson, Julius Rix (2020) Recent Innovations in Drilling in Ice. Chapter 6 of Advances in Terrestrial Drilling: Ground, Ice and Underwater, Bar-Cohen and Zacny, eds., 157-220. https://www.routledge.com/Advances-in-Terrestrial-Drilling-Ground-Ice-and-Under… | 2020 |
| Allie Balter, Lucas H Beem, John W Goodge, Sean Gulick, Chloe Gustafson, David Harwood, Jennifer Lamp, Amy Leventer, Amelia Schevenell, Matthew R Siegfried, Perry Spector, John Stone, Slawek Tulaczyk, Sophie Warny, Paul Winberry, Dale Winebrenner, Duncan Young (2019) Assessment of East Antarctic Ice Sheet sensitivity to warming and its potential for contributions to sea level rise. Ice Drilling Program Subglacial Access Working Group Science Planning Workshop, March 29-30, 2019, Herndon, Virginia, USA, 1-18. | 2019 |
| Chris J Gibson (2019) ASIG‐Air Drop Test Report. Document #8323‐0025, 1-9. | 2019 |
| NSF Ice Drilling Program (2019) Agile Sub-Ice Geological Drill Operations and Maintenance Manual. 1-23. | 2019 |
| Kristin Poinar, Jennifer Lamp, Allie Balter, Perry Spector, Dale Winebrenner, Slawek Tulaczyk (2019) Subglacial Access Working Group (SAWG): Access Drilling Priorities in Greenland. Ice Drilling Program Subglacial Access Working Group Science Planning Workshop, March 29-30, 2019, Herndon, Virginia, USA, 1-7. | 2019 |
| Perry Spector, John Stone, Nathaniel Lifton, Robert Ackert, Brent Goehring, Greg Balco, Bill McIntosh, Seth Campbell, Matt Zimmerer, Trista J Vick-Majors, Dale Winebrenner (2019) Drilling priorities to determine the past extent of the Antarctic Ice Sheet. Ice Drilling Program Subglacial Access Working Group Science Planning Workshop, March 29-30, 2019, Herndon, Virginia, USA, 1-10. | 2019 |
| IDDO (2015) Agile Sub-Ice Geological Drill System Design Review. 1-72. | 2015 |
Photos
IDP contract rock drill rig operator Richard Erickson operates the ASIG Drill during the 2023 field season for the GreenDrill project. Credit: Tanner Kuhl.
IDP drillers Clayton Armstrong (at left) and Mike Jayred (at right) operating the ASIG Drill at Pirrit Hills, Antarctica, during the 2016-2017 summer field season. Photo: Tanner Kuhl
ASIG Drill in operation at Pirrit Hills, Antarctica, during the 2016-2017 summer field season. Photo: Tanner Kuhl
A section of the 8-meters of rock core collected with the ASIG Drill at Pirrit Hills, Antarctica, during the 2016-2017 summer field season. Photo: Tanner Kuhl
Intermittent ice coring possible by replacing non-coring bit with core barrel assembly