Ice core drills usable for wet ice

Ice core drills which stored cuttings above the core barrel were tested. Cuttings were pushed up by one short booster screw. For a constant drilling speed, the necessary power increased with the amount of cuttings, being less than 110% of initial value (power for cutting only) for a 1.2-m drilling and about 150% for a 2.6-m drilling. The drills could core wet ice as efficiently as cold ice. The method of storing cuttings is also adequate for a drill used in a liquid-filled hole.