A Scientific Ocean Drilling Coordinating Office for the US Community

Texas A&M University (TAMU) and Columbia University (LDEO) collaboratively propose to form a Scientific Ocean Drilling Coordinating Office (SODCO) to facilitate U.S. scientific ocean drilling (SOD) goals. With an experienced staff of engineers, scientists, and technical specialists, TAMU will assist principal investigators with creating drilling proposals; identify suitable drilling platforms, coring, and logging tools; work with the scientific community to advance new technologies; and plan and implement expeditions. Acquisition of customized seagoing containers will provide critical instrumentation and support for at-sea data collection, while laboratory facilities at the Gulf Coast Repository will be available for shore-based description and measurements. LDEO, with experienced science, communications, and administrative staff, will provide research community support services for successful planning and execution of expeditions, including pre-drilling activities, planning and training workshops, and science communications and outreach. SODCO will be guided by a community advisory board and two panels to provide safety and environmental protection and engineering development guidance. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.