Accession No.: 86-41
PROCESSING RECORD
SCRIPPS INSTITUTION OF OCEANOGRAPHY ARCHIVES
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Scripps Institution of Oceanography. Deep Sea Drilling Project
SIO Deep Sea Drilling Project Records, 1964-1985
Physical Description: 1 mss
Description: The collection consists of the records of the SIO Deep Sea Drilling
Project, and includes correspondence, master microfilm and minutes of the
JOIDES Planning Committee.
As early as 1957, earth scientists discussed the possibility of drilling a hole through
oceanic crust to the Mohorovicic discontinuity. This project became known as the
Mohole Project and was supported by the National Science Foundation. The first
hole was drilled in 1961. Cost overruns led to the termination of the Mohole
Project in 1966.
In 1964, a consortium of oceanographic institutions, the Joint Oceanographic
Institutions Deep Earth Sampling (JOIDES) was formed, and in 1965 the group
submitted a proposal to NSF to drill sediments and shallow basement rocks in the
Pacific and Atlantic Oceans and adjacent seas. In 1966 with NSF funding, the
Deep Sea Drilling Project was operated at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography.
In January 1967, SIO signed a contract with the National Science Foundation to
manage the drilling program. By March 1987 the project had expended over $226
million dollars.
The Deep Sea Drilling Project contract ended in 1987 and drilling operations were
moved to Texas A&M University.