British geological survey remotely operated sea bed rockdrills and vibrocorers: new advances to meet the needs of the scientific community

The British Geological Survey (BGS) have developed a number of coring
and drilling systems for use in science projects in the UK and internationally. These
include 3m, 4m and 6m vibrocoring systems; a 5m combined rockdrill and vibrocorer
system(RD1); an oriented drill designed specifically to recover samples for use
in palaeomagnetic studies; and a 55m rockdrill (RD2).
The BGS has recently completed a series of modifications to increase the flexibility
and performance of its vibrocoring and rock-drilling capability to meet the ever increasing
needs of the scientific community. The latest generation vibrocorers can
be operated without an umbilical power cable. The new system not only allows vibrocoring
in greater water depths, but can also be used on a wider range of vessels
including those with limited deck space. The BGS RD2 (Rockdril2) can core up to 55m
sub-seabed by focussing on reducing the overall weight therefore extending operational
water depth to 4000m.