Hi All. The word from Mark Zoback is that the pilot hole at Parkfield is complete. After 14 hours of hard work the seismic GERI string was successfully deployed and seismometers all the way down the string picked up a signal from the explosive tests. Congratulations to everyone for a successful completion of the SAFOD Pilot Hole!

The pilot hole is 7,100 feet deep. Drilling was started on 06/12/2002 and completed on 07/24/2002. However this is just the beginning. This is the first of 5 stages.

During Stage I the hole will be drilled vertically to a depth of 2 km, followed by an 8-month period of downhole seismic monitoring. Rotary drilling will continue during Stage III as the hole is deviated through the fault zone. An extensive program of downhole measurements, spot coring and fluid sampling will be conducted during Stages I and III, both before and after setting casing. Following a two-year period of downhole seismic and fluid pressure monitoring, four 250m long core holes will be drilled off of the main hole to target the most active portions of the fault zone and obtain rock and gouge samples for laboratory investigations. Starting in the fourth year and continuing for about 20 years, the fault zone will be instrumented for long-term monitoring of seismicity, deformation, fluid pressure and other parameters. Take Care…Don in creepy town