Situation Report #22, 10. January 2020
Little Dome C - Beyond EPICA Drilling Site (75.29917 degS, 122.44516 degE)
Bird's eye view of the BELDC camp captured from a pole of three bamboo sticks. (Credit: J. Schwander)
Personnel: Saverio Panichi (ENEA), Michele Scalet (ENEA), Luc Piard (CNRS), Jakob Schwander (unibe), Thomas Stocker (unibe), Remo Walther (unibe), Massimo Frezzotti (U Roma 3), Riccardo Devescovi (Armi)
Weather: sunny, weak wind
This Friday was a relaxed day caused by the completed work of the building crew. Luc took the opportunity and constructed a beautiful bench for the recreation tent, demonstrating his carpenter skills. Michele and Riccardo moved the Jet-A fuel depot to a better location relative to the airstrip. The Pistenbully, following Michele's command, created a hill and flattened the previous depot hill within just minutes, truly expert landscaping. At the afternoon break Luc treated us to delicious French Crêpes which were filled with sugar, confiture, or Nutella ...
At Radix we tested the modified drill head and also replaced the motor. We did have pull but lost it after a short drill of 4 meters with excellent chip production. The drill is currently stuck at 160 m depth and put under tension. Given our experience with several previous incidences, we are confident that in the coming few hours the drill will come free and will be ready for another series of trials. Radix drilling depth: 160.0 m.
LDC, 10.1.2020