Initial Reports of the Deep Sea Drilling Project - Volume 28

This volume covers Leg 28 of the cruises of the Drilling Vessel Glomar Challenger. The drilling vessel Glomar Challenger departed Fremantle, Australia on 20 December 1972 for Antarctic waters south of Australia and New Zealand. Leg 28 was designed to explore the long-term glacial, climatic, biostratigraphic, and geologic history of the South Pole continent and its environs. The leg was in a sense a test case for the operational feasibility of drilling at high latitudes, under severe weather and iceberg conditions. In addition, several holes were planned for the Ross Sea continental shelf in water depths of about 500 meters, much shallower than any previous successful attempts by DSDP. Additionally, several holes were planned to investigate the problems of sea-floor spreading and continental drift between Australia and Antarctica and the history of circumpolar circulation and associated deep-sea sedimentation processes. During the voyage a total of 16 holes was drilled at 11sites and 1404 meters of sediment recovered. A total of 7400 nautical miles was steamed during the port-to-port transit.