The drilling of a deep borehole in ice is an undertaking that spans several seasons. Over recent decades such drilling has become widespread in both polar regions. Owing to the remoteness of the drill sites, considerable cost is associated with the drilling of a deep borehole of several thousand meters. The replicate coring system allows re-drilling of ice core at select depths within an existing parent borehole. This effectively increases the yield of the existing borehole and permits re-sampling of ice in areas of high scientific value. The replicate coring system achieves this through the combination of actuators, motors, sensors and a computerized control system. The replicate coring drill is a further development of the deep ice-sheet coring (DISC) drill, extending the capabilities of the DISC drill to include replicate coring.

The replicate ice-coring system was developed by Ice Drilling Design and Operations (IDDO) for the US National Science Foundation. The design of the system leverages the existing infrastructure of the deep ice-sheet coring (DISC) drill to create a steerable drill capable of recovering replicate core at any targeted depth in an existing borehole. Critical requirements of the system include: collecting up to 400 m of core from the high side of an open hole; maintaining access to the entire borehole for logging tools; collecting up to four cores at a single depth; and operating to a depth of 4000m at −55°C and 34 MPa. The system was developed and tested from 2010 through 2012 and integrates several new mechanical subsystems, including two electromechanical actuators capable of pushing the sonde to any targeted azimuth, new reduced diameter core and screen barrels made from off-the-shelf casing tube, and new cutter heads optimized for the multiple stages of the replicate coring procedure. The system was successfully deployed at West Antarctic Ice Sheet (WAIS) Divide in the 2012/13 field season, recovering 285 m of core from five intentional deviations at four target depths.

This paper documents the drilling of the 5G deep hole at the Russian Vostok station, Antarctica. The hole construction is described and the specifications of the drill and surface drilling equipment are given. The peculiarities of drilling at various depths are considered. Based on the extensive experimental data collected at Vostok station, the processes occurring at the hole bottom are investigated: ice breaking and cutting, bottom cleaning and chip transport, and accumulation of the chips in the screen. The main factors affecting ice-drilling efficiency are the coarseness of ice crystals and the ice temperature. When ice crystal size exceeds 10 mm the cutting efficiency sharply decreases, and when ice temperature exceeds –5°C the chip transport from the hole bottom and the chip density in the screen are reduced. The drill advance then becomes irregular, slows down and may even be terminated in some cases. Optimal values of the basic drilling parameters (e.g. cutter head rotation rate and drilling fluid flow rate in the circulation system) have been deduced empirically. The designs of the cutter head and circulation system including screens have been significantly modified, allowing the drilling process to proceed at a normal rate even in the vicinity of the subglacial lake surface.

Following on from the successful project to recover an ice core to bedrock on Berkner Island, similar drilling equipment and logistics were used on two further projects to recover ice cores to bedrock in the Antarctic Peninsula. At James Ross Island, a ship- and helicopter-supported project drilled to bedrock at 363 m depth in a single season, while a Twin Otter-supported project drilled to bedrock at 654m depth, again in a single season, from Fletcher Promontory. In both new projects, drilling was from the surface, with the infrastructure enclosed in a tent, using an uncased, partially fluid-filled, borehole.

The deep ice sheet coring (DISC) drill and replicate coring system (RCS) were designed and manufactured by Ice Coring and Drilling Services/Ice Drilling Design and Operations group of the University of Wisconsin–Madison. The DISC/RCS is an electromechanical system designed to take 122 mm diameter ice cores from the main borehole and 108 mm diameter replicate ice cores to depths of 4000 m. Detailed design of the DISC drill began in 2003, and the completed drill was tested in Greenland in 2006. During five consecutive field seasons at West Antarctic Ice Sheet (WAIS) Divide, 3405 m of ice core were drilled, setting the US deep ice drilling record. The RCS, based on the DISC drill, was developed and built in 2010/11, tested in Antarctica during the 2011/12 WAIS Divide field season and tested further in Madison, WI, during summer–fall 2012. During the 2012/13 Antarctic field season, the system produced five azimuth and depth-controlled deviations at four target depth levels. A total of 285 m of replicate ice core was recovered in the first coring of its kind. The entire main/replicate ice core, including ductile, brittle and warm ice, had excellent quality and satisfied the needs of the ice science community.

After the NEEM (Greenland) deep ice-core drilling was declared terminated with respect to developing stratigraphic climate reconstructions, efforts were turned toward collecting basal ice-sheet debris and, if possible, drilling into the bedrock itself. In 2010, several meters of banded debris-rich ice were obtained under normal ice-drilling operations with the NEEM version of the Hans Tausen (HT) drill, but further penetration was obstructed by a rock in the path of the drill head at 2537.36 m. During short campaigns in 2011 and 2012, attempts were made to penetrate further using various reinforced ice cutters mounted on the HT drill head, tailored to cut through rock. These had some success in penetrating coarse material, but produced severely damaged cutters. Additionally a 51 mm diameter diamond cutting tipped rock drill was adapted to fit the NEEM drill. With this device, several additional meters of core containing subglacial sediments, rocks and rock fragments were collected. With these tools 1.39m of additional material were obtained during the 2011 field season, and 7.1 m during 2012. Subglacial water refreezing into the newly formed borehole hindered further penetration, and the bedrock interface was not reached before final closure of the NEEM Camp.

To prevent spinning of the upper non-rotated part of the electromechanical drill, an ‘anti-torque system’ has to be included in the downhole unit. At the same time, the anti-torque must allow the drill to move up and down the borehole during drilling and tripping operations. Usually the anti-torque system has a blade form of various designs that engages with the borehole wall and counteracts the torque from the stator of the driving motor. This paper presents a review of the different anti-torque systems and test results with selected designs (leaf spring, skate and U-shaped anti-torque systems). Experiments showed that the skate anti-torque system can provide the maximal holding torque between 67 and 267 Nm−1 depending on the skates’ outer diameter and ice temperature, while the leaf spring anti-torque system can provide only 2.5–40 N m−1 (in case of straight contact between the ice and the leaf springs). The total resistance force to axial movement of the skate anti-torque system lies in the range 209–454N if the system is vibrating. For the leaf spring anti-torque system, the total axial resistance force is far less (19–243 N).

Continuous good-quality deep ice cores provide excellent scientific data with which to reconstruct a past climate record for >800 ka. At depths starting from ∼100m using an electromechanical drill, a drilling liquid is essential for successful recovery of the very high-quality ice cores demanded by modern scientific analysis techniques (e.g. continuous flow analysis). Finding a suitable drill fluid for use at deep ice-coring drill sites is not an easy task. Temperatures vary greatly not just from site to site, but also at a site where the average mean temperature from surface to bedrock can vary from –55°C to –2.75°C. In the past 60 years, many fluids have been used, with varying degrees of success, but for various reasons are either unavailable, are now considered unsafe and dangerous or are too environmentally damaging to be permitted. Here we report on our pre-season investigation into possible candidate drill fluids, with specific information concerning ESTISOL™ 240 and COASOL™, the rationale behind the redesign of our drill successfully used at NorthGRIP, Greenland, and EPICA DML, Antarctica, the knock-on effect of those changes, and our field experience in Greenland at Flade Isblink in 2006 and at NEEM in 2009–10.

In response to the ‘oldest ice’ challenge initiated by the International Partnerships in Ice Core Sciences (IPICS), new rapid-access drilling technologies through glacier ice need to be developed. These will provide the information needed to qualify potential sites on the Antarctic ice sheet where the deepest section could include ice that is >1Ma old and still in good stratigraphic order. Identifying a suitable site will be a prerequisite for deploying a multi-year deep ice-core drilling operation to elucidate the cause and mechanisms of the mid-Pleistocene transition from 40 ka glacial–interglacial cycles to 100 ka cycles. As part of the ICE&LASERS/SUBGLACIOR projects, we have designed an innovative probe, SUBGLACIOR, with the aim of perforating the ice sheet down to the bedrock in a single season and continuously measuring in situ the isotopic composition of the melted water and the methane concentration in trapped gases. Here we present the general concept of the probe, as well as the various technological solutions that we have favored so far to reach this goal.

The British Antarctic Survey, in collaboration with Laboratoire de Glaciologie et Géophysique de l’Environnement, has in recent years successfully drilled to bedrock on three remote sites around the Antarctic Peninsula. Based on the experience from the multi-season project at Berkner Island (948m depth, 2002–05) we optimized the drill set-up to better suit two subsequent single-season projects at James Ross Island (363m depth, 2008) and Fletcher Promontory (654m depth, 2012). The adaptations, as well as the reasons for them, are discussed in detail and include a drill tent set-up without a trench; drilling without a borehole casing with a relatively low fluid column height; and using a shorter drill. These optimizations were aimed at reducing cargo loads and installation time while maintaining good core quality, productivity and a safe working environment. In addition, we introduce a number of innovations, ranging from a new lightweight cable tensioning device and drill-head design to core storage and protection trays. To minimize the environmental impact, all the drill fluid was successfully recovered at both sites and we describe and evaluate this operation.

The Enceladus Explorer project is a preparatory study for a future space mission to Saturn’s moon, Enceladus. Its ultimate goal is to probe liquid-water pockets below the ice surface of Enceladus for signatures of life. A probe could be based on the IceMole concept, which melts curved trajectories through the ice. In the Enceladus Explorer project, a specialized IceMole probe for a terrestrial test scenario is in development. The goal of this exploratory study is to probe water from a liquid crevasse close to Blood Falls at Taylor Glacier, Antarctica. To navigate such a probe it is essential to be able to determine its position and monitor its trajectory. Part of the navigation system is the in-ice acoustic positioning system. For this, the head of the IceMole is equipped with acoustic sensors, which receive signals from synchronized acoustic emitters situated at the ice surface. Based on the measured propagation times, the speed of sound in ice and the positions of the emitters at the surface, the position of the IceMole can be determined by trilateration techniques. Here we present the developed acoustic positioning system, which is designed to track the in-ice melting probe up to distances of 100 m in glacier ice. Results from full-system tests in water and a first field test on Morteratschgletscher, Switzerland, are discussed.

A drill liquid is essential for the purpose of recovering good-quality scientifically useful ice cores at intermediate to deep depths, i.e. >∼100 m. The pressure produced by the liquid helps to eliminate the detrimental effects of the abrupt release of isostatic pressure in the ice during the drilling process, prevents consequential fractures within the ice core, and is essential to produce an even distribution of hydrostatic pressure to balance the ice isostatic pressure and so minimize borehole deformation. To perform these tasks, while minimizing risks to health and the environment, the liquid needs to exhibit specific physical, chemical and biological characteristics. Here we report on two promising candidate drill liquids, ESTISOL™ 140 and ESTISOL™ 165, for use in the extreme conditions found within the ice sheets of Greenland and Antarctica, where the temperature can range from close to 0°C to below −57°C and pressures can exceed 40 MPa. From both the manufacturer’s data and our laboratory tests and observations we report on the physical, chemical and biological characteristics that both liquids exhibit. We also report on how one of the candidates was field-tested on the Greenland ice sheet and the East Antarctic high plateau.

Several recent projects associated with the IPICS (International Partnerships in Ice Core Sciences) 2k array have demanded the recovery of ice core to depths in excess of several hundred metres (e.g. Flade Isblink, Greenland (2006), Aurora Basin, Antarctica (2008/09), NEEM, Greenland (2011), Aurora Basin North (2013/14) and Renland ice cap, Greenland (2015)). These projects require that the overall system weight is low, that the ability to set up and operate are within the limitations of a small-camp environment and that the overall logistical and transportation costs are kept to a minimum. Using these criteria, a new drilling system capable of drilling >400m depth was seen as a useful future development. Here we report on a new intermediate-depth drilling system designed to recover high-quality 98 mm diameter ice cores from close to surface down to depths of 1000 m by two or more operators in a small deep-field camp environment. The total weight of the system on the snow surface is ∼490 kg, of which the intermediate-depth winch is the single heaviest component at 305 kg with 1000 m of cable.

A new, clean, hot-water drill system (HWDS) was developed by the Science Management Office, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, for use in the Whillans Ice Stream Subglacial Access Research Drilling (WISSARD) project to gain access to Subglacial Lake Whillans beneath ∼800 m of ice in West Antarctica. One primary borehole was drilled into the basal ice environment of Subglacial Lake Whillans during the initial field season in 2012/13. This paper describes the process of designing, fabricating, assembling, shipping, testing, commissioning and traversing the WISSARD HWDS leading up to the first scientific use of the system.

Successful hot-water drilling in the Antarctic is predicated on utilization of the abundant water supply available in the form of the Antarctic ice sheet. For WISSARD (Whillans Ice Stream Subglacial Access Research Drilling) field operations, a snowmelting system was developed that could adequately provide water for a 1000 kW hot-water drill. The system employs ∼100 kW of waste heat from a 225 kW generator to melt snow for initial water (known as seed water) to prime the drill’s high-pressure pumps and water heaters; once the water heaters can be engaged in snowmelting, enough water can be supplied directly to the WISSARD drill to successfully melt a 40 cm diameter hole through 800 m of ice.

The WISSARD (Whillans Ice Stream Subglacial Access Research Drilling) traversable hot-water drill system was designed to create various-diameter ice boreholes to a depth of >800 m, with most major components being controllable from a single user interface. The drill control system operates four low-pressure pumps for water generation and circulation, two hot-water generation units containing a total of six diesel burner modules with integrated high-pressure pumps, three winches (one with independent level-wind motor), a four-motor linear traction drive, and a large number of analog and digital sensors to monitor system performance and cleanliness. Due to development time constraints the control system design focused on utilizing commercial off-the-shelf components, while being highly modular, easily expandable and rapidly deployable. Additional emphasis was placed on providing redundant manual operator controls and maintaining a low degree of system automation to avoid dependence on software control loops for first-season deployment. The result of this design paradigm was a control system that was taken from concept to full operation in <6 months, successfully performing in the field without insurmountable problems.

As part of the ICE&LASER/SUBGLACIOR projects, an innovative probe called SUBGLACIOR is developed with the aim of perforating the ice sheet down to depths of 3500 m in a single season and continuously measuring in situ the isotopic composition of the meltwater and the methane concentration in trapped gases. Ice chips generated by the electromechanical drilling will be removed from the borehole by circulating a drill fluid. The selection of this drill fluid is important as it will have a major impact on the performance and the environmental evaluation. A literature review of drilling liquids is carried out to select potential fluids for further detailed testing. The selected fluids are varying grades of silicone oils, known as linear polydimethylsiloxanes, and ESTISOL™ 140, an aliphatic ester. The requirements for this project are similar to those for other deep ice-core drilling projects but, due to the embedded analytical system and the speed of drilling, there are some specific considerations. Following extensive testing, we conclude that a silicone fluid with a kinematic viscosity of 3 mm2 s−1 (3 cSt) is ideally suitable and affordable. This evaluation provides new insights into the use of silicone oils as a drill fluid that are of use to the wider ice-core drilling community.

Ice coring of temperate and polythermal glaciers demonstrates some limitations of most electromechanical (EM) and thermal electric (TE) drills. Most TE drills are heavy, require a heavy power system, work slowly and cannot operate in boreholes going through the cold–temperate ice transition. Antifreeze thermal electric drills (ATED) are capable of operating in polar ice caps, polythermal and temperate glaciers, in boreholes filled with water and/or hydrophilic fluids. Performance of the ATED drill can be improved by using an open-top core barrel and low-power and narrow-kerf coring head. ATED-type drills can be modified for an open-top core barrel equipped with low-power coring head and include a new scheme for drilling-fluid circulation using two pumps. A small metering pump releases pure ethanol above the top of the drill, and a second pump enables circulation of the borehole fluid, an ethanol–water solution (EWS), above the kerf. Use of a narrow-kerf coring head reduces power requirements and makes it possible to design a lightweight drilling system that includes the EM and TE drills for shallow and intermediate-depth drilling.

Drilling the WDC06A borehole at the West Antarctic Ice Sheet (WAIS) Divide with the Deep Ice Sheet Coring (DISC) drill began in December 2007 and was successfully completed in December 2011 to a depth of 3405 m. The design and construction of a replicate coring system for use with the existing DISC drill began in 2010. In January 2012, the new replicate coring system was tested in the parent borehole at WAIS Divide. While a full deviation was not completed during the test period, much was learned about the mechanical, electrical and operational aspects of the system. Extensive testing and modifications were done over the northern/boreal summer to prepare the system for the upcoming and final season of the project. Further tuning of the system continued during the 2012/13 field season at WAIS Divide. This paper identifies the issues found with the system during the initial test season and discusses solutions, methods and testing done to arrive at an operational system.

More than 170 years ago, Louis Agassiz, one of the creators of glacial theory, made his first attempt to drill into the bed of Unteraargletscher, Swiss Alps. Since that time, various systems for thermal and mechanical drilling have been designed especially for boring into ice, and some conventional drill rigs been adopted for ice coring. Although contemporary ice-drilling knowledge and techniques are now familiar, there remain many problems to be solved by advanced modern technology. Specific challenges related to improving old drilling methods and developing new emerging technologies include: (1) identification of depth limitation of ‘dry’ drilling; (2) improvement of casing; (3) searching for the new environmentally friendly low-temperature drilling fluids; (4) reliable elimination of sticking drills; (5) improvement of core quality in the brittle zone; (6) additional core sampling from borehole walls after the core has been drilled; (7) obtaining oriented core; (8) designing automation drilling systems; (9) developing rapid-access drills. Possible ways of solving these problems are presented below.