The ‘Dream’ sets a new Chinese record for deep-sea drilling

On 28 September, the China Geological Survey under the Ministry of Natural Resources announced that the ocean-going drilling vessel ‘Dream’ had recently completed a trial drilling mission in the South China Sea, carrying out core sampling operations at two wells in waters 4,100 metres deep in China’s South China Sea. The mission successfully retrieved basalt samples from the South China Sea Basin, thereby enhancing China’s deep-sea core sampling capabilities to the 5,000-metre level. During this expedition, the “Dream” achieved a maximum completed drilling depth of 4,929.17 metres and a maximum daily drilling advance of 864.77 metres, setting a new record for the deepest drilling operation independently carried out by China. China’s capacity for efficient deep-sea core sampling has now joined the ranks of the world’s most advanced.