Bubble test for the Southern Conduit

The Dory boat used to take the drill team out for the Southern Conduit bubble test. 

Dory boat

Since the conditions have not been favorable (bad weather) for divers, the crew decided to climb aboard a Dory boat yesterday and launch off the beach to positively identify the end of hole #1 (the southern conduit) around 20 meters water depth. The goal was to observe the bubbles generated by air being pushed through the conduit from shore...it worked! The crew found the bubbles almost right at the target location...only 20 meters off, although, it may actually be spot on down below on the seafloor (this will need to be confirmed by divers as soon as weather allows). We plan to to the same at the end of hole #2 in a few days. 

As of March 23rd, the L3-MariPro team had drilled 4,154 feet of the northern conduit. Less that 1,000 feet to go!