SODCO
THE U.S. SCIENTIFIC OCEAN
DRILLING COORDINATION
OFFICE

A range of pre-drilling activities will be supported by SODCO, including informational webinars aligned with NSF calls for drilling proposals, workshops on scientific drilling (broad and general or specialized, depending on community needs), and scientific drilling primers ("Drilling Proposals 101") to engage early-career researchers and provide opportunities to those new to scientific ocean drilling.

SODCO will also support projects that facilitate the implementation or enhance the outcomes of planned expeditions, including assembling newly acquired data from a region of interest, developing capabilities to carry out high-impact, non-routine measurements on a SODCO-implemented expedition, and developing community resources to increase the impact of an expedition. Funding will be available through an Innovation Grants Program for research projects that encourage advancements in science and technology, using cutting-edge scientific/engineering techniques and approaches to scientific questions, or creative methods to address other community needs.

Community-led workshops are instrumental in gathering ideas, developing strong drilling proposals, and promoting successful engagement in drilling planning. SODCO will work with the SODCO Advisory Board (SAB) to identify high-level workshop needs in response to U.S. priorities. SODCO will solicit proposals from the community for workshops that explore questions that can be addressed with SOD, assess available data sets to identify sites for future drilling or gaps in data where site surveys may be required, or synthesize preliminary results to maximize the scientific achievements from previous drilling.

Training and career development opportunities are key priorities for the U.S. SOD, to ensure that knowledge and expertise continue to be passed on. SODCO will develop a range of training courses and workshops that will take advantage of the resources available at the Texas A&M (TAMU) Gulf Coast Repository (GCR) and at the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory (LDEO). Lab-specific training at the GCR (e.g., physical properties school, XRF training) will give early-career scientists the opportunity to learn from experts in the field. Additional community-driven training courses and workshops will be solicited through open calls for proposals.

Support and training for the next generation of scientists is a critical element of the U.S. SOD program. SODCO will offer an annual program to support graduate fellowships on a competitive basis to meritorious U.S.-based students working on SOD-related research. Graduate students enrolled in M.S. or PhD programs at U.S. institutions will be eligible to apply for one-year SODCO Graduate Fellowships.

LDEO and TAMU will offer summer internship opportunities for U.S.-based undergraduate students, providing hands-on experience working on cutting edge geoscience, science communications, or engineering development projects.

Communication and engagement play an important role in keeping the U.S. SOD science community active. SODCO will maintain SOD-related social media accounts and publish regular community newsletters to keep the SOD community informed. As drilling proposals are developed, potential outreach plans will be discussed with proponents to determine the overarching scientific message and identify the skills needed to communicate it. For each expedition, SODCO-supported outreach officers will work with science party members to plan and implement communications projects to broadcast expedition accomplishments.

A collaboration with the American Museum of Natural History provides access to a large and varied audience and will support SOD-themed exhibits, speakers, and both in-person and virtual engagement opportunities.

The Scientific Drilling Forum is an international venue to bring together research programs that use scientific drilling to explore Earth's history and dynamics. The Forum aims to share knowledge and scientific outcomes, enhance opportunities for collaboration and coordination, and broaden the scientific drilling community.

The Forum is led by four co-chairs, each representing an active drilling program: Zhifei Lui (China's Deep Ocean Drilling Program), Rebecca Robinson (U.S. ocean drilling program), Nobi Seama (International Ocean Drilling Programme, IODP³), and Thomas Wiersberg (International Continental Drilling Program).

The first annual Scientific Drilling Forum Meeting was held October 13-16, 2025 in Capo Granitola, Italy, hosted by IAS, the Italian National Research Council, and IODP³.