insulated hoses (one carrying water to the surface
and Rodriguez (1960) were the first to build a melt-
and one returning warm water to the well). Be-
pocket water well in ice, and subsequent polar
cause contamination of the well by fuel was a
wells have been called Rodriguez or Rod wells (see
major concern, a low-temperature EPDM (ethyl-
Table 1 for a list of such wells). Researchers have
ene propylene dienemonomer) mat surrounds the
searched for cosmic spherules and extraterrestrial
wellhead and extends out 7 m.
materials in polar wells (e.g., Langway 1963,
The SPWW was certified as a source of potable
McCorkell et al. 1970). McCorkell and his col-
water in early 1994. On 26 February 1994, the pool
leagues filtered 200,000 liters of water pumped
was about 16 m deep and 22 m in diameter, and
from a meter from the well floor at the Camp Cen-
the well bottom was 101 m below the wellhouse
tury well in Greenland. They found no excess 26Al,
an extraterrestrial marker, on their 3-m filters. The
(103.5 m below the snow surface, Appendix A).
Before consumption began, however, an electrical
micrometeorites had probably formed a lag de-
fire in the pump cable on 1 March 1994 forced a 9-
posit on the well floor, but the pump intake was
month shutdown. During the shutdown, a 4-m-
too high on the well bottom to entrain the particles.
thick ice layer formed on the pool surface and 6
The SPWW is a Rodriguez well constructed
11 m of freezeback occurred on the walls and bot-
during the 199293 austral summer. A hot-water
tom. The well was restarted in December 1994 by
drill was used to melt a 30-cm-diameter hole into
drilling through the ice layer and recirculating
the snow to a depth of 6070 m. The drill was then
warm water as before. By March 1995, the well
lowered more slowly to create a large pool or res-
had melted below the prefire level and released
ervoir of water. The surface wellhouse, which con-
any particles trapped during the freezeback. Fig-
tains the equipment for drilling and operating the
well, consists of two stacked 4.6 2.1 2.4 m ship-
ure 1 shows the approximate well geometry be-
fore and after the fire and at the time of deploy-
ping containers (millvans). The wellhead is in the
ment in December 1995. It also shows the corre-
lower container, about 2.5 m below the present
sponding age of the ice (and the depositional age
snow surface. The 30-cm-diam. wellhead and neck
of the micrometeorites).
accommodate the electrical cable connected to the
The SPWW has supplied potable water since
submersible pump, emergency heat trace, and two
Start Consumption
30 Jan 95
Volume Consumed
1,600 m3 to end
Dec 95
60
1500 A.D.
70
80
82.6 m
D ~ 22 m
4 m Ice She
86.6 m
90
90.2 m
26 Feb 94
10 cm Ice Cover
Before Fire on
Freezeback Before
Pump
1 Mar 94
Restart on 30 Nov 94
100
101.2 m
1000 A.D.
Pool Volume ~ 4,000 m3
106.5 m
Pool Volume ~5,000 m3
110
Figure 1. Evolution of the South Pole Water Well.
3
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