Employee Activities Committee News Page T he Connector

August 2014, Volume 2, Issue 8

It is challenging to describe how deeply affected we are by Heather Heather’s tragic and untimely death. Heather Batchelor Batchelor had been with MISS DIG since September 2001 and what started as a professional relationship had become a warm friendship for so many. Colleen Goddard acknowledged, “EVERYBODY liked her.” It was easy to be captivated by her enthusiasm; her sly smile was irresistible. She was committed to her work with the EAC and was always a great motivator. It was a privilege to have known her and we will never forget her thoughtfulness and kindness. With tremendous sorrow, we extend our deepest, heartfelt Heather during her early 2014 visit to the Auburn Hills Office. We asked her sympathy to her family and dear friends and all in Gladstone if she’d ever meet MISS DIG. She looked confused until we took her to and Escanaba who storage room and dug out our mascot’s head. MISS DIG flag at at half flag DIG MISS knew her. We will always keep her children in our prayers. This will be a very difficult time. Before we can attempt to heal, we need to grieve. Before we can grieve, we will be confused and we will be angry. How could this happen? We will buoy each other up

during this awful time. - mast for our dear friend Heather Batchelor. Heather friend dear our mast for Please be vigilant in tending to her closest. Do not stand at my grave and forever weep. She was a dear friend I am not there; I do not sleep. to many. They will I am a thousand winds that blow. struggle with the I am the diamond glints on snow. aftermath of this for a I am the sunlight on ripened grain. long time. She was part I am the gentle autumn’s rain. of our MISS DIG When you awaken in the morning’s hush family. She will be I am the swift uplifting rush sorely missed. Of quiet birds in circled flight. I am the soft stars that shine at night. Do not stand at my grave and forever cry.

I am not there. I did not die.

Author: Mary Frye

1992. Extrapolating an increase in tem- AUGUST perature relative to increasing depth, Lindy Portelli drilling to 49,000 ft would have meant Will There Be working at 570 °F; the operation was Maureen Schlum sure to fail. Sam Colella Any Scientists were surprised to find that the rock at that depth was saturated with Paul Harding Directional water. This water, unlike surface water, must have come from deep-crust miner- Mary Pascoe Boring? als. Another unexpected discovery was the large quantity of hydrogen gas; the Nancy Livermore Humans may know more about certain mud that flowed out of the hole was Stephanie Boe distant galaxies than about the ground described as "boiling" with hydrogen. that lies beneath their feet. In fact, it took But the most intriguing discovery made Patty Preston the famous Voyager 1 satellite twenty-six by the Kola borehole researchers is un- years to exit our Solar System (relaying doubtedly the detection of biological measurements to Earth from 10 billion activity in rocks more than two billion miles away!) but it took about the same Best midnight snack? Donna Schmeichel: years old. The clearest evidence of life amount of time to bore a mere 7.5 miles ice cold milk and vanilla wafers—dunked came in the form of microscopic fossils: into the Earth's surface. Mary Pratt: Ice Cream the preserved remains of twenty-four The deepest artificial point on Earth is species of single-cell marine plants— Last time you laughed really hard? D: driv- ing with my boys and son Derek said the Kola Superdeep Borehole; the result plankton! Usually fossils are found in something really funny M: BEFORE I start- of a scientific drilling project of the Sovi- limestone and silica deposits, but these ed at MISS DIG (LOL) et Union, on the Kola Peninsula. The "microfossils" were encased in organic project which began in 1970 attempted compounds that remained surprisingly Favorite material object you already own? D: to drill as deep as possible into the intact despite the extreme pressure and my iPad. M: Bicycle Earth's crust. A number of boreholes temperature of the surrounding rock. Who is your hero? D: Sting (Gordon were drilled by branching from a central Funding deficiencies closed the project in Sumner). Talented musician/singer and hole. The deepest, SG-3, reached activist in many humanitarian and envi- late 2005. All the drilling and research 40,230 ft in 1989. ronmental organizations M: IDK—several equipment was scrapped and the site has people play parts in my life but no one person was In Kola, they hoped to drill to 49,000 ft. been abandoned since 2008. there all the time. On June 6, 1979, the record of 31,440 ft The Kola Superdeep Borehole held the at the Bertha Rogers hole in Washita The easiet thing you do every day? D: play with my dog records as the longest and deepest bore- M: Pretty much everything I do is easy—I have a County, Oklahoma was broken. In 1983, hole in the world for nearly 20 years. very simple life. the drill passed 39,000 ft, and drilling was However, in May 2008, a new record for silent for about a year after celebrating borehole length was established by the Ever won anything? If so, what? D: $100 playing BINGO at a church fair M: a couple of bucks here and the event. This idle period may have extended-reach drilling (ERD) well BD- there. contributed to a breakdown onin Sep- 04A, drilled by Transocean for Maersk tember 1984. After drilling to 39,587 ft, Oil in the Al Shaheen oil field in Qatar. It What’s your best physical feature? D: I like my green a 16,000 ft section of the drill string reached 40,318 ft., with a record horizon- eyes M: I look 10 years younger than I am. twisted off. It was abandoned in the tal reach of 35,768 ft, in only 36 days. hole. Drilling was later resumed from What’s your hidden talent? D: I am a gourmet cook and have a very green thumb M: Still searching for that 23,000 ft. In January 2011, Exxon drilled the world's longest extended-reach well off- Do you hoard anything? D: kitchen tools. I have draw- In 1989, the hole reached it’s ultimate shore on the Russian island of Sakhalin. ers full. I can’t resist buying something new or a depth. At that time, it was speculated It has surpassed the length of both the Al newer version of something I already have M: No that the hole depth would reach 44,300 ft Shaheen well and the Kola borehole. The by the end of 1990 and 49,000 ft by Odoptu OP-11 well reached a measured What’s the meaning of life? D: love and family M: to

1993. Due to higher than expected tem- total depth of 40,502 ft with a horizontal live for today. We are not promised a tomorrow. peratures at this depth (356 °F instead of displacement of 37,648 ft. Exxon Nefte- Enjoy all the differences there are on this small the expected 212 °F); drilling ceased in gas completed the well in 60 days. planet.