China's Mengxiang drills 16,172 feet deep, recovers basalt core

China's Mengxiang ocean drilling vessel completed a 30-day trial in the South China Sea, drilling to a maximum water depth of 16,172 feet (4,929.17 m) and a penetration of 864.77 m while recovering a 4.27-meter basalt core. China becomes the third country after the US and Japan to retrieve hard-rock samples from a deep-sea basin using a drilling ship.

• Maximum water depth reached 4,929.17 m with 864.77 m of drilling penetration
• A 4.27-meter basalt core was recovered, with core-recovery rates above 100% at times
• Two ROVs logged over 358 hours at 4,000 m depth, one run lasting 103 hours
• China joins the US and Japan in recovering hard-rock samples from a deep-sea basin