The vessel was positioned at Site 1264 (proposed Site WALV-8A) at 1310 hr on 5 April 2003. Coring intervals, times, nominal recovery rates, core barrels that required drillover to be released from the sediment, and the deployments of the Advanced Piston Corer Temperature (APCT) tool, Tensor core orientation tool, and nonmagnetic core barrel are listed in Table T1.
The bit was placed at a depth of 2518 meters below rig floor (mbrf), and Hole 1264A was initiated with the advanced piston corer (APC) at 1505 hr on 5 April. The estimated seafloor depth calculated from the recovery of Core 208-1264A-1H was 2518.2 mbrf. The APC advanced without incident to the target depth of 280.7 mbsf (Table T1). One interval was advanced by recovery (256.3–261.7 mbsf; Core 208-1264-28H). The bit was pulled clear of the seafloor at 2155 hr on 6 April, and the vessel moved 20 m north of Hole 1264A.
Prior to initiating Hole 1264B, a bottom water temperature measurement was obtained with the APCT at 2513 mbrf. Core 208-1264B-1H was cored with the bit placed at 2513 mbrf. The estimated seafloor depth calculated from the recovery of the first core was 2515.2 mbrf. Piston coring advanced without incident to the target depth of 282.8 mbsf. The bit cleared the seafloor at 0350 hr on 8 April.
Hole 1264C was drilled to confirm the seafloor depth. Core 208-1264C-1H was retrieved at 0430 hr on 8 April, with the bit at 2509 mbrf. The calculated seafloor depth, based upon a 3.0-m recovery, was 2515.5 mbrf, only 0.3 m deeper than the calculated seafloor depth from Core 208-1264B-1H.
The cored interval at Site 1264 was 566 m, and the recovered interval was 564 m (average nominal recovery = 99%). Six downhole temperature measurements (Hole 1264A: 38–123 mbsf and Hole 1264B: 102–197 mbsf) and one bottom water temperature measurement (Hole 1262B) taken with the APCT yielded an initial temperature gradient estimate of 1.5°C/100 m. The vessel left Site 1264 at 1140 hr on 8 April.