HARBIN: Geologists in Heilongjiang Province are hoping to get a glimpse of the abrupt change that led to the extinction of dinosaurs millions of years ago in a new project.

They also hope to be able to speculate on what the world's weather will be like in the future by drilling a deep hole in Daqing to extract rock core samples from the Cretaceous period.

Scientists hope they will be able to see temperature changes dating back 65 million to 140 million years through the study of these samples.

This could provide clues about future temperature change, especially how the greenhouse gas effect will affect the planet.

"One of the major breakthrough in geosciences in the 20th century was when people realized their activities had a direct impact on the eco-system of the planet and on the global climate," said Wang Chengshan, a professor from the China University of Geosciences, who was quoted by the People's Daily.

"We especially hope to find out more about the greenhouse gas effect, which is caused by greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide."

Cold and hot periods have both occurred alternately in the earth's history and the Cretaceous period is recognized as a period that had a greenhouse climate, Wang said.

"The average temperature at that time was about 10 C higher than now with a much thicker concentration of carbon dioxide, about four to 10 times that of today.

"It was a period without glaciers and with vast forests covering places in high latitudes. It was when the dinosaurs dominated the earth and their presence can be found even in polar areas," he added.

"Great geological changes also occurred. There was also a lack of oxygen in the oceans and there was a large-scale extinction of thriving animals.

"Thus the study into the Cretaceous period may tell us a lot and will be useful in guiding us about what to do in the future," he said.

The project, called "Songke No 1 Well," is in the Daqing Oil Field.

Wang, who heads the project, said that they picked Daqing as it is located in the Songliao Basin, which is the world's largest onshore oil-and-gas-containing basin formed during the Cretaceous period.

"The basin is an ideal place to study the Cretaceous period as it has an intact record of the geological development during that time," he said.

The study of important geological events and greenhouse climate change in the Cretaceous period is listed in the country's national basic research and development plan.

The project has aroused the interest of many foreign experts, Wang said, and some have expressed their desire to join in the work.

The project is being carried out with the help of the drilling team at Daqing Oilfield, one of the country's major oilfields.

In another development, China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) has reported the discovery of oil reserves of about 250 million tons in four oil-rich blocks in Heilongjiang and the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, near Daqing Oilfield.

Two blocks, one holding about 73 million tons and the other 60 million tons, were found in the Mongolian autonomous county of Dorbod in Heilongjiang.

Ninety-six million tons was discovered in a block in Zhaoyuan County in Heilongjiang, and 30 million tons in the Hailaer Basin in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.

Since the country first pumped oil from the Daqing Oilfield in 1959, it has produced 1.9 billion tons of oil, accounting for more than 40 per cent of the country's total onshore output.

Source: China Daily