The information the geologist acquires from the core will tell him about the environmental conditions, and changes in the environmental conditions, during the time period of deposition of the sediment. Critical dating of the sediment in the core, and depositional events represented by the sediment, possibly may be acquired. Piston Cores . The weight pushes the pipe into the sediment layers. When the pipe is extracted and raised to the ship, it brings the sediment sample with it.
Scientists then open the pipe to reveal the sediment.
Coring preserves the layering of the deposits. The layering provides geologists with clues to the glacial environment. If till is overlain directly by open-ocean sediment, then it is possible that an ice shelf did not exist at the location of the sediment core. Drilling is another way to collect sediment cores. Drilling implies a rotating coring system with a drill bit that actually cuts through consolidated or lithified sediment.