Technological innovation and automation in the integrated applications of electromagnetic and potential field methods in active volcanic areas. Epot - Ciro Del Negro editor

Riassunto

The EPOT Project This special issue of “Quaderni di Geofisica” collects proceedings from the Second Year Workshop of the Coordinated Project “Technological innovation and automation in the integrated applications of electromagnetic and potential field methods in active volcanic areas” (EPOT) organized at Catania on December 13, 2002. The EPOT project was supported by Dipartimento di Protezione Civile in the frame of the GNV Programme 2000-2003 of the INGV. This research began as a joint project between Research Institutes and Universities with the aim of improving the investigative capability of electromagnetic and potential field methods in their various possible applications in active volcanic areas. Progress achieved in the geophysics of volcanoes over the past few decades, and the rapid technological development of recent years, have made a decisive effort both possible and necessary to introduce automation and a multi-methodological approach as fundamental for the monitoring of active volcanoes. The integrated approach is probably the only procedure capable of giving a global response to the volcanological problem and to minimize interpretative ambiguities. In order to achieve these objectives we have been working to strongly improve the investigative power of the electromagnetic and potential field methods through: (a) development of suitable methods of integrated inversion, (b) application of advanced technologies to process continuously recorded signals, and © automation of monitoring and management systems and of surveys in real time. The EPOT project, though centrally coordinated, is separated in 10 Research Units characterized by homogeneous objectives. The activity reports offer a good summary of the on-going activities in the three main tasks. The project appears to be moving successfully toward the achievement of the proposed goals. During this meeting all partners presented their preliminary results and discussion followed on how to ensure that the algorithms developed in this project are implemented in real-time monitoring procedures and may be used during volcano crises. I wish to thank the authors not only for their contributions but also for stimulating a fruitful discussion among participants. A comprehensive view of our present scientific knowledge on the advances in geophysical researches on major Italian volcanoes was provided. The web site for the project is available at the address: http://maglab.ct.ingv.it/epot since July 2002....