The volume contains the steps forward in deepening the understanding of the historic eruption of 1971 and the crucial role played by science and culture in the management of volcanic emergencies
Saturday 14 October 2023 at 17 pm, at the Etna Park headquarters in Nicolosi (CT), it will be presented the volume "Etna 1971 Between history and volcanology", edited by the Director of the INGV Etna Observatory (INGV - OE), Stefano Branca and the author Daniele Musumeci, published by Edizioni INGV. The event represents an important moment of reflection on the extraordinary eruption of 1971 and its impact both in the volcanological and historical fields.
The volume, created in collaboration with the University of Catania and the Etna Park, goes beyond the analysis of the eruption itself, exploring a vast range of topics, including epistemology, volcanology, seismology, volcanospeleology and the anthropological aspects of relations between man and the volcano. This cultural journey is beautifully illustrated through the extraordinary photographs of Salvatore Tomarchio (1922-2009), kindly provided by his family, which cover various aspects covered in the book: the eruption, the scientists, the territory that has changed over time, the population and its pagan rites, and faith.
L'eruption of the 1971, unlike the other lateral eruptions of Etna in the last three centuries, has gradually gained significant significance over the years, representing a event of great interest from both a scientific and historical point of view. On the occasion of the fiftieth anniversary of this eruption in 2021, a unique opportunity has opened up explore the event in an interdisciplinary way which occurred in a period of renewed scientific vigor. This was possible thanks to the presence in Catania of the Swiss volcanologist Alfred Rittmann (1893-1980), who provided a new impetus and an international perspective to volcanological studies on Etna.
Alfred Rittmann plays a central role in this narrative, since his multidisciplinary approach to volcanology developed precisely through the study of the lateral eruption of 1971. This intense experience, lived in the field, in research laboratories and around a work table which brought together Italian, French and English volcanologists, contributed in the following decades to development of a multiparametric monitoring system, which was later supported by a surveillance system for civil protection in management of Etna's volcanic emergencies.
The creation of interdisciplinary contributions of a popular nature is an integral part of the institutional activities of the INGV Third Mission, in which the Etna Observatory has always played a leading role through the transfer of its scientific, technological and cultural knowledge to society. Scientific dissemination is one of the strategic objectives of the Etna Observatory, which has long been committed to the valorisation and dissemination of the historical, iconographic and documentary heritage linked to the eruptive history of Etna, encouraging dialogue with the University of Catania, the school , the Etna Park, the local administrations and the cultural associations of the Etna area, with the aim of developing a society based on knowledge.
Useful links:
Web page of the National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology (INGV)
