L'Aquila is a historic seat of the National Institute of Geophysics which was later transformed in 1999 into theIstituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia (INGV). The institute was founded in 1958 for the International Geophysical Year, centered around the Preturo geomagnetic observatory, the first in Italy. Recent press reports of the INGV's intention to close the L'Aquila office are unfounded. The Institute's current headquarters, located in the offices on Via dell'Arcivescovado, were developed thanks to the Abruzzo Project—a program agreement between the Ministry of Education, University and Research (MIUR) and the Abruzzo Region—to meet the new needs for scientific research and the study, monitoring, and prevention policies that arose following the tragic earthquake of 2009.
For several years, a group of temporary researchers, geologists, engineers, physicists, has been carrying out research activities in the field of seismology applied to engineering, environmental geology and geophysics and seismic hazard.
Currently, for logistical reasons (office in the red zone with access problems for staff and service vehicles), the office is being transferred to the new offices located in the Porta Napoli area. This choice is also linked to the imminent closure of the Abruzzo research project, which is why INGV is awaiting the formalization of a new collaboration relationship with the Region, in the absence of which there will be a significant reduction in research activities research, connected to the contraction of the workforce.
Rome, October 15 2016