COLLABORATIONS

SCAR GIANT

IGOA is an active member of the SCAR (Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research) Expert Group on Geodetic Infrastructure of Antarctica (GIANT) and directly supports the group’s goal of developing and maintaining geodetic infrastructure across the Antarctic Continent. This deep connection is also reflected at the leadership level, as the IGOA representative, Prof. Alessandro Capra, also co-chairs GIANT.

The very establishment of the IGOA in 1998 was realized within the GIANT effort to develop permanent geodetic observatories and positioned the entire IGOA scientific activity as a concrete contribution to the international research strategy coordinated by this SCAR Expert Group. The data acquired by IGOA personnel and instrumentation contribute to supporting the investigation of regional geodynamic processes, including crustal deformation, tectonic activity, and glacial isostatic adjustment.

ICEGIANT

The ICEGIANT project – funded by the Italian National Antarctic Program (PNRA – Programma Nazionale di Ricerche in Antartide) and carried out by teams from UniBo (University of Bologna), UNIMORE (University of Modena and Reggio Emilia), and INGV (Institute Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia) – focuses on an integrated approach to investigate ice flow dynamics, bedrock interactions, and mass balance of the largest outlet glacier in Northern Victoria Land: the David Glacier. Comprehensive monitoring of the David Cauldron icefall and Drygalski ice-tongue will be achieved through the integration of GNSS and seismic stations, and SAR (Synthetic Aperture Radar) imagery. During the XLI (2025-2026) and XLII Expeditions (2026-2027), the IGOA will handle the installation and removal of 13 GNSS stations (designed ad hoc for this purpose) along the David Cauldron icefall and the Drygalski ice-tongue that will allow for the detection of flow velocity changes.

I-VOLCAN

The IGOA collaboration with the Italian Volcanological Observatory in Antarctica (I-VOLCAN) – funded by the Italian National Antarctic Program (PNRA – Programma Nazionale di Ricerche in Antartide) – started during the XL Italian Expedition (2024-2025). It focuses on geodetic and topographic surveys of Mount Melbourne (a quiescent stratovolcano located in Northern Victoria Land) through benchmark networks. The objectives of the collaboration are the geo-morphological monitoring of the external surface of the caldera glacier and the development of a 3D model of the area.

The activities focus on using episodic GNSS stations to survey two benchmark networks established in the late 1980s: a control network of 12 points around and on Mount Melbourne’s summit, and a detailed network of 8 points located on saddles and rocky spurs along its slopes.

Boulder Clay Gravel Airstrip

During the XXIX Italian Antarctic Expedition (2013-2014), the PNRA built a gravel runway on the moraine of the Boulder Clay Glacier to provide a more reliable logistical alternative for air logistics in the area when the ice runway on the Gerlache Inlet fast ice is no longer operational.

The 2.200 m × 60 m gravel airstrip serves several scientific stations that are to provide a more reliable logistical alternative for the multiple national Antarctic stations hosted in the Terra Nova Bay: Mario Zucchelli Station (Italy), Gondwana Station (Germany), Jang Bogo Station (South Korea), and Qinling Station (China).

Since it is built on an active glacial moraine, which represents a dynamic environment subject to ongoing surface displacement, the airstrip requires geodetic monitoring to ensure its long-term operational safety. To this end, during each expedition, IGOA — with the support of MZS personnel — conducts a systematic survey of a high-precision geodetic network in the area of interest. The resulting displacement time series provides the geodetic basis for assessing the structural integrity and operational safety of the airstrip over time.