The 4th edition of the summer school in Glaciology, organized in the framework of the Ortles Project, involved 22 students from Italian and German high schools of the Province of Bolzano.

The summer school occurred between Sep. the 16thand 19th at the Hotel Refuge Franzenshöhe, located at 2200 m along the road to the Stelvio Pass in South Tyrol. The first day of the summer school the students learned the geological and petrographic properties of metamorphic rocks that are typical of the Stelvio area (paragneiss and orthogneiss). In addition permafrost and the role that it plays in shaping the landscape were studied.

The second day a field trip on the glacier Vedretta del Madaccio toke place. The glacier and the periglacial areas were studied, in concomitance with the local  sedimentary carbonate rocks (Dolomite). The third day the local mountain guides of Solda organized a tour on the glaciers to the summit of Cima di Solda (3300 m) focusing in particular on the moraines. Some flora and fauna topics were also developed, thanks to the help of some naturalistic guides and experts of the Stelvio National Park.

The fourth day was dedicated to zoology. When all the data collected in the field were considered, nine specimens belonging to three species of small mammals were found. The data collected will be archived at the Science Museum of Bolzano, to improve the knowledge in this field. Later the same day the students dealt with their reports, in which they developed some of the topics previously studied and that will be presented during the coming Science Day at Eurac. At the end of the summer school the students had the possibility to meet – in person or through video-conference – some teachers and researchers that work in polar sciences and educational outreach.

The next appointment is on the Science Day at Eurac on October the 13th!

There is also a Facebook group of students that took part to the summer school.

See also (in German):

http://www.provinz.bz.it/news/de/news.asp?news_action=4&news_article_id=471295