Feb. 3 – It’s a major milestone for the Italian expedition in Antarctica, and Franco Talarico, Professor of Petrography at the University of Siena, and Dr. Franco Ricci, expedition leader of the XXX Antarctic expedition of the National Programme (3rd period), are keen to tell the world. On January 29, a mission saw “Italy reach for the first time – confirmed the university in a statement – the 83.40 parallel south, over 1000 km away from the Italian base ‘Mario Zucchelli’ in Antarctica (Mzs).” The mission saw the scientific coordination of Professor Talarico, who together with guide Francesco Canali (of the Alpine Training Center in Courmayeur), collected information on the geology and geomorphology of the area with video footage and high-resolution photos. “The logistics of the mission – explained the expedition from Antarctica – was continuously coordinated by the Operation Room at Mzs and consistently monitored by the staff of the Base. It was a crucial event for studies that look at the oldest rocks of the Transantarctic Mountains, and for us, to overcome the particular difficulties of the local environmental. Twin Otter, a plane chartered by Enea to proved scientific and logistical support to Mzs, reached a latitude never achieved before with the resources available to the Base. The National Research Programme in Antarctica (PNRA), which manages the missions with the collaboration of ENEA, the National Research Council and the National Scientific Commission for Antarctica, achieved one of the most extreme and important goals of his thirty years of activity.”
An Italian expedition reaches the 83rd parallel
