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11 Julay 2011

The second expedition of the project "On the Trail of the Glaciers" kicks off

The departure of the second expedition of the 'On the Trail of the Glaciers' project is imminent. It will take place on 28 July and will have as its destination the Georgian Caucasus region.

The expedition team, consisting of experienced mountaineers, researchers and photographers, will take comparative photographs and carry out glaciological measurements. Everything will be followed by a specialised television crew, which will film a high-definition documentary on the expedition's activities. Big names make up the team: photographer Fabiano Ventura, president of "Macromicro", glaciologists Kenneth Hewitt and Riccardo Scotti, director Marco Preti and cameraman Luca Venchiarutti.

The Scientific Committee, already of great academic prestige, was also further expanded: Prof. Claudio Smiraglia, Prof. Kenneth Hewitt and Dr. Christoph Mayer were joined by Dr. Stefano Urbini from the National Institute of Geophysics and Vulcanology in Rome.

"Our aim," says Fabiano Ventura, the project's creator, "is to repeat the photographs taken by ancient explorers at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th century in order to compare them with the new images we have taken from the same geographical point, to study and highlight the changes taking place on planet Earth. Glaciologists in the field," Ventura continues, "will take measurements and acquire data, which, combined with the comparative images, will give results that will report on the effects of climate change on glaciers. Ultimately, we would like to raise awareness of these important issues".

Many glaciers are disappearing (88% are at risk of extinction by 2050), but from the results of the first expedition, it can be said that many Karakoram glaciers are stable and some even appear to be growing. The data of the Caucasus expedition and the work of the team can be followed on this website, which will be updated in real time by the experts themselves during the entire time of the expedition.

Click here to download the press release

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