Geophysical Risks: The Future of Observatories, The Observatories of the Future

Dear Colleagues,

Since the foundation of the first volcano observatories throughout the world, these institutions have integrated monitoring, surveillance, and research activities. Over time, observatories have evolved under pressures from continuously evolving societal demands, from national and local strategies for increasing societal resilience in the face of natural hazards, and from techniques for data acquisition, transmission, storage, and treatment.  Some observatories are in very remote locations, engaged in time-consuming activities which are often conducted in unfavourable contexts, such that it is not possible to prioritize research and publishing. However, these monitoring and research centres play the most fundamental role within geophysical and volcanological communities: they collect high-quality data organized in time series; they develop/optimize acquisition and data treatment techniques; and they identify new physicochemical or dynamic processes which comprise the core of the evolution of volcanological science.

In this Special Issue, we propose a collation of papers surrounding the activities of volcanological (sensu lato) observatories, focusing on the following areas: their evolution over time in meeting societal demand, their developments in the technical and scientific paradigm, their monitoring systems and implementations, the key scientific results which have changed their vision and strategies, and their challenges and perspectives in relation to monitoring hazards in their geological settings/regional context of interest. Contributions concerning the perspectives that involve the synergy between observatories and stakeholders and civil defence authorities and their mission in facing geophysical hazards and risks—their visions of how volcanic and seismic monitoring will change and evolve in a changing world—will be highly appreciated. Contributions from all kinds of geophysical observatories are welcome, including space observatories/labs that deal with global seismic and geodetic networks and/or satellite systems.

Prof. Dr. Roberto Moretti
Prof. Dr. Andrea Di Muro
Guest Editors

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• volcanological observatories and their missions
• volcanic hazards and risks
• volcano monitoring networks and protocols
• innovative monitoring techniques
• data quality, data acquisition, and data treatment
• surveillance and communication procedures
• links to civil defence and societal issues