Lena Steinmann

I spent one month in the working group of our Italian partner Dr. Marco Sacchi at the Institute for Coastal Marine Environment of the National Research Council in Naples (Italy). The main goals of my research stay were to (1) discuss and refine my first manuscript and (2) prepare a ship-time proposal to acquire additional seismic data for my PhD project in 2015. With respect to both objectives, the research stay was a success all along the line.

During my time at the IAMC-CNR I was able to significantly improve the results of my first manuscript based on discussions with many leading scientists in my research field (e.g. Dr. Monica Piochi, Dr. Guiseppe De Natale, Dr. Marco Sacchi). Furthermore, I visited major volcanic outcrops together with Dr. Marco Sacchi in order to get a better understanding of the dispersal processes of different volcanic deposits which I can also identify in my offshore seismic data. During scuba diving excursions I got the chance to see active underwater fumaroles. This helped me to picture how such features will look like on hydroacoustic data from the water column, which we plan on collecting during the next research cruise in 2015. Moreover, I was also invited to visit the 24 hour seismic monitoring centre at the Vesuvius Observatory, which was an absolutely unique experience and highlighted the importance of researching and understanding active volcanic areas in order to prevent future catastrophes. I also had the opportunity to learn about different seismic processing techniques and programmes (RadExPro).

Overall, I greatly benefited from my stay at the IAMC-CNR in both personal and scientific respect. I had the chance to establish an international network with renowned scientists and increase my visibility in the scientific community. Furthermore, the research stay offered me the unique opportunity to become acquainted with the onshore volcanic environment in my working area which will significantly help me to advance my scientific work regarding the offshore part. Therefore, I would like to thank GLOMAR for funding this great experience.