During the XV and XVII Italian Antarctic expeditions (1999/2000, 2001/02), 23 glacial deposits have been sampled within the aim of the project "Geomorphological and glaciological mapping of Victoria Land" in northern and southern Victoria Land. The investigated regions are within Mount Joyce SS 55-57/16, Mount Melbourne SS 58-60/9 and Taylor Glacier ST 57-60/5 USGS sheets.

Trophic interactions underlie coexistence mechanisms between species and affect biodiversity and heavy metal bioaccumulation processes. Sea ice dynamics, which at Terra Nova Bay is characterized by an extraordinary seasonality, drives interspecific interactions. Indeed, the activation of the primary production after sea-ice break up opens alternative trophic pathways for consumers. By means of C and N stable isotope analyses, the present project aims at (i) determining food web structure at Terra Nova Bay at different bathymetries and in opposite sea-ice cover conditions; (ii) evaluating heavy metal bioaccumulation in species along food chains, including fish of commercial interests, both in the presence and absence of photosynthetic primary producers. The hypothesis to be tested is if the activation of primary producers following sea-ice break up significantly modifies the food web structure and stability against species loss, as well as heavy metals concentration along food chains. Data on Antarctic food webs are scarce, and even scarcer is our knowledge on mechanisms of primary and secondary biodiversity loss and biomagnification processes in invertebrates and fish. The present research project will shed light on mechanisms underlying biodiversity maintenance in the Antarctic ecosystem and on risks for human health related to heavy metals accumulation in fish species currently or potentially exploited commercially, also in light of expected changes in the extension of sea ice cover. A valuable reference baseline will be established for future studies at the Italian Antarctic Station and for the Marine Protected Area in the Ross Sea.

During the XVII Italian Antarctic expedition (2001/02), 61 rocks have been sampled within the aim of the project "Role of Cenozoic tectonic and glacial events in the landscape evolution of the Victoria Land region" in northern Victoria Land. They include subvolcanic and metamorphic rocks. The investigated regions are within Cape Adare SR 59-60/13*, Cape Hallett SS 58-60/2, Coulman Island SS 58-60/6, Freyberg Mountains SS 58-60/1 and Mount Murchison SS 58-60/5 USGS sheets.

SEDANO Project aim to understand the origin of the glacial depositional systems found offshore the Pacific margin of the Antarctic Peninsula. Four main glacial depositional systems have been identified. Geophysical surveys were carried out during these two projects The cores collected in this area characterise the sediment drifts as composed by fine-grained, poorly-sorted sediments, sourced from turbidity currents generated on the continental slope. To elucidate the role of dispersal and redistribution of sediments by bottom currents, three one-year long bottom current records in the area of the mound 7 were collected as well as nine CTD measurements collected in the same area . It is worthwhile noting the importance of this data set, constituting the first current measurements available in the Pacific margin of the Antarctic Peninsula. The aim of this work threefold: to infer which are the major large scale processes that govern bottom current regime, to understand the Bottom Boundary Layer (BBL) dynamics, and to assess the potential for resuspension induced by the measured currents.

During the XIII and XIV Italian Antarctic expeditions (1997/98, 1998/99), 18 rocks have been sampled within the aim of the international CRP project in southern Victoria Land. They include intrusive, subvolcanic, volcanic and metamorphic rocks. The investigated regions are within Taylor Glacier ST 57-60/5 and Ross Island ST 57-60/6* USGS sheets. Project: Cape Roberts Project.

During the XXVI and XXVII Italian Antarctic expeditions (2010/11, 2011/12), 668 rocks have been sampled within the aim of the project "Geological continental markers of Cenozoic climate changes in Victoria Land, Antarctica" in northern Victoria Land. They include intrusive, subvolcanic, volcanic, metamorphic and sedimentary rocks. The investigated regions are within Cape Hallett SS 58-60/2, Coulman Island SS 58-60/6, Mount Joyce SS 55-57/16, Mount Melbourne SS 58-60/9, Mount Murchison SS 58-60/5 and Relief Inlet SS 58-60/13 USGS sheets.

During the XVIII Italian Antarctic expedition (2002/03), 63 rocks have been sampled within the aim of the project "Geological mapping of Victoria Land" in northern and southern Victoria Land. They include intrusive, subvolcanic, volcanic, metamorphic and sedimentary rocks and sands. The investigated regions are within Convoy Range ST 57-60/1, Freyberg Mountains SS 58-60/1, Mount Joyce SS 55-57/16, Mount Melbourne SS 58-60/9, Reeves Névé SS 55-57/12 and Sequence Hills SS 55-57/8 USGS sheets.

SEDANO Project aim to understand the origin of the glacial depositional systems found offshore the Pacific margin of the Antarctic Peninsula. Four main glacial depositional systems have been identified. Geophysical surveys were carried out during these two projects The cores collected in this area characterise the sediment drifts as composed by fine-grained, poorly-sorted sediments, sourced from turbidity currents generated on the continental slope. To elucidate the role of dispersal and redistribution of sediments by bottom currents, three one-year long bottom current records in the area of the mound 7 were collected as well as nine CTD measurements collected in the same area . It is worthwhile noting the importance of this data set, constituting the first current measurements available in the Pacific margin of the Antarctic Peninsula. The aim of this work threefold: to infer which are the major large scale processes that govern bottom current regime, to understand the Bottom Boundary Layer (BBL) dynamics, and to assess the potential for resuspension induced by the measured currents.

SEDANO Project aim to understand the origin of the glacial depositional systems found offshore the Pacific margin of the Antarctic Peninsula. Four main glacial depositional systems have been identified. Geophysical surveys were carried out during these two projects The cores collected in this area characterise the sediment drifts as composed by fine-grained, poorly-sorted sediments, sourced from turbidity currents generated on the continental slope. To elucidate the role of dispersal and redistribution of sediments by bottom currents, three one-year long bottom current records in the area of the mound 7 were collected as well as nine CTD measurements collected in the same area . It is worthwhile noting the importance of this data set, constituting the first current measurements available in the Pacific margin of the Antarctic Peninsula. The aim of this work threefold: to infer which are the major large scale processes that govern bottom current regime, to understand the Bottom Boundary Layer (BBL) dynamics, and to assess the potential for resuspension induced by the measured currents.

SEDANO Project aim to understand the origin of the glacial depositional systems found offshore the Pacific margin of the Antarctic Peninsula. Four main glacial depositional systems have been identified. Geophysical surveys were carried out during these two projects The cores collected in this area characterise the sediment drifts as composed by fine-grained, poorly-sorted sediments, sourced from turbidity currents generated on the continental slope. To elucidate the role of dispersal and redistribution of sediments by bottom currents, three one-year long bottom current records in the area of the mound 7 were collected as well as nine CTD measurements collected in the same area . It is worthwhile noting the importance of this data set, constituting the first current measurements available in the Pacific margin of the Antarctic Peninsula. The aim of this work threefold: to infer which are the major large scale processes that govern bottom current regime, to understand the Bottom Boundary Layer (BBL) dynamics, and to assess the potential for resuspension induced by the measured currents.