Ottaiano, Mena

The Osservatorio Vesuviano (OV), section of the Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia (INGV), is the oldest volcanological observatory worldwide, dating back to 1841. It is a public research institute in the fields of geophysics and volcanology and carries out the surveillance of Neapolitan active volcanoes. Public outreach activities are also carried out. The main aim of public outreach activities is to improve the volcanic risk knowledge and awareness among people living in high volcanic risk areas near the city of Naples. In its historical site, on Vesuvius, a museum has been established, with a permanent exhibition, entitled “Vesuvius: 2000 years of observations”. The museum preserves valuable collections of rocks and minerals, historical scientific instruments, books and paintings. The exhibition, due to a strong cooperation between OV and the Italian Civil Protection Department, brings the visitor along a pathway through the world of volcanoes, in particular Vesuvius. Visitors, guided by a very skilled staff, are more than 10,000 / year and are mostly school groups.

The museum of Vesuvius Observatory was created through the enlargement and updating of a permanent exhibition, set up in 2000 with the aim of make citizens aware of volcanic phenomena, volcanic hazard and surveillance of active volcanoes in high risk areas, such as Naples and surroundings. The museum is located into the historical building of the Vesuvius Observatory, the first volcanological observatory in the world, currently part of the National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology (INGV). In the museum the dominant theme is Vesuvius: scientific issues are strictly interlaced with historical, archaeological and literary topics. The exhibition path goes from the presentation of volcanic hazard to volcanological methodologies used to define the eruptive history of a volcano. It traces the eruptive history of Somma-Vesuvius pointing out the most famous eruptions of 79 AD and 1944. Volcanic products are also displayed. The path is enriched by the exhibition of historical documents as the geological map of Somma–Vesuvius by Johnston-Lavis and copies of Ercolano and Pompeii casts. Also historical scientific instruments are shown, including the first electromagnetic Palmieri seismograph. The tour ends with a practical experience of simulation of an earthquake. Since the year 2000 checking of visiting public was carried out. This work presents statistics related to the public of the museum in the years 2005 - 2009. The monthly occurrence of visitors, visitors origin, category of visitors (distinguishing among schools, universities, groups and others) percentage, amount of visitors during weekdays and holidays are presented. Statistics put in evidence that the audience is mostly made up of school groups, coming from the Campania region preferentially in the months of April and May. The accurate identification of the public allows the museum staff to arrange a tour tailored for different types of visitors, enhancing the quality of the communication.

The Vesuvius Observatory, first volcanological observatory in the world, was built in 1841 by King Ferdinand II of Bourbon. It is now the Naples section of the National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology (INGV). Since its foundation it has been not only a reference point for national and international scientific community, but also a place of information and dissemination for the population in the field of research and monitoring of volcanic phenomena. Always museum activities, guided tours through the collections of scientific instruments, rocks and minerals have been carried out in it. Since 2000 scientific and historical collections located into the old building of Vesuvius Observatory have been organized in the exhibition "Vesuvius: 2000 years of observations", which describes the eruptive history of Somma-Vesuvius, with the aim of providing updated information about monitoring of active volcanoes, on eruptive phenomena and related hazards, educating the population of areas exposed to volcanic hazards. The museum path is targeted to public of any geographical origin and cultural background and could be considered a journey through the history of volcanology from the beginning until the present day. In the exhibition, Vesuvius is the backdrop to an exhibition in which purely scientific elements coexist with historical, archaeological, literary, artistic aspects, thanks to the support of images, documents such as the geological map of Henry James Johnston-Lavis and the book "Campi Flegrei" by William Hamilton, specimens of rocks and minerals and old scientific instruments, used in the past for monitoring volcanic activity, including the first electromagnetic seismograph made by Luigi Palmieri. The first part of this work is focussed on the description of the existing exhibition. Since 2000 the statistical survey of the public of the museum has been carried out through an evaluation procedure form. The findings relate to the monthly and annual attendance, geographical origin and kind of visitors. In the second part of this work results for the five years from 2005 to 2009 are described. The characterization of different audiences in the museum means that, from time to time, the path of the visit could be arranged according to the expectations and needs of visitors; in this context, the museum educator plays the delicate role of mediator, with accurate language, between the contents of the museum and those who interact with it.

Il museo dell'Osservatorio Vesuviano, rinnovato nel 2000, nasce con l’obiettivo di informare la popolazione sui fenomeni vulcanici, sui pericoli connessi e sulla sorveglianza dei vulcani attivi in aree ad alto rischio; è situato nella sede storica dell’Osservatorio Vesuviano, il primo Osservatorio vulcanologico del mondo, attualmente sezione dell’Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia. Il percorso museale ha inizio con la presentazione delle diverse tipologie eruttive e dei fenomeni a esse associati e quindi dei pericoli per l’uomo e i manufatti. Si ripercorre la storia eruttiva del Somma-Vesuvio soffermandosi sulle eruzioni più note del 79 d.C. e del 1944, e sulle metodologie adottate dai vulcanologi per ricostruire la storia eruttiva di un vulcano attraverso lo studio dei suoi prodotti. Inoltre, sono esposti i prodotti delle eruzioni effusive ed esplosive, e i minerali che si formano in ambiente vulcanico. Il percorso è arricchito da documenti storici di notevole interesse vulcanologico quali: la carta vulcanologica di Henry James Johnston-Lavis e il volume “Campi Flegrei” di William Hamilton (in visione la riproduzione anastatica). Un altro tema portante della mostra riguarda il monitoraggio dei vulcani attivi. Sono esposti gli strumenti scientifici storici utilizzati per la sorveglianza, tra cui il primo sismografo del mondo costruito nel 1856 da Luigi Palmieri, direttore dell’Osservatorio Vesuviano dal 1855 al 1896. Una sala ospita monitor collegati in tempo reale alla sezione “segnali sismici” del sito web dell’Osservatorio Vesuviano. Si propongono inoltre filmati tratti da modelli fisico-matematici di simulazioni di eruzioni esplosive per la definizione degli scenari attesi in caso di eruzione. Infine, si affronta il problema del rischio mediante pannelli informativi sul piano Nazionale di emergenza al fine di promuovere atteggiamenti adeguati in caso di necessità. Gli strumenti utilizzati sono video, pannelli, webcam, internet. Nel rapporto sono presentati i dati statistici relativi al pubblico del museo nell’anno 2005.