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Na razini Europske unije (www.obzoreuropa.hr - Obzor Europa i prethodni okvirni programi EU za istraživanja i inovacije) ističe se da su istraživanja i inovacije ključni za suočavanje s izazovima današnjice. Pri tome su posebno važna dva cilja: otvaranje znanosti i inovacija prema društvu i podizanje interesa za znanost među učenicima uz poticanje karijera u STEM područjima. U tim područjima imamo veliki deficit stručnjaka, od nastavničkih kadrova, inženjerskih, znanstveno-istraživačkih do strukovnih zanimanja. Znanstveno obrazovanje čini temelj za postignuće tih ciljeva. Kada govorimo o fizici koja čini jezgru znanstvenog obrazovanja u STEM područjima, možemo govoriti o uvođenju novih metoda poučavanja ali i o uvođenju fizike u nastavu drugih predmeta ili izvan okvira formalnog obrazovanja. Važna uloga nastavnika fizike u budućnosti je pospješiti znanstvenu komunikaciju koja povezuje suvremenu znanost i tehnologije sa građanima, doprinoseći znanstvenoj pismenosti društva. Nastavnike fizike treba sustavno upoznati s metodama popularizacije znanosti i znanstvene komunikacije u fizici, pokazati kako primijeniti demonstracijske pokuse i nove medije u popularizaciji fizike te kako teme suvremene fizike i s primjenama iz realnog života uvesti u obrazovni proces. Poseban naglasak se stavlja na kreativno i inovativno učenje pri čemu učenike potičemo na aktivno učenje u okviru kojeg razvijaju i koriste svoje sposobnosti. Pri tome ih ohrabrujemo prema karijerama u STEM područjima. No i ako će karijere imati u drugim područjima, znanstveno obrazovanje im je važno jer se obučavaju vještinama potrebnim da bi aktivno sudjelovali u društvu. Izazovi današnjice kao što su klimatske promjene, izvori energije, sigurnost građana i zdravlje povlače potrebu da građani razumiju temeljne znanstvene koncepte i suvremene tehnologije.

Područje Sjevernog Velebita poznato je po razvijenim krškim oblicima, uključujući duboke speleološke objekte. Aktivna tektonika, glacijalna razdoblja i izloženost atmosferskim uvjetima utjecali su na koroziju stijena i razvoj krša na ovim područjima.Osim analize stijena i razvijenog reljefa, rezultati analize sedimenata iz speleoloških objekata također mogu doprinijeti razumijevanju njihovog nastanka i geoloških procesa na užem području. Spoznaja raznolikosti stijena, geoloških struktura, minerala i fosila doprinose georaznolikosti područja, dok su speleološki objekti izuzetni i značajni primjeri geolokaliteta čije je očuvanje od neizmjerne znanstvene i ekološke važnosti. U svrhu istraživanja odabrane su dvije jame s područja Sjevernog Velebita, jama Nedam na Hajdučkim i Rožanskim kukovima, te Ledena jama u Lomskoj dulibi. Oba spomenuta područja su od velikog geomorfološkog značaja zbog specifično razvijenog reljefa i krških oblika. Jama Nedam drugi je najdublji speleološki objekt u Hrvatskoj s dubinom od 1335 m, te se u njenoj neposrednoj blizini nalaze i ostale duboke jame: Lukina jama – Trojama (-1431 m), Slovačka jama (-1324 m), jama Velebita (-1026 m) i dr. Jama Nedam zanimljiva je zbog izmjene uskih meandara i širokih vertikala, te specifičnog nepristupačnog terena Hajdučkih kukova gdje joj je smješten ulaz. Ledena jama smještena je u glacijalnoj dolini Lomska duliba, okružena visokim planinskim vrhovima, a svoju specifičnost krije u debelom sloju leda prisutnom tijekom cijele godine na dubini od 50 do 90 metara. Jedan od ciljeva ovog istraživanja bio je utvrđivanje prisutnih stratigrafskih jedinica i njihovih kontakata u jami Nedam, te utvrđivanje stratigrafske jedinice na ulaznim dijelovima Ledene jame. Uzroci koji pripadaju istim stratigrafskim jedinicama u obje jame su međusobno i uspoređeni. Drugi cilj istraživanja bio je mineraloška analiza sedimenata iz obje jame, te njihova usporedba. Ovisno o veličini frakcije, provedene su različite analize u svrhu dobivanja što iscrpnijih informacija o mineralnom sastavu i mogućoj provenijenciji sedimenata. Uzorci su prikupljeni tijekom speleološke ekspedicije ˝Nedam 2020.˝ u organizaciji Speleološkog odsjeka PDS Velebit, Komisije za speleologiju Hrvatskog planinarskog saveza te Nacionalnog parka Sjeverni Velebit.

Znanstveno (STEM) obrazovanje je ključni pokretač razvoja društva 21. stoljeća. STEM, odnosno šire STEAM područja su osnova zanimanja 21. stoljeća koja značajno mijenjaju tržište rada, a za koje obrazovni sustavi nisu prilagođeni. Europska komisija ističe da se EU suočava s problemom manjka znanstveno obrazovanih ljudi na svim razinama društva što rezultira značajnim deficitom STEM stručnjaka. Zato je odmah potrebno proširiti mogućnosti znanstvenog obrazovanja u formalnom, neformalnom i informalnom okruženju. Kao jedno od središnjih područja koje čini temelje STEM znanja i vještina je fizika koju interdisciplinarno povezujemo s drugim STEM područjima. Prikazat ćemo kako se razvijaju i u praksi demonstriraju suvremeni obrazovni sadržaji namijenjeni predškolskoj djeci i učenicima od 1. do 5. razreda osnovne škole. Pri tome se djeca upoznavaju s konceptima znanstvene metode i znanstvenog zaključivanja, temeljnim fizikalnim konceptima ali i sa suvremenim temama znanosti i tehnologije – onime što će možda nekima od njih biti buduće zanimanje. Ključno je da se izlaganjem djece u ranoj dobi ovim tematikama pobuđuje rani interes za STEM područja.

Caves formed in karst terrains are often trapping big amounts of different kinds of sediments. Cave sediments can be very useful for the determination of conditions and processes that were present at the time of their deposition. They are usually well preserved so they can give us a lot of i nformation about changing of the conditions over a long period (sometimes even over a few million years). One of the key methods that can provide us with a deeper insight into the complex karst systems is magnetic susceptibility, which shows the magnetism of measured material. Magnetic susceptibility measuring allows recognition of iron-rich minerals (together with their concentration and volume), classification of different types of materials and a better understanding of tectonic events. This is also particularly important in the context of exploration of karst waters that are important from the aspect of vulnerable karst ecosystems and strategic reserves of drinking water. In this research, two caves were chosen for sediment analysis. Both caves are located in the northern part of Velebit mountain, named Nedam and Ledena jama. Nedam is Croatia's fourth deepest pit with a depth of 1021 m. Ledena jama, is 536 m deep pit that is significant by the perennial ice between depths of 50 and 160 m, and is located in a paleoglacier valley. Nedam is located on steeper and more inaccessible karst terrain. The entrances are at different altitudes – at 1420 m for Nedam, and at 1235 m for Ledena jama. That altitude difference and different terrain morphology (paleoglacier valley vs. steep karst), suggest that interesting differences in the sediments studied may be present. Sediment samples were taken at 50 m depth in Ledena jama, and at 100 m depth in Nedam. Preliminary magnetic measurements were performed using the SM30 instrument (ZH instruments). The additional analyzes made on the sediment samples were the determination of mineralogical composition – identification of clay minerals by X-ray diffraction analysis, separation of light and heavy mineral fraction, and observing under the microscope. Magnetic research provides complementary data to these methods. From this analyzes, we can deduce the province of the sediments, and some conditions that were present during their deposition and terrain formation. The mineral composition of the samples from both pits was compared. This work was done in collaboration with Northern Velebit National Park, Krasno (project Exploration of the deep pits of the Northern Velebit National Park), Department of Geology, Faculty of Science, University of Zagreb and Speleological Society Velebit, Zagreb.

Neformalno STEM obrazovanje kroz provedbu izvanškolskih edukativnih aktivnosti provodi se s ciljem jačanja vještina primjenjivih na suvremenom tržištu rada. Redovito uključuje multidisciplinarni pristup, usvajanje i primjenu znanja, razvoj vještina, stavova, odgovornosti i samostalnosti (kompetencija) u različitim STEM područjima, aktivno sudjelovanje polaznika u praktičnim STEM aktivnostima i rješavanje različitih STEM izazova primjenjivih u svakodnevnom životu, uz sigurno i pravilno korištenje opreme i alata.

The topic of climate change is one of the fronts of scientific research in the 21st century. A special focus of speleological research is the discovery of records of climate change in caves. However, the question arises as to the impact of climate change on the conditions of speleological research and on the hydrological dynamics in karst. Extreme weather conditions around the world have become more frequent. That is why we need to define new standards of speleological research. New recommendations to the speleological community should include methods for monitoring, collecting and analyzing climate data for risk assessment purposes. Analyzes of hydrological extremes and other climate-related processes in karst and caves are of interest to the wider community. We will highlight examples from the Dinaric Karst in Croatia (deep pits, hydrologically active caves, caves with ice).

Izvanučionička nastava dokazano je jedan od najučinkovitijih i učenicima najdražih oblika suvremene nastave. Uspješnost obrazovnih sustava je u direktnoj vezi sa satnicom terenske nastave. Izlazak u prirodu, nacionalne parkove, muzeje, istraživačke laboratorije predstavlja jedinstven doživljaj za motiviranje i inspiriranje djece i kao učinkovit način za stjecanje trajnih znanja i vještina.

The aim of the research is to contribute the knowledge of surface and underground karst relief in the area of West Medvednica Mt.

Emission of radon (as radioactive gas) within the karst underground appears to be a health hazard in show caves, but its origin from the deeper Earth’s crust without any surface input, makes it eligible for the reconstruction of cave ventilation patterns based on the spatiotemporal variation of its concentration. We conducted integrated measurements of radon concentrations at several locations in Modrič Cave – shallow horizontal show cave located in the foothill of Velebit Mountain (Croatia). Measurements were performed by means of passive SSNTD LR115 type II detectors (Dosirad, France) from 2018 and are still ongoing. The detectors were exposed from July to October 2018, from October 2018 to March 2019, from March to July 2019 and from October 2019 to March 2020, which covers summer-autumn, autumn-spring and spring-summer periods. The highest radon concentrations were measured in summer-autumn period and they were 2.8 ± 0.6 times (in average) higher than in the autumn-spring period. In right passage of Modrič Cave, the radon concentrations were usually higher than in the left passage and this difference was statistically significant (p=1.3·10-5, df =33) at the significance level of 0.05. Presumably, the reason is different fissure architecture of the overlying bedrock. The highest radon concentration of 10.6 ± 1.1 kBq/m3 was measured in summer-autumn period of 2018. Observed high radon concentrations during this period are indicator of poor cave ventilation caused by decreasing differences between cave and outside temperature during the late summer/early autumn. For better insight in this topic, the regular three months periods of exposure of passive detectors were established from March 2020, and, in addition, continuous radon measurements in both channels are performed by using semiconductor detector TSR3 (Tesla company, Czech Republic).

Caves formed in karst cavities are often trapping big amounts of different kinds of sediments. Cave sediments can be very useful for the determination of conditions and processes that were present at the time of their deposition. In this research two caves where chosen for sediment analysis.

Natural processes of sudden rockfall, other than water erosion, frost weathering and temperature change were observed in Dinaric karst.

Karst is a particular type of landscape created by the dissolving action of water on carbonate bedrock. Karst landforms include sinkholes, caves and extensive groundwater systems that are valuable freshwater resources. These terrains are extremely vulnerable to contamination and are highly sensitive to anthropogenic activities. The contaminant easily enters the karst aquifer and, usually without effective filtration and self- purification processes, rapidly spreads through the complex network of fractures and conduits. Protection, as well as proper and balanced management of karst water resources, may only be assured if it is founded on a thorough understanding of the karst phenomena gained through interdisciplinary research. This lecture presents the results of the recent studies of the karst that included various scientific disciplines. Special emphasis will be on the Croatian karst and application of isotopic methods that complement conventional geophysical and hydrogeology methods. Some of the possible applications of stable isotopes of water in karst studies are for exploring recharge processes and reservoir mixing, determining residence times and storage in non-conduit parts of karst systems, estimating mean recharge area elevations, prediction of contaminants movement, etc. Direct observation and sampling in caves and usage of stable isotopes made possible the grey-box modeling approach to karst systems. Contrary to conventional black-box modeling, the new approach enables gaining more detailed information about system’s dimensions, qualitative characteristics of its boundaries, groundwater flow paths, as well as linkages, stores, capacities, and throughput volumes. The use of isotopic methods in the research of karst is just one of the examples of incorporating new experimental methods into karst exploration. In the future, we expect inclusion of even newer methods and disciplines into these highly demanding investigations.

Air and water dynamics observed in the deep caves of Northern Velebit Mt. present example of coupling effect of various processes in karst environment. Cave exploration provides unique opportunity to separately observe and study various processes and their interaction directly in the karst underground (in situ). Simplified model of cave air circulation and temperature profile/gradient modified by circulation characteristics is presented. Inward air circulation during cold weather and absence of significant circulation during hot weather produce significant imbalance in the cave T and surface mean annual T. Lower cave T is manifested by snow and ice accumulation in the parts of the cave affected by chimney effect. Ice melting and accumulating absorbs or releases significant flow of energy. Therefore, ice accumulation acts as an efficient thermal buffer which preserves cave T in the zone of accumulation at 0 °C. In that way cave acts as a cold air trap due to its specific morphology, producing negative thermal anomaly in karst massif. Specific cave climate characteristics can also alter karst groundwater temperature and dynamics. Air dynamics which effectively cools cave atmosphere and produces ice accumulation also cools water flowing through the cave and recharging karst aquifer system. It is possible that cumulative effect of cold air trapping induced by caves morphology has substantial effect on lowering T within karst massifs. Water at karst springs is usually considered to reflect average annual T of its watershed. Presented mechanism can effectively lower groundwater T in comparison to surface T, as can be seen on vadose water flows in the Lukina jama-Trojama cave. Results of the presented study show that air and water circulation characteristics in karst underground can be significantly altered by morphological characteristics of caves.

Some of the fundamental goals of the 21st century Europe are the conservation of biodiversity and geodiversity, preserving water quality for drinking as well as habitat and the raising the quality of education through problem-oriented and field teaching related to this goals.

Cave sediments and speleothems are valuable archives of past environmental conditions due to their large geographic extent and extensive time scales. They contain geochemical and paleoenvironmental data and therefore represent one of the front lines in research of paleo processes in paleo environments. The Dinaric karst of Croatia, characterized by complex and deep caves, is a promising location for this kind of research. The complexity and large dimensions open the need for the introduction of fast and inexpensive methods that can detect locations and patterns for further detailed research. We aim to introduce the relatively new method of magnetic susceptibility (MS) in environmental research in Croatian karst, in addition to usually used geochemical and mineralogical methods. First such measurements in Croatia were performed by Frančišković- Bilinski (2008) on the samples from Kupa River watershed. Preliminary measurements showed the highest values of magnetic susceptibility in the lower flow of Mrežnica river and increased values of magnetic susceptibility in the upper flow of the Dobra River. Elevated values of MS, thus elevated concentrations of heavy metals, could be of natural or anthropogenic causes, or sometimes combination of them. In deep pits of Croatian karst most of elevated values are results of natural processes, e.g. in Lukina jama pit, where largest number of element anomalies are present. In Lukina jama a whole series of elements, including many heavy metals, show extreme values (Pb, Cu, Zn, Mn, Ni, Cr, Co, Ba, K, Mg, Li, Be, Al, U, Si, Ti, W, Fe, As). We aim to determine those processes, which caused such elevated concentrations of particular elements and in such way to reconstruct paleoenvironmental conditions. Our current investigations aim to investigate changes of MS and elemental concentrations with depth, which we are studying on examples of two deep pits – Slovačka jama pit and Cave system Velebita. The most recent study was performed by Kamenski (2018) in three profiles in Slovačka jama pit and in two profiles in Kita Gaćešina-Draženova puhaljka pit, where magnetic susceptibility was measured. Obtained MS results were compared with mineral composition, obtained by X-ray powder diffraction (XRD). It was concluded that samples with values higher than 50x10-5 SI contain minerals which contain metals, e.g. iron, aluminum, etc. Samples with higher metal content have proportionally higher MS values. Sediments with prevailing carbonate minerals and quartz are diamagnetic and have lower MS values, lower than 40x10-5 SI. For full understanding of precipitation processes of cave sediments, a series of additional MS measurements are necessary along the whole cave/pit length/depth. Then, on locations with large MS variation sampling should be performed and later elemental and mineralogical content analyzed. Rererences: Frančišković-Bilinski, S. (2008). Mineralogical Magazine 72, 1, 43-48. Kamenski, A. (2018). Diploma thesis, Faculty of Mining, Geology and Petroleum Engineering, University of Zagreb.

The focus of education from an early age (based on new insights into brain development)to science education (STEM or STEAM) is becoming crucial to the development of the modern society. In line with European Comissions strategies, since 2017 we have started a series of activities aimed to introducting modern scientific education from an early age with a focus on educating participants in the educational process.

Speleološki objekti Dinarskog krša sa svojim brojnim značajkama predstavljaju izvrsnu podlogu za interdisciplinarna znanstvena istraživanja te za razvoj edukativnih sadržaja i programa za različite ciljane skupine. U okviru ovog rada predstavit ćemo skup istraživačkih aktivnosti koje možemo ponuditi ustanovama koje upravljaju zaštićenim područjima kako bi unaprijedili znanje o krškim fenomenima kojima upravljaju, poboljšali njihovu zaštitu te novim i zanimljivim podacima upotpunili edukativne materijale.

Nacionalni park Paklenica karakteriziraju vrijedni geomorfološki fenomeni među kojima se ističu špilje i jame. Posjetiteljima je za turistički posjet otvorena Manita peć kao primjer velebitske špilje. No duboke jame koje imaju značajne geomorfološke i hidrogeološke značajke kao što je ponor na Bunovcu nisu na odgovarajući način prezentirane. U okviru ovog rada predstavit ćemo neke od tih značajki te definirati aktivnosti potrebne za adekvatno vrednovanje, zaštitu i uključivanje takvih objekata u edukativne i turističke programe nacionalnog parka. Pašnjak Bunovac nalazi se na jugoistočnoj strani padina južnog Velebita ispod vrhova Malovan (1708 m) i Segestin (1725 m). Ponor na Bunovcu je vertikalan hidrološki aktivan speleološki objekt koji je istraživan u periodu od 1975. do 1977. godine (Speleološki odsjek PDS Velebit). Tijekom speleološke ekspedicije "Bunovac 1977" dosegnuto je dno jame na dubini od 534 m te je od tada niz godina bio najdublja istražena jama u ovom dijelu Europe. Na dnu jame nalazi se sifonsko jezero promjera 2, 5 x 1, 5 m koje nije dalje istraživano. U Ponoru na Bunovcu planiraju se izvesti sustavna speleološka i znanstvena istraživanja. Cilj tih istraživanja bio bi izraditi precizniji nacrt jame, foto i video dokumentaciju geoloških posebnosti te izvesti interdisciplinarna znanstvena istraživanja s ciljem razumijevanja geoloških i fizikalno-kemijskih procesa koji su doveli do formiranja jame i sadašnjih uvjeta u njoj. Poseban naglasak bi bio na razumijevanje kretanja vode u podzemlju, odnosno hidrogeološke funkcije ponora. Ova istraživanja će rezultirati materijalima koji će biti podloga edukativnih programa. Preduvjet da bi se ova istraživanja provela je potpuno razminiranje Bunovca koji sa svojim prirodnim značajkama i izuzetnom lokacijom podno vrhova Velebita može postati jedna od turistički najatraktivnijih lokacija u Hrvatskoj.

Posebnost Nacionalnog parka Sjeverni Velebit, odnosno Dinarskog krša su duboke jame sa svojim brojnim geomorfološkim, hidrogeološkim i biološkim značajkama. Duboke jame su vertikalni objekti u koje mogu ući samo speleolozi koristeći odgovarajuće speleološke tehnike. Stoga je ideja da se u jami Varnjači, koju je moguće prirediti za posjetitelje, uredi poučna speleološka staza koju bi pratio niz edukativnih sadržaja o dubokim jamama Sjevernog Velebita.

Moderni prezentacijski koncepti kreću od interesa i potreba pojedinih skupina posjetitelja. Brojna znanstvena istraživanja nedvojbeno pokazuju da za razliku od klasičnog načina prezentacije (poučne table, brošure i sl.), sadržaji prezentirani na zanimljiv, neobičan, neočekivan i često interaktivan način uz prisutnost drugih elemenata koji su nekada bili nezamislivi (kafići, restorani, igraonice za djecu, športski sadržaji, znanstvene i umjetničke radionice i brojni drugi projekti) imaju neusporedivo veći edukativni učinak, posebice u smjeru stjecanja trajnih i primjenjivih znanja što je jedna od glavnih problematika našeg i svjetskih obrazovnih sustava. Da bi se geobaština pomakla sa margina u odnosu na druga područja, potrebno je napraviti veće iskorake izmjenom kako načina prezentacije tako i mijenjanjem načina suradnje sa stručnjacima koji stvaraju nove poučne sadržaje. Kada govorimo o geobaštini krša, njena specifičnost je i u tome što postoji visoka razina neistraženosti kao temeljnih prirodnih pojava (npr. nisu ni inventarizirane sve prirodne pojave kojima se upravlja) tako i razumijevanja procesa koji su doveli do njihovog formiranja, ali i koji ih mijenjaju i mijenjat će ih pod utjecajem klimatskih promjena i prirodnih geoloških procesa. No ta razina neistraženosti otvara velike mogućnosti generiranja dinamičnih edukativnih sadržaja koji se mogu neprestano dopunjavati kroz kontinuiranu suradnju sa stručnjacima. Što je bolje za reklamu i privlačenje posjetitelja nego da se periodički objavljuju nova otkrića. Dinamičnost sadržaja posjetitelje privlači da više puta posjete lokaciju, a edukativne ustanove motivira da učenicima ili studentima pruže direktan uvid u najnovija otkrića. Otkriće nečeg novog do tada nepoznatog, neobičnog i neočekivanog je nešto što uz odgovarajuće prezentacijske tehnike učenicima i studentima može pobuditi interes kako za geobaštinu tako i za prirodne znanosti.

Fractal analysis addresses an important problem in the study of nature. Natural phenomena are complex, and their understanding requires many years of scientific research. There are no methods that can be described quantitatively in a faster way. Determining the fractal dimension is one of the prospective techniques if appropriate a way to connect with geological, hydrological and physical processes in nature. Dimensions in the case of regular geometric figures, such as lines, squares and cubes integer: 1, 2, 3. However, in nature there are structures (fractals) that do not have the whole spatial dimension. The technique presented in this work is aimed at the determination the fractal dimension and analysis of the longest cave of Dinaric Karst (length is 32 km). For the Cave system Kita Gaćešina (Velebit Mt., Croatia) fractal dimension up to 2.4 was determined, which confirms that the network of cave channels has a fractal structure. This is a significant result that requires further interpretation in framework of geological studies.

Health tourism in Croatia has many opportunities for development, especially within protected areas, such as Nature Park Medvednica. Hidden in the woods of Medvednica Mt., the Brestovac Sanatorium (built in 1909) was, during the first half of the 20th century, one of the best tuberculosis care facilities in all of Europe. In the natural environment of Medvednica Mt., one of the biggest caves of Croatian karst is situated. It is over 7 km long Veternica Cave, known for its complex geological history, paleontological discoveries, signs of presence of Neanderthals and present animals – 18 species of bats were recorded. Since in the summer period, the first 380 m are open for tourists, the idea of staying in a cave for the purpose of speleotherapy is introduced. To consider this, it is necessary to explore the climate, geochemical and biological properties of the environment. At the same time, it should be determined whether the longer human presence in the cave has influence on the microclimatic properties. Within this work, we give an overview of the present knowledge and guidelines for further research.

Špiljski sustav Đulin ponor – Medvedica u Ogulinu je sa svojih 16 km jedan od najvećih špiljskih sustava u Hrvatskoj, a za grad Ogulin i njegovo područje ključan je zbog svoje hidrološke funkcije. Zbog nesustavnog praćenja stanja i nepostojanja jasnih planova upravljanja, kroz dulja vremenska razdoblja došlo je do ulaska velikih količina naplavina i otpada u Đulin ponor i ostale ulaze te njihovog nakupljanja unutar špiljskog sustava. Uslijed toga protok vode kroz Đulin ponor, odnosno špiljski sustav je trajno i bitno smanjen što tijekom hidroloških ekstrema dovodi do podizanja vode u kanjonu rijeke Gornja Dobra i poplava u gradu Ogulinu. Primarni ciljevi ove studije su povećanje protoka vode kroz špiljski sustav sanacijom postojećeg stanja, vađenjem naplavina - materijala i otpada iz špiljskog sustava i vanjskih ulaznih dijelova, postavljanje prepreke za ulaženje novih naplavina u špiljski sustav, uspostava monitoringa uz uređivanje pristupnog puta u Đulin ponor – jamski ulaz Badanj. Osim glavnog, primarnog cilja, ovaj elaborat ima i sekundarni cilj. To se odnosi se na uspješnost retencije da amortizira vodene valove uslijed velikih oborina i pritoka, a koji uzrokuju poplave u gradu Ogulinu. Sposobnost retencije za amortiziranje vodenih valova direktno će ovisiti o stanju kanala Špiljskog sustava Đulin ponor – Medvedica i njihovoj protočnosti.

Transformacija obrazovnog sustava polazi od dvije ključne komponente: reduciranja izbora tema koje djeca uče te razvoja metoda s naglaskom na istraživačku i problemski orijentiranu nastavu uz što više izvanučioničke nastave. Fizičari trebaju prirediti sadržaje prikladne za učenje od rane dobi. No, koje teme su važne? Odgovor je jasan – to su aktualne teme vezane uz razvoj znanosti i tehnologije. Ako se priča gradi oko takvih, uzbudljivih, intrigantnih i u pravilu još u potpunosti nerazjašnjenih tema, interes učenika je znatno veći. Primjer takve teme, koja je stavljena na margine aktualnog obrazovnog sustava, a predstavlja ogroman potencijal u razvoju novih tehnologija je fenomen supravodljivosti.

Modern education in Croatia tends to put central emphasis on competences within the scientific education (STEAM = Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics), as these knowledge and skills are the foundations of the 21st century jobs. Emphasis is placed on project teaching, out‐of‐class‐learning concept, and interdisciplinarity. It demands development and introduction of new teaching methods and contents related to the biggest problems in the world today, from local to global issues. Numerous researches show the effectiveness of the outdoor education as a part of out‐of‐class learning in which pupils and students interact with the real‐world experience in a natural environment. It is also well‐known that learning in natural environment affords a wide range of benefits: educational, health, cultural and social. Karst and caves are ideal locations that can serve as outdoor classrooms for learning about natural processes from various aspects but also for application of different knowledge and skills. But besides pupils and students as "end users" of education, it is important to prepare teachers for these new forms of teaching. For the needs of preparing out‐of‐ class geography and physics teaching projects in primary and secondary schools, we formed a working group of scientists and practitioners (geographers, physicists, experts in geography teaching methodology, experts in nature conservation) that developed a programme for teacher education and preparation. A key idea was to highlight the development of programs for formal education and, at the same time, encouraging scientific activities whose results can be included in these programs. We also addressed the importance of collaboration of higher education, schools and nature (cave) management service. This project was realized in cooperation between several institutions: Faculty of Science (UNIZG), Education and Teacher Training Agency, Public Institution for the Management of Geomorphologic Monuments of Nature "Cave Park Grabovača", Croatian Geographical Society and Croatian Geomorphological Society.

Nova aktivnost HFD-a je „Znanstveno (STEM) obrazovanje od rane dobi – prema suvremenom obrazovanju za zanimanja i građane 21. stoljeća“ . Današnji brzi razvoj umjetne inteligencije i automatizacija najavljuju budućnost u kojoj će roboti i softver značajno reducirati potrebu za ljudskim radnicima. Dok se otvara sve više radnih mjesta za zanimanja 21. stoljeća i samo u Europskoj uniji nedostaju milijuni stručnjaka u tom području, obrazovni sustavi educiraju za zanimanja prošlog stoljeća, a broj tih radnih mjesta pada. U Europskoj uniji je velika zabrinutost da su obrazovani sustavi zastarjeli i ne uvažavaju činjenicu da su ogromne količine aktualnih znanja dostupne učenicima putem informacijskih tehnologija. Način na koji se znanost i tehnologija uče ima malo poveznica sa načinom na koji se znanost radi ; znanost je prekrasna i zabavna, zahtijeva znatiželju, maštu i nezavisno razmišljanje. Zato je sukladno strategijama Europske komisije, znanstveno obrazovanje, posebice fiziku, potrebno uvesti od rane dobi u vrtiće i u razrednu nastavu, a suvremene fizikalne sadržaje uvoditi u predmetnu nastavu i međupredmetne sadržaje uz interdisciplinarno povezivanje. Znanost djeci otvara um čudima prirodnog svijeta, osposobljava ih kognitivnim i alatima za rješavanje problema koji će im koristiti u budućnosti. Motivacija i inspiracija su ključevi suvremenog obrazovanja. Glavni cilj treba biti da se već u ranoj dobi pobudi interes djece za fiziku i druga STEM područja. Potreban je izlazak iz razmišljanja u okvirima predmetne nastave fizike na cjelokupno formalno, neformalno i informalnog obrazovanje. Hrvatski fizičari kao znanstvenici i eksperti trebaju dati snažan poticaj suvremenom pristupu ranom učenju, djecu treba od rane dobi izložiti najaktualnijim temama današnje znanosti i tehnologije. Interferencija s neformalnim i informalnim obrazovanjem otvara brojne mogućnosti.

Moderni prezentacijski koncepti kreću od interesa i potreba pojedinih skupina posjetitelja. Brojna znanstvena istraživanja nedvojbeno pokazuju da za razliku od klasičnog načina prezentacije (poučne table, brošure i sl.), sadržaji prezentirani na zanimljiv, neobičan, neočekivan i često interaktivan način uz prisutnost drugih elemenata koji su nekada bili nezamislivi imaju neusporedivo veći edukativni učinak, posebice u smjeru stjecanja trajnih i primjenjivih znanja što je jedna od glavnih problematika našeg i svjetskih obrazovnih sustava. Predstavit ćemo neke konkretne ideje koje bi se mogle realizirati u NP Sjeverni Velebit, a koje bi se nadovezale na aktualne projekte i sadržaje poput Kuće Velebita. Diskutirat ćemo i koja su tehnička i kadrovska rješenja za to potrebna. Visoka razina neistraženosti krških fenomena Parka otvara brojne mogućnosti generiranja dinamičnih edukativnih sadržaja koji se mogu neprestano dopunjavati kroz kontinuiranu suradnju sa stručnjacima. Što je bolje za reklamu i privlačenje posjetitelja nego da se periodički objavljuju nova otkrića, ali i osmišljavaju programi koji pred posjetitelja postavljaju određene izazove. Izazove koji u njima pobuđuju znatiželju, potiču ih na samostalno istraživanje i učenje kako bi ostvarili cilj koji se pred njih postavi. Dinamičnost sadržaja posjetitelje privlači da više puta posjete lokaciju, a edukativne ustanove motivira da učenicima ili studentima pruže direktan uvid u najnovija otkrića ili ih izlože poticajnom okolišu. Otkriće nečeg novog do tada nepoznatog, neobičnog i neočekivanog je nešto što uz odgovarajuće prezentacijske tehnike učenicima i studentima može pobuditi interes kako za niz područja prirodnih znanosti.

We discuss application and perspectives of different methods in solid state research in the environmental and geological studies of speleothems and another cave sediments. The Croatian karst is mostly part of Dinaric karst, largest continuous karst landscape in Europe with many natural phenomena. It is specific in a way that at a relatively small area there are different climatic, geological, geomorphological and pedological zones and processes influencing speleogenesis, speleothem growth and composition. The differences analysis in the properties of speleothems between the sites therefore may be methods that detect proxy suitable for studying paleoclimatic and other environmental processes.

Natural tracers have been successfully used for decades to gather insight into dynamics of groundwater flow, to calculate residence times or to trace the origin of precipitation. Study of stable water isotopes, oxygen (18O, 16O) and hydrogen (1H, 2H), in solid and liquid phase, provide new data which expose water infiltration properties of Mt. Velebit's hydrological system.

Mt. Velebit is a 145 km long mountain in the Croatian Dinaric Karst lying between the Adriatic Sea, the Ličko Polje and the Gacko Polje. It has been the subject of many research due to complex hydrogeological conditions resulting from intensive neotectonics and long lasting processes of karstification. There are many unknowns in the functioning of the Mt. Velebit’s hydrological system. The discovery of vertical and up to 1431 m deep caves during the last decades gives us the opportunity to gather new data “in situ” regarding the system’s hydrology. We used stable water isotopes of oxygen (18O, 16O) and hydrogen (1H, 2H) as natural tracers to expose water infiltration properties of the system.

Od otkrića Lukine jame speleološka istraživanja svake godine dopunjuju slagalicu kompleksnih podzemnih krških fenomena Sjevernog Velebita. To pred Park postavlja izazove u vidu koordiniranja daljnjih znanstvenih i speleoloških aktivnosti od kojih se očekuju novi svjetski značajni rezultati, do zahtjevnog zadatka prezentacije tih fenomena i izrade interdisciplinarnih edukativnih programa. Osim što stvaraju nove atraktivne sadržaje koji se kroz edukativne programe mogu prezentirati posjetiteljima, speleološka i znanstvena istraživanja neprestano prikupljaju podatke i prate stanje u podzemlju koje je direktno ovisno o uvjetima na površini. Pitanja na koja se nastoji odgovoriti u okviru aktualnih istraživanja su koji je uzrok povišenih koncentracija teških metala i drugih elemenata na velikim dubinama, kakav je kemizam vode i njena interakcija sa stijenama i sedimentima, što se zbiva u vadoznoj i freatičkoj zoni i kakva je dinamika voda u podzemlju, koje je porijeklo i smjerovi kretanja tih voda. Prisutnost leda za koji postoje pretpostavke da se u jamama nalazi od zadnjeg malog ledenog doba u Europi i kojeg nalazimo na prema svjetskim mjerilima značajnim dubinama (preko 500 m dubine) otvara brojne mogućnosti istraživanja u okviru proučavanja klimatskih promjena i mikroklime jama. Uz brojne geomorfološke značajke dubokih jama Parka koje uključuju najdublje jame Hrvatske i cijelog Dinarskog krša uz svjetsku posebnost – preko pola kilometra dugačke vertikale te dvorane na velikim dubinama, ustanovljena je kompleksna geološka slika u kojoj su od središnjeg značaja velebitske vapnenačke breče, globalno značajan geološki fenomen koji je tema aktualnih geoloških studija. Ovo su samo neka od znanstvenih pitanja na kojima se uz podršku Parka do sada radilo i koja dugoročno mogu Park pozicionirati kao znanstveno-edukativni centar. UNESCO-va mreža geoparkova po svojoj definiciji je okvir koji spaja znanstvene i edukativne komponente i razvija mehanizme za njihov razvoj i implementaciju u programe i upravljanje. Zbog toga bi strateški cilj Parka trebao biti uključivanje u tu mrežu uz daljnje poticanje speleoloških i pratećih interdisciplinarnih znanstvenih istraživanja posebno usmjerenih na duboke jame i površinsku geologiju Parka.

Na području NP Sjeverni Velebit trenutno je poznato 137 sniježnica i ledenica - speleoloških objekata s trajnim naslagama snijega i leda. U dubokim jamama Sjevernog Velebita speleolozi su na dubinama u rasponu do gotovo 560 m dubine zabilježili ove naslage. Poznavanje geografske rasprostranjenosti i značajki sniježnica i ledenica važan je prinos proučavanju promjena u okolišu s naglaskom na klimatske promjene i varijacije.

An important role in the research of karst caves is to make strong and quantitative measures of their natural values through determination of geodiversity, geoheritage and legal protection. Caves in active quarries represent an additional challenge. One such example is the Cave in Tounj quarry, one of the longest (8487 m) and most important Croatian caves, characterized by numerous geological, geomorphological and biological values, that include underground lakes, various geomorphological forms, but most importantly, the rare phreatic speleothems which were likely produced during the late/postglacial warming period. The cave channels are a part of an underground conduit system, probably connected with the sinkholes of the Zagorska Mrežnica river and the springs of the Tounjčica river. We present the history of the exploration and an overview of its natural values with a focus on active processes, geological and geomorphological characteristics. Cave entrance opened in 1983 due to the mining blasts in the quarry. In 1986, Speleological section Velebit (Zagreb), started the explorations. During the last two decades, significant damages of the entrance parts of the cave were documented. A conflict of interests of different stakeholders (nature protection system, cavers, the management of quarry, local community) does not lead to a solution that is best for the cave. The aim our activities is to raise the knowledge of its geodiversity, first among the researchers, caving and scientific community and all levels of educational system.

One of the foundations of sustainable development, as well as nature and environment protection, should be better knowledge of geodiversity, which is one of the basis of the functioning and stability of ecosystems and protection of geologic, pedologic and geomorphological values. It is important to highlight values and importance of geodiversity and geoheritage of karst, which has, in recent decades, an increasing importance as a source of information about the history of the Earth. Numerous scientific studies clearly show that unlike conventional modes of presentation (educational panels, brochures, etc.), the contents presented in an interesting, unusual, unexpected and often interactive manner in the presence of other elements, that were once unimaginable, have much greater educational impact, particularly in the direction of the acquisition of permanent and applicable knowledge. When talking about the public awareness of the importance of karst phenomena, education is the most effective channel. The interdisciplinary nature of the research of karst is a framework suitable for the development of educational programs that can contribute in solving global problem: too few students are interested in the natural sciences. A large number of karst phenomena of Dinaric karst opens up numerous opportunities to generate dynamic educational programs that can be continuously upgraded through collaboration with researchers. What is better for “advertising” and attract attention but to periodically publish new discoveries. Programs should include challenges that arouse curiosity, encourage visitors to participate in research in order to achieve wisely defined goal. Periodical upgrading of presentation content with active research results, attracts visitors to repeatedly visit the location, and science educators to provide students with a direct insight into the latest discoveries in a stimulating environment. The new, unusual, unexpected discoveries are something that with proper presentation techniques can arouse the student interests in many areas of natural sciences.

Ledena jama (Ice shaft) is located in the SW part of Lomska duliba valley on Velebit Mt. It is a knee-formed vertical cave (shaft) consists of 536 m deep vertical passages and chambers interconnected with shorter narrower horizontal passages. The 50 m wide and 60 m long funnel-like entrance is located at the Lomska duliba valley bottom at elevation of 1235 m. Wide open entrance enables accumulation of snow and strong microclimate influence from the surface so entrance chamber acts as a cold trap. Despite of openness, due to the steep slopes of the entrance vertical passage it is shady and even during the summer most of the day protected from the direct sunlight. At the depth of 50 m there is a chamber bottom consist of snow, névé, firn and ice providing additional cooling effect. The snow is allochthones deposit that accumulates from outside the cave: directly from the precipitation and indirectly by sliding and collapsing from the steep slopes and some trees around the entrance. The névé, firn and ice are autogenic deposits forming from deposited snow and by freezing of percolating water. This infilling reaches the depth of 90 m and separates the entrance part from the rest of the vertical passages and chambers. The main factors affecting the accumulation of snow and ice are location (elevation), abundant precipitation with a lot of snow, and low air temperatures due to frequent temperature inversions in Lomska Duliba. Ledena jama in Lomska duliba is very promising site for research of ice cave microclimate and dynamics of ice-snow deposits so microclimate research started in 2012. The levels of snow and ice are also in the process of monitoring and variations were recorded. Its advantage for research is in easy access, large dimensions, and abundance of various deposits connected with different geomorphological processes. Air temperature variations (compared to surface values) indicate dynamic system that requires continuous data collection, observation and analyses. The plan for future research is to establish permanent meteorological station for measuring T, RH, air circulation and other various parameters in the area of Lomska duliba and in Ledena jama. There are also opportunities for ice, water and organic matter sampling and dating.

Osnovna ideja Centra za posjetitelje je prikaz svjetski značajnih prirodnih vrijednosti Nacionalnog parka Sjeverni Velebit (NPSV) koje posjetitelji ne mogu vidjeti uživo obilaskom Parka. Prezentirani sadržaji trebaju se graditi oko posebnosti NPSV, dakle onoga zbog čega posjetitelji dolaze u Park, a da ne mogu vidjeti drugdje. Naglasak je na atraktivnim i interaktivnim prikazima koji posjetitelju ostaju u sjećanju. Posjetitelj sa sobom može ponijeti suvenire i tiskane materijale, a o detaljima pojedinih pojava prikazanih u Centru može se upoznati i putem web stranica Centra. Takvi dodatni sadržaji su posebno važni učenicima i studentima koji nakon obilaska Centra i Parka mogu u okviru terenske i projektne nastave raditi prikaze onoga što su vidjeli i naučili.

Dinaric karst belt in Croatia is besides other karst phenomena, known for caves with permanent, perennial or seasonal ice, firn and snow deposits even there is not high mountain areas with glacial environments. It is also interesting that they occur on not so high but orographically isolated karst plateaus and mountains near the Adriatic coast. The main factors that control ice caves distribution and characteristics are elevation, karst topography, cave morphology and microclimate, and atmospheric circulation that transport humid air from Atlantic and Adriatic region as well as cold air from NE Europe and Siberia important for low air winter temperatures. The occurrence of ice caves is therefore limited to geomorphological region of Dinaric Mountain Belt. It is the area of karst plateaus, large karst depressions and mountains (1.000-1.831 m a. s. l.) between Pannonian and Adriatic region. Its higher zone includes mountains around and above 1500 m a. s. l. (Risnjak, Kapela, Plješivica, Dinara, Velebit and Biokovo) characterized by Df climate type (after Köppen–Geiger climate classification system) and periglacial environments with good potential for ice caves occurrence. Besides elevation, the abundant precipitation (2000-3900 mm/year) with high contribution of snow and large depressions with temperature inversion provide good conditions for the accumulation of ice and snow in karst dolines and caves. This area occupy 4.2% of total Croatian karst area with high density of caves. The most data about ice caves in this zone is from northern part of Velebit Mt. where cavers explored 150 caves that contains snow or/and ice deposits of various duration and forms. Even large vertical caves typical for North Velebit (like 1431 m deep Lukina jama-Trojama system) contains ice and firn deposits that spanning at depths between 50 m to almost 560 m below entrance level. In this area static, dynamic and statodynamic ice caves are present. According to the origin of ice, there are both types recorded: exogenic and endogenic. The second zone where ice caves occur is a hypsometrically lower area of karst plateaus and poljes, hills and lower mountains (1.000-1.500 m a. s. l.) of Gorski kotar and Lika regions with temperate humid climate (Cfb). Local microclimate is highly modified by the distribution of ridges and depressions like karst poljes and deep shady dolines. They retains colder air that allows accumulation of snow and ice in caves even during whole year. According to written records from the last two centuries, many ice caves in the past were source of ice for food conserving and preparation and some of them lost ice infilling that could be a sign of climate variations/changes. Recent research projects in several ice caves of Velebit and Risnjak Mts. focus on the microclimate, geomorphological processes, dating and isotope studies for obtaining information on climate changes in karst.

Područje dinarskih krških planina u Hrvatskoj sadrži veliki broj speleoloških objekata u kojima se javljaju stalni, povremeni ili sezonski snijeg, led i firn. Pored njih, veliki je broj spilja i jama u kojima tih naslaga danas nema, ali brojni su tragovi njihovog postojanja u prošlosti. Njihova rasprostranjenost i značajke otkrivaju geomorfološki indikatori: mikroreljefni oblici i podzemni sedimenti. Vrijedna su svjedočanstva istraživača iz nedavne prošlosti zapisana u člancima i knjigama. Poznavanje smanjivanja njihove geografske rasprostranjenosti važan je prinos proučavanju promjena u okolišu s naglaskom na klimatske promjene. Glavni čimbenici koji utječu na rasprostranjenost sniježnica i ledenica su: reljefne značajke prostora, speleomorfologija spilja i jama i njihove mikroklimatske značajke, te klima velikih geografskih cjelina. Većina spilja i jama sa snijegom i ledom javlja se u geomorfološkim regijama dinarskih krških planina, zaravni i polja u kršu nadmorskih visina u rasponu 1000-1831 m. Najviša zona, čija klima pogoduje trajnom zadržavanju snijega i leda u speleološkim objektima, obuhvaća planinska područja iznad 1500 m n. v. sa snježno-šumskom klimom (tip Df prema Köppen–Geigerovoj klimatskoj klasifikaciji) i periglacijalnim okolišnim uvjetima. Pored nadmorske visine, koja uvjetuje niže temperature zraka, na povoljne uvjete za zadržavanje snijega i leda u utječu obilne padaline s velikim udjelom snijega te brojne krške depresije s redovitim inverzijama temperature zraka. Ovo područje zauzima mali dio teritorija, no u njemu je značajan broj speleoloških objekata koji potencijalno imaju dobre uvjete za trajno zadržavanje snijega i leda. Najviše podataka za takve spilje i jame zasada imamo s područja sjevernog Velebita - njih 150 koje sadrže snijeg i led različitog trajanja i različitih svojstava. Čak su i u dubokima jamama na velikim dubinama, u rasponima od 50 do gotovo 560 m ispod razine ulaza, speleolozi zabilježili trajne naslage snijega i leda što je podatak značajan i u svjetskim mjerilima. Interesantno je da se snijeg i led zadržavaju u svim vrstama uvjeta koji u speleološkim objektima omogućuju njihovu akumulaciju: statičkim, statodinamičkim i dinamičkim. S obzirom na porijeklo zabilježene su naslage egzogenog i endogenog porijekla. Druga geografska zona u kojoj su takvi speleološki objekti brojniji jesu krška polja, zaravni i sredogorja Gorskog kotara i Like u kojima vlada umjereno topla klima (Cfb), no lokalni uvjeti osiguravaju povoljnu mikroklimu za gomilanje snijega i leda. Naime, lokalna mikroklima je modificirana topografijom terena, posebno postojanjem dubokih sjenovitih ponikava, uvala i polja gdje se i izvan zime zbog temperaturne inverzije bilježe niske temperature zraka. U nekoliko takvih spilja i jama u tijeku su geomorfološka, geokemijska i mikroklimatska istraživanja s ciljem prikupljanja novih informacija o ovim zanimljivim pojavama.