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The main purpose of the present study is to develop a debris flow susceptibility map of a mountain area (Susa Valley, Western Italian Alps) by using an upgraded version of the Bonetto et al. (Journal of Mountain Science 18, 2021) approach based on the Rock Engineering System (RES) method. In particular, the area under investigation was discretized in a 5 × 5-m grid on which GIS-based analyses were performed. Starting from available databases, several geological, geo-structural, morphological and hydrographical predisposing parameters were identified and codified into two interaction matrices (one for outcropping lithologies and one for Quaternary deposits), to evaluate their mutual interactions and their weight in the susceptibility estimation. The result for each grid point is the debris flow propensity index (DfPI), an index that estimates the susceptibility of the cell to be a potential debris flow source. The debris flow susceptibility map obtained was compared with those obtained from two expedited and universally recognized susceptibility methods, i.e. the Regional Qualitative Heuristic Susceptibility Mapping (RQHSM) and the Likelihood Ratio (LR). Each map was validated by using the Prediction Rate Curve method. The limitations and strong points of the approaches analysed are discussed, with a focus on the innovativeness and uniqueness of the RES. In fact, in the study site, the RES method was the most efficient for the detection of potential source areas. These results prove its robustness, cost-effectiveness and speed of application in the identification and mapping of sectors capable of triggering debris flow.

This paper explores implementing active resonance frequency tuning of adaptive tuned vibration absorbers (ATVA) by coupling a vibration absorber comprising a voice coil actuator (VCA) and a sprung inertial mass to a solenoid actuator (SA). In this device, the DC current flowing through the SA generates negative magnetic stiffness and varies the equilibrium position of the nonlinear spring of the VCA, thus changing the effective stiffness of the system and its resonant frequency. The paper details the analytical design steps and the parametric sizing process of designing the SA to maximize its force density within defined magnetic, dimensions and thermal constraints. The design of the SA was verified using finite element analysis (FEA), manufactured and coupled to a VCA to make the complete ATVA system. The experimental results demonstrate the tunability of the resonance frequency of the ATVA by controlling the SA’s DC current. It is shown that the system’s resonance frequency can be shifted by up to 23% of the fundamental resonance frequency, which improves the effectiveness of the ATVA at damping a broader range of excitation frequencies.

The counselling room is the physical space in which counseling or psychotherapy service takes place. Despite it is necessary to provide any psychological support or care service, this topic has not been widely discussed in psychological research. First studies about the counselling room are analytic: Freud describes the analysis room by defining the role that the presence and position of the analytical couch plays in analytic practice. Even in child psychoanalysis, the room will be described in detail as an element that allows children to produce material for analysis. The counselling room has been the subject of experimental and health psychology works. With this in mind, we could identify some the- matic cores to which particular attention has been paid, specifically the effects that characteristics of the counselling room exert on communication between occupants, and on the perceptions and feelings of users and psychologists have been investigated. Furthermore, more recent works have attempted to define the ideal characteristics for counselling room. These works have shown an evolution in in- volved methodologies, revealing a greater awareness in research of the holistic effects of this space on the occupants. We believe that knowing the effects that environmental variables have on the coun- selling or psychotherapy process is extremely useful both in public and private contexts, to provide adequate psychological services. La stanza della consulenza è lo spazio fisico in cui un servizio di consulenza o psicoterapia ha luogo. Questo argomento non ha avuto un’ampia trattazione nella letteratura psicologica, nonostante sia un elemento necessario per fornire qualsiasi servizio di supporto o cura psicologici. I primi lavori che ri- guardano la stanza della consulenza sono di matrice psicoanalitica: Freud descrive la stanza dell’analisi definendo il ruolo che nella pratica analitica gioca la presenza e la posizione del lettino nello spazio. Anche nella psicoanalisi infantile la stanza verrà descritta in dettaglio come elemento che permette al bambino di produrre materiale per l’analisi grazie agli elementi presenti in essa. La stanza della con- sulenza è stata oggetto di lavori di psicologia sperimentale e della salute. In quest’ottica possiamo in- dividuare alcuni nuclei tematici a cui si è prestata particolare attenzione, nello specifico sono stati indagati gli effetti che caratteristiche della stanza di consulenza esercitano sulla comunicazione tra gli occupanti e sulle percezioni e sensazioni di utenti e psicologi. Inoltre, studi più recenti hanno ten- tato di definire le caratteristiche ideali per la stanza di consulenza. Questi lavori hanno mostrato un’evoluzione nelle metodologie impiegate, rivelando una maggior consapevolezza nella ricerca sul tema degli effetti olistici delle caratteristiche di questo spazio sugli occupanti. Riteniamo che conoscere gli effetti che le variabili ambientali esercitano sul processo di consulenza o psicoterapia, sia estre- mamente utile sia nei contesti pubblici che privati per fornire servizi psicologici adeguati.

CAMIVVER (Codes And Methods Improvements for VVER comprehensive safety assessment) is a three years project launched under the European Union research program HORIZON 2020. The main aim of the Project is to develop and improve computer codes and methods for VVER comprehensive safety assessment. VVER reactors constitute a significant and dynamic part of the European energy market. Their safe Long Term Operation (maintenance, refuelling, safety-upgrade, revamping) relies on the industrial use of neutronics and thermal-hydraulics codes and methods that allow studying the behaviour of the plant in normal and accidental conditions. Computer codes development is strongly required for the following reasons: 1) Current codes and methods used for VVER safety assessment are subjected to growing international export controls from outside EU, threatening the EU sovereignty and security in terms of energy supply. 2) A new generation of innovative codes and methods are under development within Europe. They are improving 3D-multiphysics modelling and uncertainty quantification capabilities and are worth being transferred from lab to industry as they will substantially improve the physics comprehension of PWR and VVER. 3) European codes and methods development for VVER safety assessment will open the VVER market to the European nuclear industry. CAMIVVER will perform developments required for the new generation codes and will generalize 3D-multiphysics coupling, performing benchmark against current industrial codes used for PWR and VVER safety assessment. CAMIVVER will demonstrate CFD assets and compatibility with uncertainty propagation in the frame of a safety assessment.

The sustainability of geomineral resourses’ exploitation may be assured only in presence of adequate plans for the re-use and reclamation of old or abandoned sites. Among the most commonly used techniques, mining backfill is largely employed for the stabilization of underground sites. This technique recreates the original stress state of the underground, assuring the definitive stabilization of the hypogea volumes, and reduces the risks due to the interference between underground tunnels and ground surface (e.g. possible collapses and surface subsidences). Despite these obvious advantages, careful evaluations are needed to assure the environmental sustainability, with particular attention to the interaction between the hydro-geological and permeability features of the rock body and the chemical properties of the backfill material.The present research proposes an analysis of the advantages and the risks connected with this technique, examining a case study of mining backfill in an underground gypsum quarry at the end of the active exploitation. The considered quarry is located in Monferrato (NW Italy) and is exploited within chaotic Messinian deposits made of gypsum blocks (from centimeter-size to kilometer-size) included in a marly matrix. The study includes a campaign of field and laboratory tests (i.e. geological and geo-structural mapping and modeling, geophysical surveys, mechanical and permeability tests) that aim at characterize the permeability and mechanical behaviour of the rock mass.

This research describes a quantitative, rapid, and low-cost methodology for debris flow susceptibility evaluation at the basin scale using open-access data and geodatabases. The proposed approach can aid decision makers in land management and territorial planning, by first screening for areas with a higher debris flow susceptibility. Five environmental predisposing factors, namely, bedrock lithology, fracture network, quaternary deposits, slope inclination, and hydrographic network, were selected as independent parameters and their mutual interactions were described and quantified using the Rock Engineering System (RES) methodology. For each parameter, specific indexes were proposed, aiming to provide a final synthetic and representative index of debris flow susceptibility at the basin scale. The methodology was tested in four basins located in the Upper Susa Valley (NW Italian Alps) where debris flow events are the predominant natural hazard. The proposed matrix can represent a useful standardized tool, universally applicable, since it is independent of type and characteristic of the basin.

The Po Plain is a one-of-a-kind place where to study the evolution of the orogen-foreland pair. It is a complex geological system consisting mainly of Triassic to Quaternary sedimentary successions that have recorded the tectonic evolution of the paleoAdriatic continental margin during the Middle-Late Triassic and Jurassic time interval, as well as the development and mutual interaction of the Western Alps, Southern Alps and Northern Apennines orogenic belts, and related synorogenic basins, during the Cenozoic. These peculiarities allow for achieving analyses on several topics (e.g., the relations between opposite-verging thrust systems, the role of the inherited paleogeography, the geometry and evolution of the foredeep and thrust-top basins, the presence and the activity of seismogenic faults), individually treated by previous studies, with focus on limited time-intervals, or detailed 3D models of limited areas.Nevertheless, a comprehensive and accessible 3D model of the general framework of the entire Po Plain subsurface is still unavailable.In this respect, the HotLime Project (GeoERA Programme) will fill the gap providing a publicly accessible 3D framework model of the geometry of some stratigraphic horizons, focusing on crucial stratigraphic intervals, extended from Piemonte to Emilia-Romagna Region - Adriatic coastline, covering an area larger than 21,000 km2. In the HotLime Project, the model will be used as input for the geothermal assessment of carbonate reservoirs.The 3D model, built as a whole, will include five regional-wide stratigraphic horizons (e.g. top or unconformity surface), from Triassic to Pleistocene, plus additional less extended horizons, and the 3D geometry of more than 150 faults (i.e., Mesozoic extensional faults and Paleogene to Neogene thrusts).This comprehensive 3D geological model of the Po Plain subsurface is based on an integrated analysis of surface and subsurface geological/geophysical data (the latter provided by ENI SpA), that allows for better interpreting and correlating the key horizons. The input dataset includes: 305 well data; 799 2D seismic profiles, with a mean spacing of 5 km; detailed surface data from geological maps at different scales. The final 3D model benefits from the comprehensive and coherent interpretation of the overall input dataset, and the time-depth conversion of the 3D model as a whole through a 3D velocity model.The objective of this work is to build a general-purpose 3D geological model that will serve a multiplicity of specific topics, and provide a powerful 3D image of this complex foreland basin. It highlights the position and geometry of inherited structures and allows for analyzing their relations with stratigraphic variations of the sedimentary infill (e.g., unit thickness); besides, the comparison of the mutual relations of the compressional faults with the pre-existing discontinuities. The fault distribution and clustering will be also compared with the deformations observed on the highly-detail modeled Pliocene and Pleistocene horizons, giving a fundamental input for the calculation of slip/uplift rates and definition of the activity of the faults. This project has received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 731166

In high mountains, the Critical Zone (CZ) is a thin layer sustaining the whole local ecosystem. Here, however, the effects of climate change are manifesting most rapidly than in the surrounding lowlands. This is especially critical for the high-altitude carbon cycle, for which our knowledge is still patchy and new feedbacks could possibly be triggered. In particular, models of the processes that control carbon fluxes in mountain grasslands and Alpine tundra need to be improved. To contribute to fill this knowledge gap, in 2017 a new Critical Zone Observatory was established at the valley of the Nivolet Plain (CZO@Nivolet) in the Gran Paradiso National Park (GPNP), in the western Italian Alps, at about 2700 m asl. Three measurement sites were identified along the flanks of the valley. The sites are characterized by soils developed over carbonate rocks, gneiss rocks and glacial deposits. Since 2017, every year, from July to October, fluxes of carbon dioxide (CO2) were measured using a portable accumulation chamber, together with basic meteo-climatic and environmental variables, such as soil and air temperature and moisture, air pressure and solar radiation. This work is focused on a novel empirical model that uses unbiased and rigorous statistical analysis of these data to identify the environmental variables that control CO2 fluxes in Alpine tundra. The modelling approach is applied to the full dataset of simultaneous in situ measurements of the net exchange, ecosystem respiration and environmental variables for the three sites and the three measurement years. Since a large year-to-year variability in the dependencies on solar irradiance and environmental temperature is observed, a multi-regressive model has been implemented, where additional variables are introduced as perturbations of the standard functions. The multi-regressive model identifies the main drivers, highlighting the crucial role of soil moisture, and largely explains the temporal variability of the fluxes, with explained variance up to 90%. This model provides a basis for estimating future scenarios of carbon fluxes in high-altitude Alpine ecosystems.

The OntoGeonous initiative has the goal of modeling a number of interconnected computational ontologies of geological concepts in order to exploit (i) the expressive power of ontological systems to merge several geological concepts (ii) the reasoning capabilities of the ontological systems to check the consistency of the currently existing knowledge stored in the Data Base of the Piemonte Geological Map at 1:250.000 scale and to infer novel knowledge. The prospect application of this initiative is the intelligent data collection and compilation of geological data base and the provision of sound semantic foundations for a modern cartographic project that provides a basis for a synthesis of geological data at the regional scale.

International audience; The fast neutron fluence and the corresponding uncertainty are important parameters for reactor pressure vessel life time. This article presents one model, under development at CEA (Commissariat a l-Energie Atomique et aux Energies Alternatives), to carry out with the deterministic code APOLLO3$^R$ uncertainty calculations of the fast fluence for PWR irradiation surveillance. All calculations are made by MINARET, a 3D-SN solver of the APOLLO3 code which uses the discontinuous Galerkin finite elements approximation. The spatial mesh is unstructured and the transport calculations are parallelized with respect to the angular directions. In this numerical scheme, the multigroup cross-sections are sub-group self-shielded and collapsed over a dedicated energy mesh optimized by the Adaptive Energy Mesh Constructor (AEMC). Results from this model are encouraging with respect to the Monte Carlo reference TRIPOLI-4$^R$. The integral of the flux over 1 MeV in the locations of interest (surveillance capsule and vessel) is calculated in less than 20 minutes with an error lower than 1percent. Some examples of uncertainty calculations associated to design parameters in which the MINARET solver is coupled to the CEA uncertainty and sensitivity platform URANIE are also provided.

In the second part of the 19th century, permanent fortifications were built along the Italia-France border. Their constructions required careful consideration of the orographic and morphologic features of the mountain landscape. In particular, a number of Italian military fortifications were built in the Cesana Torinese area to control the Monginevro pass and its adjoining areas. The most famous is the Chaberton Fort the highest fort in the Alps located with offensive scope at the summit of the homonymous mountain. The impressive works for its construction determined a change on the morphology of the top of Mount Chaberton, smoothed and lowered at least of 6 m.

In this preliminary note, we describe our strategy for collecting, storing and representing new and old geological data acquired in several sectors of the central-eastern Himalaya where, since the 70's, researchers of the CNR- IGG Torino and the Department of Earth Sciences of the University of Torino addressed a significant part of their activity. All the geologic features (including rock samples, petrographic, petrologic and structural observations and measurements) are stored and harmonized in a suitable geodatabase using ArcGIS. Standard criteria are used to describe their typology and quality, facilitating future homogeneous data implementation and a correct data traceability. This geodatabase represents the fundamental starting point for the editing of a digital geological map of the central-eastern Nepal Himalaya.

Collection and sharing of geoheritage information are nowadays enhanced by using digital tools and IT (Information Technology) applications that allow homogeneous storing of data, building of sharable databases, and transfer of knowledge between experts and communities. In the frame of the PROGEO-Piemonte project (PROactive management of GEOlogical heritage in the PIEMONTE region), the geological and geomorphological trail in the Monviso Massif (Western Alps) is an example of how IT-applications may support management of geoheritage information. The trail particularly allows walking across the meta-ophiolite succession of an ancient ocean and on glacial landforms. Its realization was supported by different tools that allow (i) capturing of data via GPS handheld mobile device, (ii) managing of field data by means of GIS (Geographic Information Systems) applications, and (iii) virtual visualization of data by means of GIS-based 3D viewer. The different (virtual) views of the geology along the trail can be implemented by adding photos and bookmarks and easily shared through web mapping tools that ensure wide accessibility of geoheritage information.

The fast neutron fluence is an important parameter for the reactor pressure vessel (RPV) lifetime. The uncertainty estimation of this parameter is crucial to manage the RPV with a suitable safety m...

A detailed structural, lithological and petrological study of different transects in the Rasuwa district of central Nepal Himalaya allows the characterization of the tectonostratigraphic architecture of the area. It also facilitates constraining the P-T evolution of the different units within the Lesser (LHS) and Greater (GHS) Himalayan Sequences. Peak P–T conditions obtained for the studied metapelite samples using the pseudosection approach and the Average PT method highlight the existence of four different T/P ratio populations in different tectonometamorphic units: 80 ± 11 °C/kbar (LHS), 66 ± 7 °C/kbar (RTS), 73 ± 1 °C/kbar (Lower-GHS) and 101 ± 12 °C/kbar (Upper-GHS). Integration of structural and petrological data emphasizes the existence of three tectonometamorphic discontinuities bounding these units, characterized by top-to-the-south sense of shear: the Ramgarh Thrust, which separates the LHS (peak metamorphism at ∼600 °C, 7.5 kbar) from the overlying RTS (peak metamorphism at ∼635 °C, 10 kbar); the Main Central Thrust, which separates the RTS from the Lower-GHS (peak at 700–740 °C, 9.5–10.5 kbar with a prograde increase in both P and T in the kyanite stability field), and the Langtang Thrust, which juxtaposes the Upper-GHS (peak at 780–800 °C, 7.5–8.0 kbar with a nearly isobaric heating in the sillimanite stability field) onto the Lower-GHS. An increase in the intensity of deformation, with development of pervasive mylonitic fabrics and/or shear zones, is generally observed approaching the discontinuities from either side. Overall, data and results presented in this paper demonstrate that petrological and structural analysis combined together, are reliable methods adequate to identify tectonometamorphic discontinuities in both the LHS and GHS. Geochronological data from the literature allow the interpretation of these discontinuities as in-sequence thrusts.

In 2017 we established the first Earth Critical Zone Observatory in Italy, at the high-altitude Nivolet plain in the Gran Paradiso National Park, between about 2500 and 2700 meters asl (CZO@Nivolet). The Observatory is currently equipped with an eddy-covariance tower for CO2 and H2O fluxes; a portable accumulation chamber to measure H2O, CO2, CH4 and H2S fluxes; a double rain gauge for rainfall isotopic studies; soil moisture and hydrometric gauges. Regular samplings of the physical and chemical properties of soil as well as surface and groundwater are performed. The in-situ instruments are complemented by analyses in a suite of geochemical and isotopic laboratories at CNR IGG in Pisa and by analysis of high-resolution satellite images. While the CZO@Nivolet has multiple goals and the instrument pool is continuously upgraded, a specific question we have considered during the first year of activity is whether and how the geological setting and the geological substratum of soils affect carbon fluxes in a mountain prairie above the tree line. To this end, we have identified four plots, each having an average area of about 200 square meters, characterized by different geological substratum: (1) soil on gneiss (the dominant rock type of the Gran Paradiso massif), (2) soil on carbonate rocks, (3) soil over glacial deposits (common to most alpine areas), and (4) alluvial soil near the main stream of the Nivolet plain (Dora del Nivolet). In each plot, we performed on average 30 randomly-positioned flux measurements with the accumulation chamber method, approximately every two weeks from June to October 2017 and measuring both the sum of photosynthesis and respiration (using a transparent chamber) and pure respiration (using an opaque chamber). The preliminary results of the statistical analyses indicate that the carbonate soils behave quite differently from the other three types. A full discussion of the findings and their implications will be given.

This paper shows two ways to improve the accuracy of the transport calculations. These improvements, implemented in the APOLLO2 code, concern the fission source calculation and the self-shielding m...

The Geodatabase of the Piemonte Geological Map was designed in a way suitable for linking the geological knowledge of the geological domain at hand to more general levels of knowledge represented in some Earth science ontologies and namely in a dedicated ontology (OntoGeonous). The paper describes how the two different knowledge levels are assimilated in the GeoPiemonte informative system, providing relations between the contents of the geodatabase and the encoded concepts of the reference ontologies.

The Mortisa landslide is located in the urban area of Cortina d'Ampezzo, north-east Italy. The landslide unit consists of three mudslides; the affected area is 3500 m long, stretching from 1750 to 1300 m a.s.l. The landslide has been investigated since 1998 as its track crosses a national route and some buildings have been severely damaged by the movements.Through radiocarbon dating it was possible to reconstruct the dynamic of the events that led to the formation of the present-day Mortisa slope. The landslide body is composed by interdigitated layers of gravel in a silty clay matrix originated from subsequent earth and debris flows events since the Lateglacial.To assess the stability conditions of the Mortisa landslide via numerical modelling it is crucial to consider the mechanical influence of the gravel lenses in the dynamic of the whole landslide body. However, their position is almost unknown inside the clay matrix with just some certain positions, where stratigraphic data are available. Therefore, in order to calibrate the model on the monitoring data through back analysis, a new procedure has been implemented. A new code permits to generate stochastically several soil configurations which are automatically elaborated by the commercial software FLAC. The results are organized and filtered based on the monitoring data, hence it is possible to select the model that fits the data best. In this way it it possible to obtain a sound back-analysis model of the Mortisa landslide, to be used in order to design countermeasure works and mitigate the risk associated with the phenomenon.

Cordierite-bearing anatectic rocks inform our understanding of low-pressure anatectic processes in the continental crust. This article focuses on cordierite-bearing lithologies occurring at the upper structural levels of the Higher Himalayan Crystallines (eastern Nepal Himalaya). Three cordierite-bearing gneisses from different geological transects (from Mt Everest to Kangchenjunga) have been studied, in which cordierite is spectacularly well preserved. The three samples differ in terms of bulk composition likely reflecting different sedimentary protoliths, although they all consist of quartz, alkali feldspar, plagioclase, biotite, cordierite and sillimanite in different modal percentages. Analysis of the microstructures related to melt production and/or melt consumption allows the distinction to be made between peritectic and cotectic cordierite. The melt productivity of different prograde assemblages (from two-mica metapelite/metagreywacke to biotite-metapelite) has been investigated at low-pressure conditions, evaluating the effects of muscovite v. biotite dehydration melting on both mineral assemblages and microstructures. The results of the thermodynamic modelling suggest that the mode and type of the micaceous minerals in the prograde assemblage is a very important parameter controlling the melt productivity at low-pressure conditions, the two-mica protoliths being significantly more fertile at any given temperature than biotite gneisses over the same temperature interval. Furthermore, the cordierite preservation is promoted by melt crystallization at a dry solidus and by exhumation along P-T paths with a peculiar dP/dT slope of about 15–18 bar °C−1. Overall, our results provide a key for the interpretation of cordierite petrogenesis in migmatites from any low-P regional anatectic terrane. The cordierite-bearing migmatites may well represent the source rocks for the Miocene andalusite-bearing leucogranites occurring at the upper structural levels of the Himalayan belt, and low-P isobaric heating rather than decompression melting may be the triggering process of this peculiar peraluminous magmatism.

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Users’ demands for multigroup transport calculations are wide and diverse, encompassing routine, rough, and fast calculations as well as very precise simulations. For these reasons, the use of accu...

International audience; The automatic construction of evolution chains recently implemented in GALILEE system is based on the analysis of several ENDF files the multigroup production cross sections present in the GENDF files processed by NJOY from the ENDFevaluation, the decay file and the fission product yields (FPY) file. In this context, thispaper highlights the importance of the nucleus identification to properly interconnect thedata mentioned above.The first part of the paper describes the present status of the nucleus identification among the several ENDF files focusing, in particular, on the use of the excited state number and of the isomeric state number. The second part reviews the problems encountered during the automatic construction of the depletion chains using recent ENDF data. The processing of the JEFF-3.1.1, ENDF/B-VII.0 (decay and FPY) and the JEFF-3.2 (production cross section) points out problems about the compliance or not of the nucleus identifiers with the ENDF-6 format and sometimes the inconsistencies among the various ENDF files. In addition, the analysis of EAF-2003 and EAF-2010 shows some incoherence between the ZA product identifier and the reaction identifier MT for the reactions (n; p)and (n; 2np).As a main result of this work, our suggestion is to change the ENDF format using systematicallythe isomeric state number to identify the nuclei. This proposal is already compliant to a huge amount ENDF data that are not in agreement with the present ENDF format. This choice is the most convenient because, ultimately, it allows one to give human readable names to the nuclei of the depletion chains.

Metamorphic degassing from active collisional orogens supplies a significant fraction of CO2 to the atmosphere, thus playing a fundamental role even in today’s Earth carbon cycle. Appealing clues for a contemporary metamorphic CO2 production in active orogens are represented by the widespread occurrence, along the whole Himalayan belt, of CO2 rich hot-springs mainly localized along major tectonic discontinuities. In contrast to these well-studied hot-springs, almost no chemical and isotopic data are actually available for cold-springs, especially for those located at high-altitude and in remote areas of the Himalayas. In the framework of the Ev-K2-CNR SHARE (Stations at High Altitude for Research on the Environment) Project, we have started a preliminary chemical and isotopic study on high-altitude cold-springs located at different structural levels in the eastern Nepal Himalayas. Chemical and isotopic data obtained from the high-altitude cold-springs are compared with those obtained by previous authors from hot-springs located along the MCT. The isotopic signature of stable isotopes of hydrogen and oxygen could help to identify the waters sources in the investigated Himalayan sectors, to individuate mixing phenomena between waters of different provenience and possible connection with different circulation nets. These first measurements on high-altitude springs from remote areas of eastern Nepal represent a first step towards a better definition of a reliable scenario of water resources availability and will contribute to the understanding of the water cycle in the studied area.

A number of studies suggest that mountain ranges have strong impact on the global carbon cycle; metamorphic degassing from active collisional orogens supplies a significant fraction of the global solid-Earth derived CO2 to the atmosphere, thus playing a fundamental role even in today’s Earth carbon cycle. The Himalayan belt, a major collisional orogen still active today, is a likely candidate for the production of a large amount of metamorphic CO2 that may have caused changes in long-term climate of the past, present and near future. Large metamorphic CO2 fluxes are facilitated by rapid prograde metamorphism of big volumes of impure carbonate rocks coupled with facile escape of CO2 to the Earth’s surface. So far, the incomplete knowledge of the nature, magnitude and distribution of the CO2-producing processes hampered a reliable quantitative modeling of metamorphic CO2 fluxes from the Himalayan belt. This study, integrated in the framework of the Ev-K2-CNR SHARE (Stations at High Altitude for Research on the Environment) Project, focuses on the metamorphic decarbonation processes occurring during the Himalayan collision. We hereby present preliminary results focusing on the distribution of different types of metacarbonate rocks in the Eastern Himalaya, their petrographic description and the first reported petrological data about the nature of the CO2-producing reactions in garnet-bearing calc-silicate rocks. These results represent a contribution toward a better understanding of the influence exerted by orogenic processes on climatic changes at global scale.