Speaker
Description
The Expedition to the Himalayas, Karakoram, and Chinese Turkestan led by Filippo De Filippi is considered the greatest scientific expedition of the early 20th century in the world’s highest mountains. Departing from Italy in 1913 and returning at the end of December 1914, it pursued numerous scientific objectives, from the study of gravity and magnetism in the highlands of Central Asia to research on solar radiation.
One of the expedition’s participants was the astronomer Giorgio Abetti, who would later become Director of the Arcetri Astrophysical Observatory (1921-1952).
The proposed contribution will introduce the ongoing project Un astronomo sull’Himalaya: carte mappe strumenti scientifici sul tetto del mondo with a particular focus on the study, cataloguing, and digitization of archival materials held at the Arcetri Astrophysical Observatory.
These materials will be presented through the creation of a virtual exhibition, enabling visitors to follow the expedition’s itinerary through the successive stages of its journey highlighting its key figures and scientific activities, particularly those related to astronomy.
Furthermore, all the material, properly digitized and enriched with metadata, will be made available for consultation through “Polvere di Stelle, the astronomical cultural heritage portal of INAF."