Located between Europe and the United States, the Research Institute of Volcanology and Risk Assessment (IVAR) is the leading Portuguese institution in volcanology. It is centered in the main town of the Azores archipelago, Ponta Delgada, which offers a high quality of life surrounded by an unspoiled lush nature.

 

Due to its geologic setting and location the Azores archipelago is exposed to important volcanic and seismic activity, as well as to the high recurrence of extreme meteorological phenomena, associated with landslide and flood events, responsible for some of the main catastrophes on the region. These factors make the Azores a natural laboratory of excellence for the development of studies in Earth and Space Sciences with great impact in society.

 

In this setting, IVAR emerges as a multidisciplinary research unit within the Azores University, with a clear focus on natural hazards and risk assessment. The research team, however, is very diverse and encompass geologists, volcanologists, geological engineers, physicists, geophysicists, geodesics, geochemists, mechanical and electronic engineers, chemists, hydrogeologists, mathematicians, computer engineers, geographers, biologists and psychologists. The diversity of expertise applied to the same object fosters the exchange of knowledge and experiences that enrich the team and allow the development of real transdisciplinary research projects and technological developments that otherwise would hardly be possible to implement.

 

The organization of IVAR comprises 7 thematic lines planned as Scientific Units (SU), complementary within the multidisciplinary extents of volcanology and risks assessment: Physical Volcanology and Magmatism, Neotectonics and Ground Deformation, Hydrogeology and Environmental Geology, Gas Geochemistry, Landslides and Floods, Medical Geology, Risks and Emergency Planning. All SUs are coherent units, endowed with the human and technical resources in order to meet the objectives of IVAR.