Observatory platforms and laboratory facilities

A Geophysical Observatory covering atmospheric physics, seismology and paleoclimatology was set up during the last three years, being a unique observational platform in Continental Portugal. The Atmospheric Physics Observatory (Évora, Cabo da Roca) is part of the AERONET network with NASA; the Seismological Observatory (Évora) is part of the Western Mediterranean Seismological Network together with the Real Observatorio de la Armada, ROA and “Universidad Complutense de Madrid” (UCM), under which ten stations are in operation in Spain, Northen Africa, SW Portugal, and Morocco. The Geothermal Paleoclimatology Platform, located 5 km from the town of Evora, is the only one in the Iberian Peninsula and is part of a network of observatories that aim to evaluate the climate in the past.

Concerning Geology and Tectonics, CGE has the following laboratorial facilities:

• An experimental tectonics laboratory, associated with the Laboratory on Investigation in Industrial and Ornamental Rocks, where simulation with analogical models is performed;
• A laboratory for the preparation of samples (grinding samples for geochemical studies and preparation of thin sections), in association with Earth Sciences Department;
• A high resolution petrographic microscope connected to a computer and to a digital camera, for image analysis.