On the Saturday following the workshop (15th of October 2016) a field trip is offered to willing participants. The field trip will require an individual contribution of 10€ per person for travelling.
A Coffee Above Firenze
The field trip will start at 09:00 in front of the Livorno Centrale train station where personnell from the workshop will guide the participants to Firenze via train.
From Santa Maria Novella train station the participants will be guided through the center of Florence up to the terrace of the Osservatorio Ximeniano. The Osservatorio is located in the very centre of the city and was founded in 1756 by Leonardo Ximenes. Initially geared toward astronomy and hydraulics (ancient telescopes and tools are still visible within the observatory) it was later dedicated to other research topics such as meteorology, seismics, cartography and, later, radio engineering. The history of the Osservatorio is inevitably tied to the one of Florence and it was in its rooms where Giovanni Inghirami prepared its geometric map of Tuscany and where Bersanti and Matteucci built the first internal combustion engine in 1853. The Osservatorio is still part of Florence’s life: since its establishment as a urban meteorological station in 1813 it keeps performing such function even today with refurbished and state-of-the-art instrumentation thanks to CNR Institute of Biometeorology.
The Osservatorio boasts an impressive rooftop terrace allowing a unique point of view above the city centre of Florence: from there it is possible to see both the church of San Lorenzo and an amazing view of Brunelleschi’s dome.
Coffee will be served on the terrace starting at 10:30 and from lunchtime onward all the participants will be free to visit the magnificent city of Florence.
Unmanned Vehicles in Research 