INTERDISCIPLINARY APPROACH TO ROCKFALL FORECASTING Mario Alba 1 , Diego Arosio 2 , Laura Longoni 1 , Monica Papini 1 , Marco Scaioni 1 , Luigi Zanzi 2 Our work addresses a new methodology for assessing and monitoring rockfalls through an integrated multi-disciplinary approach, taking advantage of innovative devices and sensors (terrestrial laser scanners, ground-based interferometric SAR systems, ground penetrating radars, seismic and acoustic sensor networks) in order to increase the achievable information. The research project promotes the integration of different techniques to facilitate a better analysis of complex processes as rockfalls. This means either to combine datasets collected with different sensors and to develop expert systems capable to merge diverse measurements as well as to support decision makers. Field activities are undergoing experimentation in prealpine and alpine test sites. Keywords: Engineering Geology, Rockfall, Monitoring INTRODUCTION Among the many natural hazards in mountainous regions, rockfalls are frequently occurring events characterized by their suddenness and difficult of prediction. Bearing in mind the key role of structural protections in defending both infrastructure and human settlements from released rocks, the possibility of identifying areas featuring a high rockfall risk, and the monitoring of all critical situations are complementary important tasks in this research field. In recent years, new instruments and techniques based on ground remote sensors have been employed for deformation/displacement monitoring (e.g. Terrestrial Laser Scanning - TLS, and Ground-Based Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar – GBinSAR), and their application to rock slopes assessment represents a current challenge for researchers. This is mainly due to the high accuracy that is required to detect small deformations or displacements affecting an instable rock slope (commonly a few mm), to the long distance from sensor to the monitored rock face, and to the harsh conditions that are typical of mountain areas. On the other hand, modern Ground Penetrating Radars (GPR), in association with related data processing techniques, can be powerful tools to investigate rock mass condition, in order to map subsurface discontinuities where a rockfall could originate. Moreover, distributed sensor networks (microseismic or acoustic sensor networks employing, for instance, Micro- Electro-Mechanical Systems - MEMS) could allow to detect weak acoustic emissions or vibrations which may be earlier signals just before a rockfall is about to happen. As a matter of fact, fracturing processes start with the breaking of internal structures inside the rock mass, resulting in signals that can be recorded with suitable sensors.. INTEGRATED MONITORING AND ASSESSMENT OF ROCKFALLS At the Politecnico di Milano, a multisciplinary research group supervised by geologists and including geophysical, geotechnical, micro-electronic, risk-management and geodetic 1 Politecnico di Milano , D.I.I.A.R., via M. d’Oggiono 18/a, 23900 Lecco (Italy). 2 Politecnico di Milano , D.I.S., p.za L. da Vinci 32, 20155 Milano (Italy). e-mails: {mario.alba, laura.longoni, monica.papini, marco.scaioni, diego.arosio, luigi.zanzi}@polimi.it