View source for Gran Sasso d'Italia

{{Short description|Mountain located in central Italy}}
{{Redirect|Gran Sasso|nearby places named after the mountain}}
{{Infobox mountain
|name = Gran Sasso d'Italia
|photo = Corno grande da campo imperatore.jpg
|photo_caption = Gran Sasso mountain, the highest peak in the Apennines
|elevation_m = 2912
|elevation_ref = 
|map = Italy
|location = [[Abruzzo]], [[Italy]]
|range = [[Apennine Mountains|Apennines]]
|coordinates = {{coord|42|28|10|N|13|33|55|E|type:mountain_region:IT|display=inline,title}}
|range_coordinates = 
|type = 
|age = 
|first_ascent = 
|easiest_route = 
}}
[[File:Gran Sasso.jpg|Panorama of Gran Sasso d'Italia. Monti della Laga is seen in the background.|thumb]]
[[File:Gran Sasso 02.jpg|Monte Prena in the chain of Gran Sasso.|thumb]]
[[File:Gran sasso.jpg|Corno Grande in the chain of Gran Sasso.|thumb]]

'''Gran Sasso d'Italia''' ({{IPA|it|ɡran ˈsasso diˈtaːlja|lang}}; {{lit|Great Rock of Italy}}) is a [[massif]] in the [[Apennine Mountains]] of [[Italy]]. Its highest peak, [[Corno Grande]] {{convert|2912|m|ft}}, is the highest mountain in the Apennines, and the second-highest mountain in Italy outside the [[Alps]]. The mountain lies within [[Gran Sasso and Monti della Laga National Park]].

==Geography==
The three main summits of the Gran Sasso are [[Corno Grande]], which at {{convert|2,912|m|abbr=off}} is the highest peak in the Apennines, nearby ''Corno Piccolo'', and ''Pizzo d'Intermesoli'', which is separated from the other two peaks by Val Maone, a deep valley. Corno Grande and Corno Piccolo's ash coloration come from their limestone and dolomite composition. The peaks are snow-covered for much of the year though the snow cover appears to be less each decade. Corno Piccolo is referred to as, "The Sleeping Giant". This is due to the appearance of a profile of a reclined face. This view of Corno Piccolo is evident when viewing the mountain from Pietracamela, a small town near [[Prati di Tivo]], on the north side of the mountain. Corno Grande and Corno Piccolo with their rough vertical walls provide serious rock climbers with challenges.

Situated below the peak of the Corno Grande is the [[Calderone glacier]], although deglaciation has significantly reduced the glacier's size. Glaciologists now question whether the glacier will survive past 2030.{{Citation needed|date=January 2025}}

The mid- to lower slopes of the Gran Sasso are grazed in spring, summer and autumn by large flocks of sheep guarded by [[Maremma Sheepdog|Maremmano-Abruzzese sheepdogs]] as well as herds of cattle and semi-wild horses. The pastures are covered with field grasses and meadowland wildflowers. The park is also the habitat for diverse wildlife from rare species such as the [[Apennine wolf]], the [[Marsican bear]], [[European wildcat]] and the Abruzzo [[chamois]] (''[[Rupicapra pyrenaica]] ornata''), a variety of chamois at the very edge of extinction but now making a comeback in the park through a joint effort by WWF Italia and the park administration. Other species of wildlife include wild [[boar]], [[fox]]es, grass snakes such as [[Orsini's viper]], and a wide variety of bird life including [[golden eagle]]s, [[peregrine falcon]]s, [[northern goshawk|goshawk]]s, [[ortolan bunting]]s, [[rock sparrow]]s, [[crested lark]]s, [[red-backed shrike]]s and downy pipits.

At the northern base of Corno Piccolo is Prati di Tivo, a ski village. To the east of Corno Grande and Corno Piccolo lies [[Campo Imperatore]], a {{convert|27|km|mi|abbr=off|adj=mid|-long}} and {{convert|8|km|mi|abbr=off|adj=mid|-wide}} high plain or [[plateau]] at about {{convert|2000|m|ft|abbr=off}} height. Campo Imperatore is home to Italy's oldest continuously operating commercial ski area (connected to Fonte Cerreto via cable car).

==History==
[[Hotel Campo Imperatore]] in Gran Sasso was [[Benito Mussolini]]'s prison until his freeing in September 1943 by Nazi commandos in the [[Gran Sasso raid]]. The plateau is also the site of the Campo Imperatore station of the [[Rome Observatory]], from which the [[Campo Imperatore Near-Earth Object Survey]] and other astronomical studies are carried out. At the southern edge of Campo Imperatore and within the bounds of the national park are three medieval hill towns once ruled by the [[Medicis]]; Calascio, which sits before the ancient fortress ruin of Rocca di Calascio, Santo Stefano di Sessanio, and Castel Del Monte.

In 2005, a {{convert|2,424|m||adj=mid|-high}} peak previously named "The Gendarme" was renamed "John Paul II Peak" on what would have been [[Pope John Paul II]]'s 85th birthday.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4377651.stm |title=Peak is named after late pontiff |publisher=BBC News |date = 2005-05-18}}</ref> He had visited the Gran Sasso many times, saying it reminded him of the mountains of his native Poland.

In January 2017, an [[2017 Farindola avalanche|avalanche hit Rigopiano hotel]], killing 29.

==Science==
In 1984, a {{convert|10|km|mi|adj=mid|abbr=off}} two-lane highway tunnel carrying the [[Autostrada A24 (Italy)|A24 motorway]], the [[Traforo del Gran Sasso]], was bored through the Gran Sasso Massif. In 1995, a second parallel tunnel was completed. Construction of the tunnel included  an underground [[particle physics]] laboratory at Assergi, the [[Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso]] or ''Gran Sasso National Laboratory'' (LNGS). The first large experiments there started in 1989.

The laboratory is composed of three large underground chambers, sometimes referred to collectively as the third tunnel, and lies beneath {{convert|1,400|m|abbr=off}} of rock. Construction of the laboratory and second tunnel faced opposition from Italian and international environmental groups including [[Pro-Natura International]], [[LIPU]] and [[Club Alpino Italiano]], as well as the [[World Wide Fund for Nature]], [[Greenpeace]], and [[Friends of the Earth]]. Environmentalists noted that the nuclear physics laboratory would lie on or near two major and highly active seismic faults, that construction of the tunnels would interfere with a major [[aquifer]], and that [[construction waste]] would degrade an environmentally sensitive and significant area. Many{{Who|date=October 2011}} credit the opposition created by the tunnel and laboratory construction with galvanizing the Italian [[environmental movement]] and leading to the creation of the [[Gran Sasso and Monti della Laga National Park]] in 1991. In recent years, the laboratory has itself begun promoting preservation of the Gran Sasso environment.

Because of its low background radiation, the underground laboratory is used for experiments in particle and nuclear physics, including the study of [[neutrinos]], high-energy [[cosmic rays]], [[dark matter]], [[nuclear decay]], as well as the study of [[geology]], and [[biology]]. The laboratory  employs over 700 scientists from twenty countries. The LNGS was the destination of the neutrinos involved in the [[faster-than-light neutrino anomaly]] publicly announced in September 2011 and retracted in July 2012. In the summer of 2014 the facility was instrumental in confirming previous theories about the Sun's main source of energy, when proton-to-proton fusion-produced neutrinos<ref>Stuart Gary (28 August 2014) [http://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2014/08/28/4075509.htm Scientists see the 'soul' of the Sun] ABC. Retrieved 20 January 2016</ref> were detected and measured, virtually at the Sun's core.

==Tourism==
The Gran Sasso is located in the [[Gran Sasso and Monti della Laga National Park]].  Running through this nature preserve is a portion of the Italian State Highway 80 (SS80), known as the Grand Highway of the Gran Sasso and Monti della Laga National Park ("Strada maestra del Parco").

While frequented by skiers in winter, and mountain climbers and hikers in other seasons, the Gran Sasso is remarkably free of tourists despite its proximity to [[Rome]] and the events of the [[Gran Sasso raid]] that took place there in 1943.  This is especially true in summer with most Italians preferring  beach vacations and foreign visitors are more likely to visit the mountains of northern Italy.

[[Pope John Paul II]] loved to secretly ski at Gran Sasso where he would retire often and pray at the church of San Pietro della Ienca. When he died Cardinal [[Stanislaw Dziwisz]], gave the local [[Abruzzo]] community some of the late pontiff's blood as a token of the love he had felt for the mountainous area.<ref>{{cite news|title=Pope John Paul II's blood stolen from church in Italy|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/jan/27/pope-john-paul-ii-blood-stolen-church-italy|newspaper=The Guardian|date=27 January 2014}}</ref>

The Shrine of [[Gabriel of Our Lady of Sorrows]] at [[Isola del Gran Sasso d'Italia]] with average of two million visitors per year is one of the 15 most visited sanctuaries in the world.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://turismo.provincia.teramo.it/art-and-culture/churches/shrine-of-saint-gabriele-dell92addolorata-96-isola-del-gran-sasso/?set_language=en |title=Shrine of Saint Gabriele dell'Addolorata – Isola del Gran Sasso |publisher=Teramo Turismo |department=Turismo.provincia.teramo.it |access-date=2015-10-19}}</ref>

Acclaimed international movies shot at Gran Sasso include [[Jean-Jacques Annaud]]'s ''[[The Name of the Rose (film)|The Name of the Rose]]'', [[Arnold Schwarzenegger]]'s ''[[Red Sonja (1985 film)|Red Sonja]]'', ''[[Ladyhawke (film)|Ladyhawke]]'', ''[[King David (film)|King David]]'', ''[[Keoma (film)|Keoma]]'' and ''[[The Barbarians (1987 film)|The Barbarians]]''.

{{Panorama
|image   = File: Panorama Gran Sasso.jpg
|height  = 200px
|alt     = 
|caption =A panoramic view of Campo Imperatore.
}}

== Points of interest ==
* [[Alpine Botanical Garden of Campo Imperatore]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20190522173112/http://inside-abruzzo.com/ Inside Abruzzo: Insider Tips Uncovered]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20090123125716/http://parconazionalegransasso.it/eng/parco.html The National Park of the Gran Sasso]
* {{cite web|url=http://www.gransassolagapark.it|title=Parco Nazionale del Gran Sasso e Monti della Laga}}
* {{cite web|url=http://www.ilgransasso.com|title=Images from Gran Sasso d'Italia, news and webcam}}
* {{cite web|url=http://www.gdargaud.net/Climbing/GranSasso.html |title='The Big Stone', climbing in the Gran Sasso (translated from French)}}
* {{cite web|url=http://www.planetmountain.com/Snow/italia/Sibillini/03.html|title=Sciaplinismo negli Appenni (article in Italian on 'scialpinismo', combined mountain climbing and skiing) on the Gran Sasso|access-date=2007-04-13|archive-date=2016-03-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303175904/http://www.planetmountain.com/Snow/italia/Sibillini/03.html|url-status=dead}}
* {{cite web|url=http://www.lngs.infn.it/ |title=Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso website}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Apennine Mountains]]
[[Category:Mountains of Abruzzo]]
[[Category:Mountains of Italy by elevation]]
[[Category:One-thousanders_of_Italy]]