An informal meeting on within-plate continental magmatism was
held at Padova University on April 2012. This meeting was organized
to honor the memory of our friend and colleague Prof. Enzo Michele
Piccirillo (1943–2012) (Fig. 1). The contribution of Prof. Piccirillo towards our understanding of the petrogenesis of tholeiitic and alkaline
within-plate continental magmatism and of its mantle source rocks
was crucial for both the international and Italian scientific communities.
In particular, the international research team lead by Prof. Piccirillo on
the Paraná and CAMP continental flood basalts in South America was
among the first to unravel the origin of these major large igneous provinces (LIPs) of the Phanerozoic (and of their Proterozoic and Archean counterparts) and representmilestones in our knowledge of the geology and petrology of the SouthAmerican platform. Prof. Piccirillo worked also on alkaline magmatism (e.g., from Kenya, Ethiopia, Cameroon, Brazil, Paraguay) and investigated the mineral chemistry of
clinopyroxene in rocks of various tectonic settings. The results are reported in some 140 peer reviewed papers. Those who knew him as a
teacher and as a colleaguewill always remember his enthusiasm, imagination, the ability to work and the rigorous approach with which he faced every new research topic and, in general, Enzo's extraordinary
human qualities. Therefore we would like to thank this special issue as
a tribute to Prof. Piccirillo and a way of thanking himfor all he taught us.
