Mapping soil liquefaction susceptibility across Europe using the analytic hierarchy process

Bulletin of Earthquake Engineering - Mapping the susceptibility of earthquake-induced soil liquefaction at the continental scale is a challenge. Susceptibility of soils to liquefaction is the...     

From ERS-1/2 to Sentinel-1: two decades of subsidence monitored through A-DInSAR techniques in the Ravenna area (Italy)

Land subsidence due to underground resources exploitation is a well-known problem that affects many cities in the world, especially the ones located along the coastal areas where the combined effect of subsidence and sea level rise increases the flooding risk. In this study, 25 years of land subsidence affecting the Municipality of Ravenna (Italy) are monitored using Advanced Differential Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (A-DInSAR) techniques. In particular, the exploitation of the new Sentinel-1A SAR data allowed us to extend the monitoring period till 2016, giving a better understanding of the temporal evolution of the phenomenon in the area. Two statistical approaches are applied to fully exploit the informative potential of the A-DInSAR results in a fast and systematic way. Thanks to the applied analyses, we described the behavior of the subsidence during the monitored period along with the relationship between the occurrence of the displacement and its main driving factors.     

Highly nonlinear wind waves in Currituck Sound: dense breather turbulence in random ocean waves

Ocean Dynamics - We analyze surface wave data taken in Currituck Sound, North Carolina, during a storm on 4 February 2002. Our focus is on the application of nonlinear Fourier analysis (NLFA)...     

Crustal seismic velocity in the Marche region (Central Italy): computation of a minimum 1-D model with seismic station corrections

A 1-D velocity model for the Marche region (Central Italy) was computed by inverting P- and S-wave arrival times of local earthquakes. A total of 160 seismic events with a minimum of ten observations, a travel time residual ≤0.8 s and an azimuthal gap lower than 180° have been selected. This “minimum 1-D velocity model” is complemented by station corrections, which can be used to take into account possible near-surface velocity heterogeneities beneath each station. Using this new P-wave velocity model and the program HYPOELLIPSE (Lahr 1999), the selected local events were relocated. Earthquake locations in this study are of higher quality with respect to the original ones. The obtained minimum 1-D velocity model can be used to improve the routine earthquake locations and represents a further step towards more detailed seismotectonic studies of the area.     

Ground-motion scenarios on Mt. Etna inferred from empirical relations and synthetic simulations

Ground motion scenarios for Mt. Etna are created using synthetic simulations with the program EXSIM. A large data set of weak motion records is exploited to identify important input parameters which govern the modeling of wave propagation effects, such as Q-values, high frequency cut-off and geometrical spreading. These parameters are used in the simulation of ground motion for earthquakes causing severe damage in the area. Two seismotectonic regimes are distinguished. Volcano-tectonic events, though being of limited magnitude (M_max ca. 5), cause strong ground shaking for their shallow foci. Being rather frequent, these events represent a considerable threat to cities and villages on the flanks of the volcano. A second regime is related to earthquakes with foci in the crust, at depths of 10–30 km, and magnitudes ranging from 6 to 7. In our synthetic scenarios, we chose two examples of volcano-tectonic events, i.e. the October 29, 2002, Bongiardo event (I = VIII) and the May 8, 1914, Linera earthquake (I = IX–X). A further scenario regards the February 20, 1818 event, considered representative for stronger earthquakes with foci in the crust. We were able to reproduce the essential features of the macroseismic field, in particular accounting for the possibility of strong site effects. We learned that stress drop estimated for weak motion events is probably too low to explain the intensity of ground motion during stronger earthquakes. This corresponds to findings reported in the literature claiming an increase of stress drop with earthquake size.     

Colluvial sedimentation in a hyperarid setting (Atacama Desert,northern Chile): Geomorphic controls and stratigraphic facies variability

Research on colluvial depositional systems has recently emphasized periglacial and high‐altitude settings, and the relations between Quaternary slope stratigraphy and climate change. This article examines the role of variable slope morphology, surface hydrology and microclimate in controlling colluvial sedimentation along a coastal tract of the hyperarid Atacama Desert in northern Chile. Direct accessibility of active surfaces is accompanied by uninterrupted stratigraphic exposures along the base of slopes, allowing direct comparisons between surface processes and the resulting sedimentary record. Four slope sectors are identified, based on differences in morphology and processes over active surfaces. Colluvial sedimentation is controlled by complex interactions of slope gradients and profiles, exposure to dominant winds, and potential runoff pathways, which vary considerably between different sectors. Major differences are evident between these hyperarid deposits and slope sedimentation in periglacial and temperate settings, including the complete absence of pedogenic activity and clay minerals; the volume of aeolian deposits and their role in controlling processes which redistribute sediment downslope, extending colluvial aprons; and the occurrence of runoff processes only where favoured by particular topographic configurations. Depositional surfaces range from steep talus cones, to debris‐flow‐dominated and aeolian‐dominated colluvial aprons, to an aeolian ramp subject to reworking by mass flows and flash floods. Consequently, facies associations and architectures at outcrop are highly variable and highlight the importance of spatial variations in slope morphology and processes in producing distinct, coeval colluvial stratigraphies within a single environmental context. Discrepancies between active processes and the corresponding stratigraphic signatures are also evident in some sectors; for example, preservation of alluvial and aeolian facies in stratigraphic sections does not always reflect the dominant processes over active slopes. Together with the spatial variability in processes and deposits along these slopes, this suggests that caution is required when extracting palaeoenvironmental information from analyses of colluvial successions.     

An Innovative Approach to Meteorite Analysis by Laser‐Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy

An innovative approach of double pulse laser‐induced breakdown spectroscopy (DP‐LIBS) coupled with optical microscopy was applied to the characterisation and quantitative analysis of the Agoudal iron meteorite in bulk sample and in petrographic thin section. Qualitative analysis identified the elements Ca, Co, Fe, Ga, Li and Ni in the thin section and the whole meteorite. Two different methods, calibration‐free LIBS and one‐point calibration LIBS, were used as complementary methodologies for quantitative LIBS analysis. The elemental composition data obtained by LIBS were in good agreement with the compositional analyses obtained by traditional methods generally applied for the analysis of meteorites, such as ICP‐MS and EDS‐SEM. Besides the recognised advantages of LIBS over traditional techniques, including versatility, minimal destructivity, lack of waste production, low operating costs, rapidity of analysis, availability of transportable or portable systems, etc., additional advantages of this technique in the analysis of meteorites are precision and accuracy, sensitivity to low atomic number elements such as Li and the capacity to detect and quantify Co contents that cannot be obtained by EDS‐SEM.     

Chronology of the Lower–Middle Pleistocene succession of the south-western part of the Crotone Basin (Calabria,Southern Italy)

Biostratigraphy based on calcareous nannofossils, integrated by magnetostratigraphic, geochronological and isotopic data, allowed establishing a precise chronological framework for the Pleistocene succession within the south-western sector of the Crotone Basin (Calabria, Southern Italy), where the Pliocene–Pleistocene global stratotype section and point is defined, thus demonstrating that sedimentation was quasi-continuous during most of the Lower and Middle Pleistocene.At a large scale, the Pleistocene succession in this sector of the Crotone Basin is characterized by an evident shallowing-upwards trend, showing facies changes from bathyal to shelfal to littoral/continental. However, comparison between adjacent sectors within the investigated area demonstrates that stratigraphic architectures change vastly on very short distances. Our chronological constraints indicate that such changes in sedimentation styles probably occurred in response to differential subsidence rates, which originated tectonically-controlled synsedimentary structures where accommodation space and sediment yield were allotted unevenly. This articulated physiography led to striking differences in the overall thicknesses and organization of Pleistocene stratigraphies and, eventually, to a distinct diachroneity in the first appearance of shallow-marine deposits. In addition, superimposed are complex interplays between regional and local tectonics, eustasy and orbitally-forced climate changes. These interactions have been highlighted by the oxygen isotope stratigraphy established for a part of the studied succession, which is likely to document almost continuously the interval from Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 26 to MIS 17. In its younger part (post-MIS 17), chronological ties are poor, as the succession is dominated by shallow-water to continental deposits showing a prominent organization into cyclothems. Nevertheless, based on the chronology of the underlying units, it is feasible that basin infill ended during MIS 15-MIS 14 times.     

The earthquake of 6 September 2002 and the seismic history of Palermo (Northern Sicily,Italy): Implications for the seismic hazard assessment of the city

On September 6, 2002, a M_L = 5.6 earthquake, occurring some tens of kilometres offshore from the Northern Sicilian coast (Southern Tyrrhenian Sea), slightly damaged the city of Palermo and surroundings (degree 6 in the European Macroseismic Scale 1998). The macroseismic investigation of the shock and a detailed study of effects of the main earthquakes which affected Palermo in the past have been performed in order to evaluate the seismic response of the city. Moreover, the comparison of the recent event, which is instrumentally constrained, with historical earthquakes allows us to infer new insights on the seismogenic sources of the area, that seem located offshore in the Tyrrhenian sea.In the last 500 years, Palermo has never been completely destroyed but has suffered effects estimated between intensities 6 and 8 EMS-98 many times (1693, 1726, 1751, 1823, 1940, 1968, 2002). The damage scenarios of the analysed events have shown that damage distribution is strongly conditioned by soil response in the different parts of the city and by a high building vulnerability, mainly in the historical centre and in the south-eastern zone of the modern city. As a matter of fact, Palermo has always suffered greater effects than those reported for other nearby localities. The hazard assessment obtained using observed site intensities has shown that the probability of occurrence for intensity 8 (the strongest intensity observed in Palermo) exceeds 99% for 550 years, while the estimated mean return period is 152 ± 40 years. These results, in connection with building vulnerability due to the urban expansion before the introduction of seismic code, suggest that the city is exposed to a relatively high seismic risk.This paper has not been submitted elsewhere in identical or similar form, nor will it be during the first 3 months after its submission to Journal of Seismology.