The Lago di Varano: Hydrologic Characteristics and Sediment Composition

Abstract. The Lago di Varano is situated on the north side of the Gargano National Park (southeast Italy) and covers a surface area of about 65 km². It communicates with the Adriatic Sea through two artificial canals (Foce Capoiale and Foce Varano) located at the two ends of a long and narrow coastal dune. This work presents preliminary results of four seasonal surveys (1999–2000) carried out to measure chemical and physical parameters of the water column (temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen and pH) and to analyse a number of biogeochemical characteristics of surface sediments (organic matter, total phosphorus, total nitrogen and total Hg, As, Pb, Cd, Cr, Cu and Ni content). Water analysis indicated poor exchange between the coastal pond and the open sea, limited to autumn and winter. Surface sediments were rich in organic matter, whose distribution was influenced by chemical-physical and hydrodynamic variations in the water column. At the sediment level, the highest values of Cd were found in the central zone of the basin, while the highest Cr values were measured in the central and southeastern areas. With the exception of Cd and Pb, the metal content did not indicate anthropogenic pollution, in particular when compared with the Venice Lagoon and the Central Adriatic Sea.     

The State of the Adriatic Sea Centered on the Small Pelagic Fish Populations

Abstract. The paper provides an overview of the state of the small pelagic fish in the Adriatic Sea. The North Adriatic is reviewed for the 1976–1998 period and the South Adriatic for the 1987–1998 period. First the fluctuations in time and in space of the pelagic biomass, as a whole and per species, are presented. Then the dramatic collapse of anchovy stock and its apparent association with the decrease of surface temperature is discussed. Finally the changes of the anchovy and sardine catches are compared and analysed with respect to their abundances in the sea. The conclusion is that acoustic and satellite methods are able to provide a large amount of information on the variability in the pelagic populations; this is essential for an appropriate management of these resources. There is still a need, however, to refine the methods and to integrate this kind of information with further environmental data (including natural predators).     

Ash erupted during normal activity at Stromboli (Aeolian Islands,Italy) raises questions on how the feeding system works

Ash fallout collected during 4 days of sampling at Stromboli confirms that a crystal-rich (HP) degassed magma erupts during the Strombolian explosions that are characteristic of the normal activity of this volcano. We identified 3 different types of juvenile ash fragments (fluidal, spongy and dense), which formed through different mechanisms of fragmentation of the low-viscosity, physically heterogeneous (in terms of the size and spatial distribution of bubbles) shoshonitic magma. A small amount (less than 3 vol%) of volatile-rich magma with low porphyricity (LP), erupted as highly vesicular ash fragments, has been collected, together with the HP magma, during normal strombolian explosions. Laboratory experiments and the morphological, textural and compositional investigations of ash fragments reveal that the LP ash is fresh and not recycled from the last paroxysm (15 March 2007). We suggest that small droplets of LP magma are dragged to the surface by the time-variable but persistent supply of deep derived CO₂-rich gas bubbles. This coupled ascent of bubbles and LP melts is transient and does not perturb the dynamics of the HP magma within the shallow reservoir. This finding provides a new perspective on how the Stromboli volcano works and has important implications for monitoring strategies.     

Numerical simulation of mud-flows impacting structures

The study of the interaction of mud-flows with obstacles is important to define inundation zones in urban areas and to design the possible structural countermeasures. The paper numerically investigates the impact of a mud-flow on rigid obstacles to evaluate the force acting on them using two different depth-integrated theoretical models, Single-Phase Model(SPM) and Two-Phase Model(TPM), to compare their performance and limits. In the first one the water-sediment mixture is represented as a homogeneous continuum described by a shearthinning power-law rheology. Alternatively, the twophase model proposed by Di Cristo et al in 2016 is used, which separately accounts for the liquid and solid phases. The considered test cases are represented by a 1D landslide flowing on a steep slope impacting on a rigid wall and a 2D mud dam-break flowing on a horizontal bottom in presence of single and multiple rigid obstacles. In the 1D test case, characterized by a very steep slope, the Two-Phase Model predicts the separation between the two phases with a significant longitudinal variation of the solid concentration. In this case the results indicate appreciable differences between the two models in the estimation of both the wave celerity and the magnitude of the impact, with an overestimation of the peak force when using the Single-Phase Model. In the 2D test-cases, where the liquid and solid phases remain mixed, even if the flow fields predicted by the two models present some differences, the essential features of the interaction with the obstacles, along with the maximum impact force, are comparable.     

Pairs of pulsars (PSR) and the origin of PSR

The results of research on pairs of PSR which were possibly components of disrupted binaries, seem to advance further arguments in favour of the idea, suggested by some authors, that most of PSR were formed in binary systems.     

New data for the kinematic interpretation of the Alps–Apennines junction (Northwestern Italy)

Alps and Apennines are juxtaposed within an approximately 100 km-wide area covered by the Upper Eocene to Miocene successions of the Tertiary Piedmont Basin. The Upper Eocene–Oligocene evolution of this area was characterized to the north and west by the propagation of the SE-verging Southalpine thrust-fold belt that can be traced from the Po Plain subsurface until the Torino Hill-Saluzzese area, and to the south by a high-angle, broadly E–W oriented megashear zone that led to the juxtaposition of different crustal levels and controlled the development of a mosaic of partly independent sub-basins. Since the latest Oligocene the N-verging Apenninic tectonics prevailed in the collisional system and the Tertiary Piedmont Basin evolved as a wide thrust-top basin, bounded to the north by the N-verging Monferrato arc and characterized by a tectono-sedimentary evolution recording changes of subsidence and shift of depocentres in relation to crustal structures.     

Editorial to “Heat Flow: Recent Advances”

International Journal of Earth Sciences -     

Evolution of an incised valley system in the southern Adriatic Sea (Apulian margin): an onshore–offshore correlation

Seismic surveys with sub‐bottom profiler were carried out in the Manfredonia Gulf in the southern Adriatic Sea. Here, a buried surface was recognized on which three valleys, located about 80 km from the shelf edge, were deeply incised. Beneath this surface, a pre‐upper Würm seismic unit (PW) was identified. Above, two seismic units were recognized: the transgressive system tract (TST) and highstand system tract (g₂)_. On the basis of regional correlation with onshore and offshore data, these units and their boundaries were dated and correlated with phases of the last glacial–interglacial cycle. The incised valley system was attributed to the Marine Isotopic Stage (MIS) 2. The TST and g₂ units fill the valleys and were attributed to the post‐glacial sea‐level rise and highstand. The incised valleys are anomalous with respect to published models; despite having many characteristics that would have limited the fluvial incision (the lowstand shoreline that remained on the shelf, the low gradient of the shelf, the subsidence that affected the study area since MIS 5), the valleys appear to be deeply incised on the shelf, with valley flanks that can exceed 40 m in height. The model to explain the formation of the valleys comprises enhanced river discharge as the key factor in increasing river energy and promoting erosion across the low gradient shelf. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Geomaterials related to photovoltaics: a nanostructured Fe-bearing kuramite,Cu<Subscript>3</Subscript>SnS<Subscript>4</Subscript>

The successful synthesis of nanoparticles of Fe-bearing kuramite, (Cu,Fe)₃SnS₄, is reported in this study. Nanocrystalline powders were obtained through a mild, environmentally friendly and scalable solvothermal approach, in a single run. The sample was the object of a multidisciplinary investigation, including X-ray diffraction and absorption, scanning electron microscopy and microanalysis, electron paramagnetic resonance, diffuse reflectance and Mössbauer spectroscopy as well as SQUID magnetometry. The nanoparticles consist of pure Fe-bearing kuramite, exhibiting tetragonal structure. The valence state of the metal cations was assessed to be Cu⁺, Sn⁴⁺ and Fe³⁺. The material presents a band gap value of 1.6 eV, which is fully compatible with solar cell applications. The uptake of Fe by nanokuramite opens a compositional field where the physical properties can be tuned. We thus foster the application of Fe-bearing nanokuramite for photovoltaics and energy storage purposes.