Fluids in early stage hydrothermal alteration of high-sulfidation epithermal systems: A view from the Vulcano active hydrothermal system (Aeolian Island,Italy)

High-sulfidation (HS) epithermal systems have elements in common with passively degassing volcanoes associated with high T, acid fumarole fields or acid crater lakes. They are considered to form in two stages, the first of which involves advanced argillic alteration resulting from intense, strongly acidic fluid–rock interaction. The La Fossa hydrothermal system (Vulcano Island) represents a classic example of such an active HS system and can be considered as a modern analogue of this early stage of alteration, resulting in a core of intense silicic (90–95% pure SiO₂) alteration surrounded by alunitic alteration zones.     

Multiple sector collapses at stromboli volcano, Italy: how they work

This paper demonstrates that four large sector collapses have affected the NW flank of the Stromboli volcano in the past 13 ka, alternating with growth phases, in order to contribute to the evaluation of the critical conditions which trigger lateral collapses, a reconstruction of the geometry of each collapse of the volcano edifice in the four stages that preceded the relative collapse events is also presented, and a computation of the landslide volume. This reconstruction is based on new field data plotted in three dimensions. Prior to the initial 13-ka collapse, the volcano was 1125±100 m high above sea level. The collapse had a volume of 2.23±0.87 km³, whereas the pre-collapse volcano volume was 218.8±7.7 km³. The next edifice that failed was 900±70 m high a.s.l. The collapse volume was 1±0.54 km³, with a precollapse volcano volume of 201.4±5.4 km³. The edifice then grew to 1000±60 m a.s.l. The third collapse had a volume of 1.08±0.39 km³ and occurred within a volcano with a volume of 209.1±4.6 km³. This was followed by a new growth phase followed by the last collapse with a volume of 0.73±0.22 km³. The volcano volume was about the same as the present one. The present active crater zone is at 780 m a.s.l. in the first three collapses, sliding surfaces cut the main magma conduit. In the last collapse, the upper scarp coincided with the conduit location. Dyking along a main NE-trending weakness zone across the volcano summit exerted a lateral force for collapse inception. The decrease of the landslide volumes with the age, and the concentric scarps of the four collapses, suggest that the younger sliding planes tended to become more superficial and to decrease the areal extent. This is interpreted as due to: (a) successively weaker eruptive products from dominantly lavas to dominantly pyroclastics; and (b) the feedback effects between collapses and dykes that injected along the lateral segments of the first collapse slide plane.     

The Kozai resonance in the outer solar system and the dynamics of long-period comets

We consider the secular evolution of the orbits of bodies in the Outer Solar System under the perturbations of the jovian planets assumed on coplanar and circular orbits. Through the approach used for asteroidal belt by Yoshihide Kozai in 1962, we obtain that the Kozai resonance do not affect the behavior of bodies belonging to the Kuiper belt but concerns the long-timescale evolution of long-period comets. In particular this resonance appears as a process contributing to produce Sun-grazer comets.     

PAssive COastal TOMography: an Innovative Approach for the Remote Monitoring of Sea Temperature

Abstract. This paper describes a new Ocean Acoustic Tomography (OAT) methodology - a passive tomography - presently in an advanced development phase. This technique has been developed for long-term, extensive, remote monitoring of the seawater temperature spatial distribution, which is estimated from the received noise emitted from ships of opportunity. To test the passive tomographic processor under controlled conditions, the components of the naval noise from different kinds of vessels was analysed and realistic naval noise was simulated. The feasibility of the proposed methodology was confirmed by test-runs on semi-synthetic data; its capability to resolve temperature profiles will be better assessed with the use of real acoustic and environmental data collected during the INTIMATE00 experiment performed in October 2000 in the Atlantic Ocean off the Portuguese coast. An analysis of the space and time variability of the Empirical Orthogonal Function (EOF) decomposition of the sound speed (SSP) in the Mediterranean Sea has been carried out to identify areas where acoustic tomography can be successfully applied. Results from simulations in the South Adriatic Sea, which was identified as a region with a high sound speed variability associated with the seasonal cycle and with the main oceanographic processes, are reported.     

A novel insight into vertical ground motion modelling in earthquake engineering

Recent observations of failure and damage of buildings and structures under seismic action has led to an increasing interest for an in-depth analysis of the vertical component of site ground motion. In particular, when dealing with saturated soils, the current engineering practice does not usually go beyond the simplified $u$–$p$ formulation of the Biot's equations describing the coupled hydro-mechanical behaviour, thus neglecting some terms of fluid inertial forces, despite the presence of more refined formulations, for example, the $u$–$U$ formulation. Therefore, a theoretical and numerical validation of the $u$–$p$ formulation as compared with the $u$–$U$ formulation is proposed in this work, where the numerical simulations are compared with the analytical solution for the $u$–$p$ formulation, which is also derived and illustrated in this text. The comparison between the two formulations and the analytical solution is provided for different levels of permeability and dynamic actions, which are representative of a wide scenario of site ground properties and seismic hazard in the vertical direction. In particular, the soil response is analysed in terms of acceleration and pore pressure time history, frequency content, acceleration response spectrum, and amplification ratio of acceleration. This study extends the discussion of the limits of applicability of the $u$–$p$ formulation with respect to the rigorous solution of Biot's equations (obtained here with $u$–$U$ formulation) to the context of a complex dynamic regime provided by the vertical components of real earthquake records, and paves the way for further investigations.