Site-specific response spectra from the combination of microzonation with probabilistic seismic hazard assessment—An example for the Cologne (Germany) area

Seismic noise was measured at some 20 sites in the Cologne area (Germany) aligned nearly perpendicular to a graben structure. The H/V spectral noise ratio for each site was used to derive realistic S-wave velocity profiles down to the bedrock by means of a genetic algorithm inversion. Numerical simulations were performed for different combinations of source and propagation path parameters: focal depth, epicentral distance, attenuation and fault mechanism. Synthetic seismograms were produced and converted to Fourier and response spectra. Finally, the site-specific values from response spectral ratios, with their uncertainties, were used to modify attenuation functions entering the logic-tree algorithm of the probabilistic seismic hazard assessment (PSHA). The site-specific response spectra show the significance of taking into account the local S-wave velocity structure in PSHA.     

Stress Changes due to Recent Seismic Events in the Central Apennines (Italy)

The Central Apennines, Italy, are characterized by moderate seismic activity on normal faults, oriented in directions parallel to the Apenninic chain. The subject of this study is the Umbria-Marche Apennines, a segment approximately 200-km long, where three main seismic events occurred in the last three decades. The 1979 Norcia earthquake was a M_w = 5.8 event, taking place at the south end of the considered segment. The 1984 Gubbio earthquake was a M_w = 5.6 event which took place at the north end. The 1997-1998 Colfiorito sequence constituted 8 main shocks with magnitudes M_w between 5 and 6 and epicenters located between the Gubbio and the Norcia earthquake areas. A model made of an elastic half-space is considered, in which the seismic sources are represented by rectangular dislocations which have the appropriate values of source parameters, and in which the static stress field produced by each event is calculated. The analysis of the Coulomb stress change (ΔC) as a function of time shows that the coseismic stress transfer and fault interaction played an important role in the region during the past three decades: 7 earthquakes of the 9 considered took place where ΔC>0. Such an interaction has been confirmed by the analysis of the aftershocks in the Colfiorito zone post September 26, 1997: about the 61% of the aftershocks considered took place where ΔC>0. The comparison between the ΔC^s due to the coseismic stress transfer and the rate ΔĊ^t due to the tectonic stress allows us to quantify the time advance of the earthquakes. The ΔC^s pattern shows positive values in two areas that can be regarded as historical seismic gaps.     

Types of eruptions of Etna volcano AD 1670–2003: implications for short-term eruptive behaviour

Analysis of the historical records of Etnas eruptive activity for the past three centuries shows that, after the large 1669 eruption, a period of about 60 years of low-level activity followed. Starting from 1727, explosive activity (strombolian, lava fountaining and subplinian) at the summit crater increased exponentially to the present day. Since 1763, the frequency of flank eruptions also increased and this value remained high until 1960; afterward it further increased sharply. In fact, the number of summit and flank eruptions between 1961 and 2003 was four times greater than that of the pre-1960 period. This long-term trend of escalating activity rules out a pattern of cyclic behaviour of the volcano. We propose instead that the 1670–2003 period most likely characterises a single eruptive cycle which began after the large 1669 eruption and which is still continuing.On the basis of the eruptive style, two distinct types of flank eruptions are recognised: Class A and Class B. Class A eruptions are mostly effusive with associated weak strombolian activity; Class B eruptions are characterised by effusive activity accompanied by intense, long-lasting, strombolian and lava fountaining activity that produces copious tephra fallouts, as during the 2001 and 2002–2003 eruptions. Over the past three centuries, seven Class B eruptions have taken place with vents located mainly on the south-eastern flank, indicating that this sector of the volcano is a preferential zone for the intrusion of volatile-rich magma rising from the deeper region of the Etna plumbing system.Electronic Supplementary Material Supplementary material is available for this article at Editorial responsibility: M. Carroll     

Geological constraints for earthquake faulting studies in the Colfiorito area (central Italy)

On September 26, 1997, at 00.33 h(GMT), a Mw 5.7 earthquake occurred in the axial zone of theUmbria-Marche Apennines of central Italy, in the Colfiorito basin area. At09.40 h (GMT), a M_w 6.0 earthquake again struck the area withinthe Colfiorito basin, a major intramontane basin filled with Quaternarycontinental deposits. The two main shocks, and the associated aftershockswere within a roughly NNW-SSE trending zone of largest damage (Imax10), in which ground deformation has been observed. Along this trend,Cello et al. (1997a) had mapped a few capable faults, showingtranstensional to pure extensional kinematics. Field inspection of themapped faults, carried out after the main shocks, revealed that some ofthem were locally reactivated (for lengths of several hundreds metres andsurface slip in the range of 2–8 cm) during the September 26, 1997earthquakes.     

β-model and cooling flows in X-ray clusters of galaxies

The spatial emission from the core of cooling-flow clusters of galaxies is inadequately described by a β -model. Spectrally, the central region of these clusters is well approximated with a two-temperature model, where the inner temperature represents the multiphase status of the core and the outer temperature is a measure of the ambient gas temperature. Following this observational evidence, I extend the use of the β -model to a two-phase gas emission, where the two components coexist within a boundary radius r _cool and the ambient gas alone fills the volume shell at a radius above r _cool. This simple model still provides an analytic expression for the total surface brightness profile     (Note in the first term the different sign with respect to the standard β -model.) Based upon a physically meaningful model for the X-ray emission, this formula can be used (i) to improve significantly the modelling of the surface brightness profile of cooling flow clusters of galaxies when compared to the standard β -model results, (ii) to constrain properly the physical characteristics of the intracluster plasma in the outskirts, like, e.g., the ambient gas temperature.     

Testing the use of an image‐based technique to measure gully erosion at Sparacia experimental area

The first part of this investigation was aimed at testing the use of a three‐dimensional (3D) digital terrain model and a quasi‐tridimensional (2.5D) digital elevation model obtained by a large series of oblique images of eroded channels taken from consumer un‐calibrated and non‐metric cameras. For two closed earth channels having a different sinuosity, the ground measurement of some cross sections by a profilometer (P) was carried out and their real volume was also measured. The comparison among the three methods (3D, 2.5D, and P) pointed out that a limited underestimation of the total volume always occurs and that the 3D method is characterized by the minimum difference between measured and real volume. For this reason, 3D model can be used as benchmark. In the subsequent part of the investigation, the three ground measurement methods were applied for surveying of an ephemeral gully (EG) channel at the Sparacia area. The morphological and hydraulic variable values of the 24 surveyed cross sections determined by both 2.5D model and profilometer were compared. This comparison showed that the estimate error is generally less than ±10%. The EG measurements carried out by the three methods supported the applicability both of the empirical relationship between EG length and its eroded volume and the theoretical dimensionless relationship among the morphological variables describing the channelized erosion process. Finally, it was demonstrated that the effect of the distance interval on the EG volume measurement by 3D and 2.5D models is negligible for the investigated EG.     

Luminescence dating of Late Pleistocene faults as evidence of uplift and active tectonics in Sardinia,W Mediterranean

Precise dating of the activity of Late Pleistocene to Holocene neo‐tectonic structures is crucial to quantify the rate of deformation in low‐seismicity regions. Sardinia is a relatively stable continental fragment set in the middle of the tectonically active Western Mediterranean belt. This paper provides evidences of significant uplift of northwest Sardinia that support an ongoing tectonic activity since the Marine Isotopic Stage 7 (MIS 7; ca. 220 ka). In particular, it documents for the first time Late Pleistocene to Holocene tectonics based on luminescence dating of travertine sealing a major NNE‐SSW fault.     

Organic matter recycling during a mucilage event and its influence on the surrounding environment (Ligurian Sea, NW Mediterranean)

The development of benthic mucilage in the Marine Protected Area of Portofino (Ligurian Sea) during the summer of 2009 was studied to verify the influence of this event on the surrounding environment (seawater and soft-bottom). The calm meteorological and sea conditions at the beginning of the time frame under consideration caused the thermal stratification of the water column. This stratification was one of the driving factors influencing the development of the mucilage, which developed on a large boulder surface above the pycnocline. Mucilage was progressively detached from the boulder surface by hydrodynamism, together with macroalgae, and sank onto the sediment below the thermocline. Increased surface-water movements, caused by meteorological forcing during the study period, influenced the aggregation-disaggregation of mucilage flocks above the thermocline, leading to increased dissolved oxygen concentrations and enhanced production and turnover of the organic matter (OM). Mixing with the adjacent seawater led to the fertilisation of the surrounding environment with potentially labile OM and inorganic phosphorus, which caused increases in the hydrolytic enzymatic activity. Conversely, below the thermocline, the sunken mucilage and algae aggregates supported a heterotrophic consumption system. Dissolved oxygen concentrations were lower than those recorded in the mucilage lying above the thermocline, making more carbohydrates than proteins and labile phosphorus available. Despite the slow oxygenation of this mucilage, it contributed to the food supply for the soft-bottom macrofauna, which showed an increase in density, diversity and biomass during the study. These results suggest that the development and fate of the mucilage, as well as its interactions with the surrounding environment, were principally regulated by physical features. In the oligotrophic coastal area of the Ligurian Sea, certain compartments of the ecosystem were able to promptly respond and take advantage of the mucilage event of the summer of 2009, although the persistence of mucilage on hard substrates is known to cause suffocation and macroalgae biomass depletion. It is proposed that, at least in oligotrophic conditions and as long as mucilage persistence doesn't cause severe oxygen depletion, its appearance might have an enhancing rather than a detrimental effect on the seawater and soft-bottom biogeochemical processes.     

River water and nutrient discharges in the Northern Adriatic Sea: Current importance and long term changes

Runoff and nutrient transport by rivers were analysed in the Northern Adriatic continental shelf, in order to evaluate their interannual and multidecal variability, as well as their current contribution to determine freshwater and nutrient budgets in this marine region. During the years 2004-2007, the runoff in the basin (34.1-64.6 km³ yr⁻¹) was highly imbalanced, being 84% of freshwater discharged along the western coast, because of the contributions of Po, Adige and Brenta rivers. In the northern and eastern sections of the coast, freshwater discharge by rivers was less important (10 and 6%, respectively), but not negligible in determining the oceanographic properties at sub-regional scales. The oscillations of the transport of biogenic elements (124-262×10³ t N yr⁻¹ for TN, 72-136×10³ t N yr⁻¹ for DIN, 4.5-11.1×10³t P yr⁻¹ for TP, 2.2-3.5×10³ t P yr⁻¹ for PO₄ and 104-196×10³ t Si yr⁻¹ for SiO₂) were strictly dependant to the differences in the annual runoff. A strong excess of N load in comparison to P load characterised all rivers, both in inorganic nutrient (DIN/PO4=37-418) and total (TN/TP=48-208) pools, particularly in the northern and eastern areas of the basin.The annual runoff showed significant oscillations for Po on multidecadal time scale, whereas a general decrease (−33%) was observed for the other N Adriatic rivers as the recent discharges were compared to those before the 1980s. During the dry years 2005-2007, a strong reduction of river water flows and nutrient loads was experienced by the N Adriatic ecosystem with respect to years characterised by medium-high regimes. An increased frequency of similar drought periods, due to ongoing climate changes or to a larger human usage of continental waters, would be easily able to significantly change the biogeochemistry of this basin.