Interpretation of radon anomalies in seismotectonic and tectonic-gravitational settings: the south-eastern Crati graben (Northern Calabria, Italy)

The study area is located in the south-eastern part of the Crati valley (Northern Calabria, Italy), which is a graben bordered by N–S trending normal faults and crossed by NW–SE normal left-lateral faults. Numerous severe crustal earthquakes have affected the area in historical time. Present-day seismic activity is mainly related to the N–S faults located along the eastern border of the graben. In this area, much seismically induced deep-seated deformation has also been recognised.In the present paper, radon concentrations in soil gas have been measured and compared with (a) lithology, (b) Quaternary faults, (c) historical and instrumental seismicity, and (d) deep-seated deformation.The results highlight the following:

(a) There is no evidence of a strong correlation between lithology and the radon anomalies.

(b) A clear correlation between the N–S geometry of radon anomalies and the orientation of main fault systems has been recognised, except in the southernmost part of the area, where the radon concentrations are strongly affected by the superposition of the N–S and the NW–SE fault systems.

(c) Epicentral zones of instrumental and historical earthquakes correspond to the highest values of radon concentrations, probably indicating recent activated fault segments. In particular, high radon values occur in the zones struck by earthquakes in 1835, 1854, and 1870.

(d) Deep-seated gravitational deformation generally coincides with zones characterised by low radon concentrations.

In the studied area, the anisotropic distribution of radon concentrations is congruent with the presence of neotectonic features and deep-seated gravitational phenomena. The method used in this study could profitably contribute towards either seismic risk or deep-seated gravitational deformation analyses.     

Gravity-Accommodated ‘Structural Wedges’ Along Thrust Ramps: A Kinematic Scheme of Gravitational Evolution

In active geodynamic areas, such as the Italian Southern Apennines, the specific structural conditions have a profound effect on both the superficial and deep gravitational evolution of slopes. Chain sectors commonly exhibit structural complexities due to the superimposition, in space and time, of diverse tectonic stress fields. In this paper, attention is focused on particular structural configurations, connected to the tectonic quaternary phases that have affected the Southern Apennines, constituting a peculiar type of lateral spread gravitational deformations – which have not been previously described.The study area is characterized by regional roughly east-verging overthrusts (Holigo–Miocene). Superimposed on these, is a system of transpressive thrust ramps (Quaternary), connected to the activity of strike-slip faults. The latest tectonic phase, still active, has been characterized by an extensional stress field, which has produced differentiated uplifts along normal faults. All these factors have encouraged an intense and widespread processes of erosion, the creation of considerable relief energy and the development of both superficial and deep gravitational phenomena.It has been ascertained that the late extensional phases favoured gravitational reactivations (with normal movements) along those most recent thrust ramps whose attitude was kinematically consistent with the main extension direction of the stress field. Such reactivations were accommodated by antithetic neo-formational structures – these are also characterized by normal kinematics. Overall, such mechanisms lead to the individuation of wedge-shaped rock portions delimited by the normally reactivated thrust ramps, on one side, and by the antithetic structures, on the other.Structural wedges represent a particular type of lateral spread phenomena. On the basis of their orientation with respect to the orography, three typical situations have been defined: (1) wedge perpendicular to the ridge; (2) wedge parallel to the ridge; (3) wedge oblique to the ridge.In this paper three Calabrian case studies, exemplifying the above-mentioned situations, are described. The same framework can be applied to sectors of chain with an analogous structural setting, for a better understanding of the kinematic features of observed gravitational phenomena.