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Geomorphological investigation of active tectonics: case studies from the southern Apennines
No full textGIS mapping of the archaeological sites in the Molise region (Italy)
Full text linkThe Molise Region, on the Adriatic coast of southern Italy, experienced human presence since prehistoric times. Site distribution is not homogeneous throughout the region and a comprehensive census of all known archaeological sites has never been performed. In this paper, we present the results of a three-year project for the GIS mapping and database creation for all the known archaeological sites of the Molise Region. As a result, 3111 archaeological sites have been mapped, stored in a GIS database and then analysed through Spatial Analyst tools. Most of the mapped sites have been classified as area of archaeological finds (57.1% of the total sites), followed by settlements (12.9%) and buildings (9.8%). Site distribution is mainly clustered along the Biferno river valley, in the central and in the south-western sectors of the Molise Region. The largest human occupation of the region occurred during the Samnite and Roman ages. Archaeological sites are also located at different elevation a.s.l., with a general increasing trend of site elevation through time. This GIS database is, up to now, the most complete census of archaeological sites in the study area, thus representing a powerful tool to promote the archaeological heritage of the Molise Region and to address urban planning
Inferring surface uplift from longitudinal stream profiles in the Mt. Alpi area, southern Apennines, Italy
No full text
Seismically induced ground effects of the December 2013 – January 2014 Matese seismic sequence (southern Apennines, Italy).
No full textA decoupled kinematic model for active normal faults: Insights from the 1980, MS = 6.9 Irpinia earthquake, southern Italy
No full textA signifi cant uncertainty exists in the defi -
nition of both surface pattern and subsurface
continuity (i.e., coupling vs. decoupling)
of active normal faults in the Apennines. In
this study, we investigated the epicentral area
of the MS = 6.9, 1980 Irpinia earthquake—
one of the most destructive historical earthquakes
in Italy—based on detailed topography
analyses, morphostratigraphic and
structural data, and new age constraints from
Quaternary deposits. The active tectonic behavior
of the study area is controlled by a
series of subparallel, mainly WNW-ESE– to
NW-SE–trending, dominantly extensional
faults spanning over the southern Apennines
axial belt. A large part of the active fault
strands is characterized by a subdued topographic
expression, as a result of the young
age of extensional faulting initiation, and of
relatively low mean slip rates. In addition,
as already known from long historical seismicity
records elsewhere, long-lasting quiescence
might alternate with clusters of closely
spaced, strong earthquakes. The long-term
morphostratigraphic record confi rms that
long-lasting quiescence may punctuate fault
activity, with major implications for seismic
hazard assessment. The relatively smallsized
cumulative fault throws estimated by
surface evidence contrast with subsurface
information provided by crustal-scale cross
sections and seismological evidence, which
both suggest the occurrence at depth of largedisplacement,
mature fault zones capable of
nucleating large earthquakes. Furthermore,
although the surface distribution of active
fault strands overlaps the belt affected by
present-day low-magnitude seismicity and
by large historical earthquakes, a mismatch
in the attitude and kinematics of shallow versus
deep faults is unraveled by a comparison
of surface geological versus seismological
data sets. This feature suggests a decoupling
between surface and deep fault zones, and
that outcropping fault planes cannot always
be straightforwardly traced down to hypocentral
depths, particularly in fold-andthrust
belts characterized by strong rheological
contrasts. On the other hand, stress
inversion from outcropping active faults and
from earthquake focal mechanisms indicates
a general consistency of the stress fi eld, thus
suggesting that a homogeneous late Quaternary
extensional regime produces complex
reactivation of the inherited, articulated fault
network affecting different structural levels
of the southern Apennine
Pliocene-Quaternary uplift of the Southern Apennines: constraints from geomorphological, apatite fission tracks and (U/Th)/He data
No full textDecoding the role of tectonics, incision and lithology on drainage divide migration in the Mt. Alpi region, southern Apennines, Italy
Full text linkThe proclivity of river networks to progressively carve mountain surfaces and preserve markers of landscape adjustments has made analyses of fluvial systems fundamental for understanding the topographic development of orogens. However, the transient nature of uplift and erosion has posed a challenge for inferring the roles that tectonics and/or climate have played on generating topographic relief. The Mt. Alpi region in the southern Apennines has a heterogeneous distribution of elevated topography, erosionally-resistant lithology and uplift, making the area optimal for conducting topographic and river analyses to better understand the landscape development of a transient orogen. Stream length-gradient, normalized channel steepness, stream convexity and first-order channel gradient indices from 10 m digital elevation data from the region exhibit stream profile inconsistencies along the current drainage divide and a dominance of high values subparallel but inboard of the primary chain axis irrespective of known transient landscape factors, suggesting that the current river network may be in a state of transition. The location of these stream profile anomalies both near the modern drainage divide and subparallel to an isolated swath of high topography away from catchment boundaries is thought to be the topographic expression of an imminent drainage divide migration driven primarily by the ~ northeast-vergent extension of the western chain axis
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