Terremoti, trasformazioni di fase, catene a pieghe: è possibile una nuova prospettiva globale?

Abstract

Starting from considerations about the unexpected inhomogeneous ‘filamentous’ distribution of the deep hypocentres on the Italian, Mediterranean and global Wadati-Benioff zones, a new global tectonics framework involving non-collisional orogenic processes – and deriving from global expansion, rifting, isostasy, surfaceward flow of deep material, gravitational spreading, and mantle phase changes – is proposed. The associated model of evolution of an orogen can be linked to the volume increase of an isostatically uprising mantle column which segments slowly overcome a solidus-solidus boundary of the temperature-pressure phase diagram.