Istituto per l'Ambiente Marino Costiero (IAMC), Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Calata Porta di Massa, Porto di Napoli, 80133, Napoli, Italy

In the text

Italy's Mt.Vesuvius has been slumbering for a long time, but its silence could preface an eruption with potentially disastrous ef­fects for 600,000 people living on the vol­cano's slopes. To assess the scenario of the next eruption, the National Group of Vol-canology (GNV) of the Italian National Coun­cil of Researches (CNR) has fostered research aimed at mitigating eruption risk to the densely populated area. In this framework, researchers have gathered high-resolution seismic tomography data to better under­stand the internal structure of Mt. Vesuvius. The experiments were carried out during the last 4 years. The data will be used in three-dimen­sional modeling of the structure of Mt. Vesu­vius and underlying upper crust. Seismic velocities and attenuation and density con­trasts will be calculated, with special empha­sis on the delineation of significant magma reservoirs of more than 1 km in diameter. In modeling Mt. Vesuvius, tools are being devel­oped for using seismogram information to ob­tain high-quality seismic imaging of heterogeneous structures such as volcanoes

In the text

We present a high resolution DTM of the Palinuro Seamount (PS, Tyrrhenian Sea, Italy) resulting from the processing of multibeam swath bathymetry records acquired during the second leg of the “Aeolian 2007” cruise. PS consists of several superimposed volcanoes aligned along a N100°E strike and measures 55×25 km. The western and the central sectors result from the coalescence of collapse structures (calderas) with younger volcanic cones. The eastern sector reveals a more complex and articulated structure. In the central sector, a volcanic crater with a well-preserved rim not obliterated by erosional events suggests a volcanological rejuvenation of this sector. The presence of flat surfaces on the top of the seamount may be due to the formation of marine terraces during the last sea-level lowering. Lateral collapses on the northern and southern flanks of the seamount are probably related to slope instability, as suggested by the presence of steep slopes (25–40°). The main fault affecting PS strikes N65°E and shows a right lateral component of movement. E–W and N10°E striking faults are also present. Assuming that theN100°E deep-seated fault,which is responsible for theemplacement of PS,movedwith sinistral slips, we interpret the N65°E and the N10°E faults as right-lateral (second order) shear and left-lateral (third order) shear, respectively. Due to the particular location of the Palinuro Seamount, the data presented here allow us to better understand the volcanism and the geodynamic processes of the Tyrrhenian Sea.

A high-resolution morphological and geological inspection was carried out on the Palinuro Bank (39 300N, 14 480E), a volcanic complex made by several, coalescent volcanic features located on the Cam- panian continental slope (Eastern Tyrrhenian Sea, Italy). A shallow ( 84 m asl) volcanic edifice, char- acterized by a flat top modelled surface, is present on its central sector. The use of a very high-resolution Digital Terrain Model allowed recognition of the presence of relict morphologies (perhaps notches/inner margins) related to the past sea-level still-stands. Three depth levels of paleo-shorelines markers are located at 90 m, 100 m, and 123 m, respectively. In addiction, the truncated shape of the cone itself, located between 84 m and 130 m, could be interpreted as a tilted marine terrace. Breaks in slope produced by terrace landforms caused oversteepening that could have triggered lateral collapses both on the northern and southern flanks of the Bank, as suggested by the presence of steep slopes (25e40 ) and indicated by acoustic facies on chirp high-resolution mono-channel seismic profiles. The results allow further hypotheses on vertical displacement between the western sector of the Palinuro Bank, where caldera shapes are present, and the central sector, made by shallower volcanic cones. These two sectors also differ in terms of magnetic properties.

The analyses of water and sediment samples, collected at 24 marine stations in a coastal area (Gulf of Gaeta, central Tyrrhenian Sea) during a three year survey (2012–2014), have improved our knowledge of coccolithophore ecology in the Mediterranean neritic domain. A comparison between the results and the oceanographic data has highlighted the ecology of the considered groups, and quantified the relationship between the community structures and the environmental parameters. The coccosphere concentration measured in the Gulf of Gaeta is extremely variable over the sampling periods (min:64 l−1; max:2.4*105 l−1), and comparable with data from other Mediterranean sites. Placolith-bearing taxa are the dominant group of the living communities. The concentration and distribution of Emiliania huxleyi is controlled by the distance from the coast and the Volturno River runoff. The K-strategist taxa are an important component of the summer nannoplankton in the upper 15m and in the sediment samples. These taxa are also related to summer oligotrophic warm waters and low turbidity as well. The opportunistic behaviour of Helicosphaera carteri is confirmed and is related to moderately elevated nutrient levels and also tolerance to low salinity and terrigenous input. Nevertheless, our findings raise some questions on the reliability of H. carteri as a low salinity proxy. Overall, the sediment assemblages reflect the composition and the temporal distribution of the living communities. The occurrence and distribution of abundant reworked coccoliths, both in water and sediments, provides useful information about coastal dynamics and confirm their use as a reliable runoff proxy.

In this paper we present a correlation between volcanic structures and magnetic anomalies in the Gulf of Naples (Southern Tyrrhenian Sea) based on high resolution magnetic profiling. A densely spaced grid of magnetic profiles coupled with multichannel seismics (seismic source Watergun 15 cubic inch) was recorded in the Gulf of Naples, representing an active volcanic area during the Late Quaternary (volcanic centers of Somma-Vesuvius, Phlegraean Fields and Ischia and Procida islands). The dataset was collected during the oceanographic cruise GMS00-05 which took place during October-November 2000 in the South Tyrrhenian Sea onboard of the R/V Urania (National Research Council, Italy). Shallow volcanic structures in the subsurface of the gulf were recognized by seismo-stratigraphic analysis of high resolution profiles; the volcanic nature of some of these structures was inferred identifying the magnetic anomalies on a high resolution magnetic anomaly map of the gulf. Even if qualitative, the correlations between seismic and magnetic profiles allow us to better assess the geological structure of the Gulf of Naples.

Cruise STR06 on R/V Urania was performed in the framework of the ”INGV - DPC V2 - Monitoring and research activity at Stromboli and Panarea - Unit V2/03”, and resulted as a joint initiative between CNR (IAMC, Napoli and ISMAR, Bologna), INGV (Roma2, Osservatorio Vesuviano, Catania, Gibilmanna-CNT), University of Firenze and DPC, aiming to produce a seismic tomography of the Stromboli volcano, South Eastern Tyrrhenian Sea [Fig.1], and have insights into its 2-D structure and magma chambers. Cruise work plan was designed to extend at sea the existing Seismographic Network, complemented by several mobile stations, and to generate seismic shots by air-gun tuned array. 10 OBS were deployed around Stromboli, along the NE, SE and SW flanks of the volcano, according to (a) morphobathymetric analysis of available and newly produced DTMs, (b) modeling and (c) optimal lineaments with on-land recording stations. Seismic shots along radial and circle lines were obtained by a 4 GI-GUN 105+105 C.I. tuned array, while the absolute shot time was recorded at the resolution of ms. A request for ship time of R/V Uraniawas presented by IAMC, and a period of 7 days, including 2 day of transit was assigned to the project by CNR and scheduled for late November 2006. Cruise STR06 started in Naples 2006-11-27 and ended in Naples 2006-12-06. This paper reports the shipboard activities during the cruise STR06 on R/V Urania and some preliminary results regarding also the onshore activities carried out in order to perform the Stromboli geophysical experiment. A description of the ship, equipment and their usage is given thereinafter, along with details of the general settings, performances and some scientific and technical results.

Records of geomagnetic secular variation have been obtained from three cores recovered from the Salerno Gulf (southern Italy). High-resolution petrophysical and palaeomagnetic measurements enabled the reconstruction of a composite curve of geomagnetic palaeosecular variation (PSV), which is compared with the reconstructed PSV curve from Britain and with the French archaeomagnetic data of the last 2.1 ka. The good agreement of the Salerno Gulf record with the above data confirms that our PSV record reaches back for some 9.0ka. In addition to a thick pumice layer originated during the Somma-Vesuvius eruption at 79, two other tephra layers were recognized, at about 1.3 and 3.0 ka BP, that are probably also of Vesuvian origin. The comparison provides an initial chronological framework for assessing the increasing trend of sedimentation rate and its significant changes at about 2.7 ka and 7.0 ka BP. This variation in the deposition rate suggests a link with climatic changes recognized in the Mediterranean region.

From 25 November to 2 December 2006, the first active seismic tomography experiment at Stromboli volcano was carried out with the cooperation of four Italian research institutions. Researchers on board the R/V Urania of the Italian National Council of Research (CNR), which was equipped with a battery of four 210- cubic- inch generated injection air guns (GI guns), fired more than 1500 offshore shots along profiles and rings around the volcano.