Case History Comparison between reprocessed seismic profiles: Seismologic and geologic data — A case study of the Colfiorito earthquake area

Abstract

Seismic reflection data are used to reconstruct the sub- surface geologic structures below the Umbria-Marche region in Italy, a highly seismogenic area with a recent history of seismic activity (the 1997–1998 Colfiorito sequence). We reprocess three vibroseis seismic profiles (acquired in the early 1980s for hydrocarbon explo- ration) whose stacked sections were optimized for relatively deep oil targets. On the reprocessed seismic profile closest to the epicentral area, we construct the main reflectors to a depth of about 4 s (two-way time) and compare this interpretation with the available hypocenters of the 1997 earthquakes. The improvements in visualizing the shallow and deep reflections provide a better correlation between the re- flectors and the observed surface structures as well as a better delineation of the basement-rock geometry. We find that part of the Colfiorito sequence is localized around some of the reflectors in the reflection profile, which we interpret as related to the active normal faults that outcrop at the surface.