Ricco, Ciro

We discuss some relevant results obtained in recent works on the Neapolitan Volcanoes, i.e., Campi Flegrei, Ischia, and Vesuvius (southern Italy) regarding the coupling between ground deformation detected by tiltmeters and volcano-tectonic seismicity. Great interest is devoted to those volcanoes because of the high level of volcanic risk, to which the inhabitants are exposed. Indeed, continuous and dense monitoring of their activity is provided by the Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica Vulcanologia, which employs different types of instrumentation, among which borehole tiltmeters and seismic networks. The works we consider in the present review focus on the link between seismicity and ground tilt anomalies covering the years 2015–2022. In detail, for the Campi Flegrei caldera, a significant variation in the tiltmeter pattern has been identified. Such anomaly indicates a transition to a different dynamical regime starting since 2020, also supported by some changes in the seismicity, ground temperatures of the fumarolic field, gravimetric and geochemical parameters. Concerning Ischia Island, a variation in the main tilt direction, which switched from NNW to NNE, has been detected in response to the Md 4.0 earthquake that occurred on 21 August 2017. Finally, at Vesuvius the relation among seismicity, ground inclination, and geochemical observables was investigated over the time interval 2012–2020 providing evidence of several simultaneous anomalies as proxies of the dynamical evolution of the volcanic system. Moreover, the comparison of the static displacement induced by seismicity with the measured tilt sheds light on the strict link between these two observables. The joint analyses of the seismic and tiltmeter signals represent a powerful tool for unraveling the volcanic dynamics and separating inner sources from external contributions.

Shallow magma transfer is difficult to detect at poorly monitored volcanoes. Magma transfer before the last 1538 eruption at Campi Flegrei caldera (Italy) was exceptionally tracked using historical, archeological, and geological data. Here, we extend that data set to 1650 to uncover any magma transfer during post-eruptive subsidence. Results show two post-eruptive subsidence phases, separated by a previously undocumented uplift during 1540–1582. Uplift highlights the pressurization of the central (∼3.5 km depth) and peripheral (∼1 km depth) pre-eruptive sources, suggesting an aborted eruption. The subsidence events mainly require the depressurization of the central source and pressurization of a deeper magmatic layer (∼8 km depth). Therefore, despite the overall post-eruptive deflation, after 1538 the deeper reservoir experienced continuous magma supply, with magma almost erupting between 1540 and 1582, challenging the common assumption of post-eruptive deflation. This underlies the importance of monitoring the deeper magmatic systems, also after eruptions, to properly assess their eruptive potential.

The study of the ground deformation in active calderas provides valuable indications of the ongoing dynamical processes. In this framework, we analyze the borehole tiltmeter data recorded at Campi Flegrei (Southern Italy) from their first installation (1 April 2015), in order to retrieve the kinematics of the ground deformation and its main anomalies. Our approach involves the nonlinear dynamics analysis aimed at the identification of the degrees of freedom of the system and thus its complexity. Starting from the second part of the year 2020, the behavior of the dynamical system becomes collective, and a locally significant deviation of the deformative pattern from the background trend is observed. In particular, a series of 15 slow tilt variations (like jumps lasting a few days) appears in the ground deformation. They are associated with a very low-dimensional system likely generated by a local second-order source. The latter is related to fluid migration and it is superimposed on the primary one located in Pozzuoli town and driving the current uplift of Campi Flegrei. The effects of such a local, second-order stress field are, indeed, evident in the area of the volcanic dome of Mt. Olibano, where they are measured as tilt steps. The superposition of primary and second-order sources of deformation acting contemporaneously can justify the recent variations in geophysical and geochemical parameters. Our approach based on the joint dynamical and kinematical analyses of the tiltmeter data can be applied to other volcanic/tectonic areas or extended to other geophysical and geochemical variables.

One of the strategies to detect the precursors of an eruption is to define the background dynamical state of a volcano for a prompt recognition of deviations from the basic condition. Mt. Vesuvius (Italy), currently in a quiescent state, is one of the most monitored volcanoes in the world, inciting multidisciplinary advanced studies. Hence an understanding of the links among the different monitored parameters is mandatory. In recent decades the joint analyses of ground tilt and seismicity have added to the understanding of the volcanos' activity. In this paper, we outline the first steps towards a comprehension of the link between Mt. Vesuvius earthquakes and co-seismic ground tilt, after excluding the contribution of other external forces acting on the ground, such as tides, landslides or exceptional meteorological phenomena. We used the seismicity with a duration magnitude ≥ 2.0 recorded at Mt. Vesuvius in the period 2018–2020 to estimate the source parameters and to calculate the associated static displacement. Then, we compared the ground inclination retrieved from the estimated seismic deformation with the long-term ground motion trend measured by tiltmeters. We found that in most cases the two vectors have a comparable size and direction.

This work provides the mean ground deformation rates and ground displacement time series of the Campi Flegrei caldera (Italy) retrieved by satellite remote sensing data analysis from 1992 to 2021. Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) images acquired by ERS 1-2 (1992-2002), Envisat (2003-2011) and Cosmo-SkyMed (2011-2021) are processed by multi-temporal SAR Interferometry (InSAR) approach using the same technique, parameters and reference system, to obtain for the first time a homogeneous and time-continuous dataset. The validation of the InSAR products is carried out by comparison with the measurements provided by precise levelling lines and cGNSS stations. The produced outcomes offer an overview on the temporal behaviour of ground deformation at Campi Flegrei along an unprecedented time window of about 30 years and can be exploited by the scientific community for supporting and improving the knowledge of the dynamics of the caldera.

We present the main features of the permanent monitoring system managed by the Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia-Osservatorio Vesuviano in the Campi Flegrei caldera. Eruptive history of this active volcano shows that the majority of the eruptive events has been characterised by high explosivity and was accompanied by pyroclastic density currents. Its last eruption occurred in AD 1538 and in the next centuries the Campi Flegrei caldera has experienced several episodes of bradyseism and also the progressive increasing of the urbanisation in the area (west of Naples). Monitoring the dynamics of a mainly explosive volcano completely embedded in a very populated area is a challenging task. In order to detect any variation in the physical and chemical parameters of the Campi Flegrei caldera, the Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia-Osservatorio Vesuviano manages a permanent multi-parametric monitoring system. All the recorded h24 continuous data are transmitted to the Monitoring Room of the Osservatorio Vesuviano in Naples, where they are acquired, processed and evaluated to define changes in the dynamical state of the volcano. The caldera, since the end of 2004, is experiencing a bradyseismic episode characterised by a low velocity rate uplift, low energy earthquakes and increasing in the magmatic components of fumarolic fluids. The monitoring and surveillance activity of the Campi Flegrei caldera plays a crucial role in the volcanic emergency plan that includes evacuation of approximately 500,000 people before the beginning of the eruption.

Volcanoes are complex systems whose dynamics is the result of the interplay between endogenous and exogenous processes. External forcing on volcanic activity by seasonal hydrological variations can influence the evolution of a volcanic system; yet the underlying mechanisms remain poorly understood. In the present study, we analyse ground tilt, seismicity rates and rainfall amount recorded over 6 years (2015–2021) at Vesuvius and Campi Flegrei, two volcanic areas located in the south of Italy. The results indicate that at both volcanoes the ground deformation reflects the seasonality of the hydrological cycles, whereas seismicity shows a seasonal pattern only at Campi Flegrei. A correlation analysis on shorter time scales (days) indicates that at Vesuvius rain and ground tilt are poorly correlated, whereas rain and earthquakes are almost uncorrelated. Instead, at Campi Flegrei precipitations can affect not only ground deformation but also earthquake rate, through the combined action of water loading and diffusion processes in a fractured medium, likely fostered by the interaction with the shallow hydrothermal fluids. Our observations indicate a different behavior between the two volcanic systems: at Vesuvius, rain-induced hydrological variations poorly affect the normal background activity. On the contrary, such variations play a role in modulating the dynamics of those metastable volcanoes with significant hydrothermal system experiencing unrest, like Campi Flegrei.

L'Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia (INGV) è componente del Servizio Nazionale di Protezione Civile, ex articolo 6 della legge 24 febbraio 1992 n. 225 ed è Centro di Competenza per i fenomeni sismici, vulcanici e i maremoti per il Dipartimento della Protezione Civile Nazionale (DPC). L’Osservatorio Vesuviano, Sezione di Napoli dell’INGV, ha nei suoi compiti il monitoraggio e la sorveglianza H24/7 delle aree vulcaniche attive campane (Vesuvio, Campi Flegrei e Ischia). Tali attività sono disciplinate dall’Accordo-Quadro (AQ) sottoscritto tra il DPC e l’INGV per il decennio 2012-2021 e sono dettagliate negli Allegati A e B del suddetto AQ. Il presente Rapporto sul Monitoraggio dei Vulcani Campani rappresenta l’attività svolta dall’Osservatorio Vesuviano e dalle altre Sezioni INGV impegnate nel monitoraggio dell’area vulcanica campana nel secondo semestre 2019.

L'Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia (INGV) è componente del Servizio Nazionale di Protezione Civile, ex articolo 6 della legge 24 febbraio 1992 n. 225 ed è Centro di Competenza per i fenomeni sismici, vulcanici e i maremoti per il Dipartimento della Protezione Civile Nazionale (DPC). L’Osservatorio Vesuviano, Sezione di Napoli dell’INGV, ha nei suoi compiti il monitoraggio e la sorveglianza H24/7 delle aree vulcaniche attive campane (Vesuvio, Campi Flegrei e Ischia). Tali attività sono disciplinate dall’Accordo-Quadro (AQ) sottoscritto tra il DPC e l’INGV per il decennio 2012-2021 e sono dettagliate negli Allegati A e B del suddetto AQ. Il presente Rapporto sul Monitoraggio dei Vulcani Campani rappresenta l’attività svolta dall’Osservatorio Vesuviano e dalle altre Sezioni INGV impegnate nel monitoraggio dell’area vulcanica campana nel primo semestre 2019.

We reconstruct the composite dynamics of Mt. Vesuvius volcano in the period 2012–2019 from the study of ground deformation, seismicity, and geofluid (groundwater and fumarolic fluids) circulation and recognize complex spatio-temporal variations in these observables at medium (years) and short (months) time-scales. We interpret the observed patterns as the combined effect of structural changes affecting the volcanic edifice and variations of the dynamics of the hydrothermal system. In particular, we identify a change in the activity state of Mt. Vesuvius. After the activity reached minimum levels in 2014, the centroid of the surface manifestations migrated towards the SE. Episodic variations of co-seismic and aseismic deformation and fluid release, if analysed separately, would likely have been interpreted as pseudo-random oscillations of the background geophysical and geochemical signals. When organised in a comprehensive, multiparametric fashion, they shed light on the evolution of the volcano in 4D (x,y,z, time) space. These inferences play a crucial role in the formulation of civil protection scenarios for Mt. Vesuvius, a high risk, densely urbanized volcanic area which has never experienced unrest episodes in the modern era of instrumental volcanology.