Shear‐Velocity Structure and Dynamics Beneath the Sicily Channel and Surrounding Regions of the Central Mediterranean Inferred From Seismic Surface Waves

Agius, Matthew; Magrini, Fabrizio; Diaferia, Giovanni; Kästle, Emanuel; Cammarano, Fabio; Faccenna, Claudio; Funiciello, Francesca; Meijde, M. van der

doi:10.1029/2022gc010394

Cited by 7 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 174 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…3 b. In the same plot the Moho depth 48 , and the litho-asthenospheric boundary (LAB) 49 are shown as well. …”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 93%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Seismic anisotropy to investigate lithospheric-scale tectonic structures and mantle dynamics in southern Italy

Scarfì,

Firetto Carlino,

Musumeci

2023

Sci Rep

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Subduction zones may be characterised by deep-seated tectonic structures whose effects propagate to the upper plate through faulting and magmatism. The overall geodynamic framework, as well as the roots of the many active faults affecting such regions, can be investigated by the study of the upper mantle anisotropic patterns, through the analysis of core-transiting teleseismic phases. Here, we discuss the results of XKS waves splitting observed in the central Mediterranean, particularly in southern Italy, which is characterised by the Adriatic-Ionian subduction system. Azimuths of polarisation of the fast wave (fast directions) were found to be generally trench-parallel, as an effect of the subducting slab, albeit a change to a perpendicular direction, in central Italy and Sicily, suggests discontinuities in the structure of the slab itself. However, while in central Italy a gradual rotation of fast directions points to a toroidal upper mantle flow through a tear in the Apenninic slab, in central-eastern Sicily, the splitting parameters show an abrupt change that matches well with the main crustal tectonic structures. There, the rapid trench migration, taking place at the transition between the subduction and continental collision domains, produced a rather complex Subduction Transform Edge Propagator fault system. The sharp variation in the pattern of the upper mantle anisotropy marks the main element of such a fault system and suggests its primary role in the segmentation process of the collisional margin. Our findings further show that the study of seismic anisotropy may be fundamental in investigating whether tectonic structures only involve the crust or extend down to the upper mantle.

show abstract

“…3 b. In the same plot the Moho depth 48 , and the litho-asthenospheric boundary (LAB) 49 are shown as well. …”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 93%

“…4 we show a profile running along the whole study area (trace in Fig. 3 b), where the depth of the Moho 48 and of the litho-asthenospheric boundary (LAB) 49 are shown, together with the estimated thickness of the anisotropic layer. It indicates that the anisotropy in the upper mantle involves, at least partially, the asthenosphere.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Seismic anisotropy to investigate lithospheric-scale tectonic structures and mantle dynamics in southern Italy

Scarfì,

Firetto Carlino,

Musumeci

2023

Sci Rep

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…If one of the sensors is considered to be an impulsive source, the retrieval of Green's function between two sensors yields the impulse response of the Earth recorded at the other sensor [49]. Cross-correlation of ambient seismic noise is a powerful tool for imaging the Earth's interior on a local, regional, or global scale (e.g., [38,46,[50][51][52][53][54][55][56][57]).…”

Section: Ambient Seismic Noise Correlationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Monitoring of Groundwater in a Limestone Island Aquifer Using Ambient Seismic Noise

Laudi

Agius

Galea

et al. 2023

Water

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The limestone islands of Malta face high levels of water stress due to low rainfall over a small land area and a high population density. We investigate an innovative, cost-effective approach to groundwater monitoring in an island environment by computing auto- and cross-correlations of ambient seismic noise recorded on short-period and broadband seismic stations. While borehole readings give accurate site-specific water level data of the groundwater across the islands, this technique provides a more regional approach to quantitative groundwater monitoring. We perform the moving window cross-spectral method to determine temporal changes in seismic velocity (δv/v). Comparison of the δv/v with groundwater levels from boreholes and precipitation shows comparable patterns. We find that the variations of the δv/v from auto-correlations are more pronounced than the cross-correlation, and that short-period seismic stations are also sensitive. The δv/v signal deteriorates at longer interstation distances, presumably because paths traverse complex geology. We conclude that changes in the groundwater level found beneath very small islands, even as small as 3 km2, can be detected seismically. Low-cost, easy-to-deploy seismic stations can thus act as an additional tool for groundwater monitoring, especially in places with limited natural water reservoirs, like rivers and lakes, and infrastructure.

show abstract

“…The latter shows a medium value of 25-30 km in the Mediterranean area (Finetti, 1984;Finetti and Del Ben, 2005;Micallef et al, 2019) and it decreases to 12-15 km at the current Gela Front, which is more advanced than the surrounding areas due to a less thick crust (Catalano et al, 2000;Civile et al, 2008). Seismic and gravimetric data also shows that the crust is less than 20 km (with local Moho's rising) in the Pantelleria, Linosa, and Malta basins (Scarascia et al, 1994;Finetti and Del Ben, 2005;Agius et al, 2022). Much uncertainty in this area relates to the timing and the causes of positive inversions in the Sicily Channel area (Civile et al, 2008).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Is the Sicily Channel a Simple Rifting Zone? New Evidence from Seismic Analysis with Geodynamic Implications

Maiorana¹,

Artoni

Sulli³

et al. 2022

SSRN Journal

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Shear‐Velocity Structure and Dynamics Beneath the Sicily Channel and Surrounding Regions of the Central Mediterranean Inferred From Seismic Surface Waves

Cited by 7 publications

References 174 publications

Seismic anisotropy to investigate lithospheric-scale tectonic structures and mantle dynamics in southern Italy

Seismic anisotropy to investigate lithospheric-scale tectonic structures and mantle dynamics in southern Italy

Monitoring of Groundwater in a Limestone Island Aquifer Using Ambient Seismic Noise

Is the Sicily Channel a Simple Rifting Zone? New Evidence from Seismic Analysis with Geodynamic Implications

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About