Search results for "SicilY"

Astronomical dating of two Pliocene alkaline volcanic ash layers in the Capo Rossello area (southern Sicily, Italy): implications for the beginning o…

2009

Key-words. - Sicily Channel rift, Biostratigraphy, Astronomical calibration, Pliocene, Volcanic ash layers. Abstract. - Two volcaniclastic ash layers (AL1 and AL2) are intercalated throughout the middle Pliocene sedimentary sequences of Punta Piccola and Capo Rossello exposed along the south coast of Sicily (Italy). Astronomical calibration of the Punta Piccola section provided an age of 2.676 Ma for the deposition of the AL1 layer. The high-resolution bio-cyclostratigraphy of the Capo Rossello section, in combination with detailed correlations with previously astrono- mically calibrated coeval sequences, provided an age of 2.225 Ma for the deposition of the AL2 layer. Mineralogical, petrog…

Subsurface geometries in central sicily FTB as a premise for hydrocarbon exploration

2008

The study concerns a sector of the Maghrebian Sicilian Fold and Thrust Belt (FTB), located in central Sicily between the southern edge of the Madonie Mts. and the Caltanissetta trough. Interpretation of recently acquired seismic profiles, constrained by joint detailed stratigraphy and field investigation, revealed the structure of the study area as formed by a thick pile of deep water carbonate (Imerese and Sicanian) thrusts lying on carbonate platform imbricates. In the forward migration of the FTB, two main tectonic events were envisaged; shallow and deep seated thrusts occurred during the Miocene-early Pleistocene time interval that deformed the former sedimentary cover of the continenta…

WALKING ALONG A CRUSTAL PROFILE ACROSS THE SICILY FOLD AND THRUST BELT

2013

Using high-resolution stratigraphy and structural analysis to constrain a “polyphase” tectonics in wedge-top basins. Inferences from the Late Tortoni…

2012

Abstract The present paper aims to show, both from a stratigraphic and structural points of view, the main features of a wedge-top syntectonic basin which evolved recording polyphase and non-coaxial tectonics. The study area is the Scillato Basin ( SB ), a roughly N–S-oriented structural depression located in the central-northern sector of the Sicililian Maghrebides. There, an approximately 1300 m-thick upper Serravallian to upper Tortonian succession of clastic units outcrops as a portion of the Neogene syntectonic covers of the Sicilian fold and thrust belt. Within the outcropping succession the upper Tortonian Terravecchia Fm represents the main topic of this paper. A multidisciplinary a…

Tidal currents in the Malta - Sicily Channel from high-frequency radar observations

2015

Two years of sea surface current measurements acquired since August 2012 by High-Frequency SeaSonde radars over the relatively shallow shelf area dividing the Maltese Islands from Sicily (the Malta - Sicily Channel), are used to characterize the surface tidal currents in the region. Tidal currents are generally weak and concentrated in the semidiurnal and diurnal bands, barely exceeding 3cms-1 in the semidiurnal band (M2, S2), and below 6cms-1 in the diurnal band (K1, O1). In the middle part of the basin, the M2 currents oscillate along the main Channel axis; on the contrary the S2 oscillations are oriented along the energetic Atlantic Ionian Stream (AIS) flow. Diurnal tides have a more cir…

Mesozoic tectono-sedimentary evolution of Rocca Busambra in western Sicily

2008

The Rocca Busambra ridge in western Sicily is a shallow to pelagic Meso-Cenozoic carbonate structural unit of the Sicilian fold and thrust belt with a variety of tectono-sedimentary features. Palaeofaults, unconformities (buttress unconformity, onlap, downlap), a network of neptunian dykes with several infilling generations, several large hiatuses, different facies and lateral facies changes, and erosional submarine and subaerial surfaces are observed. Detailed fieldwork and structural analyses have indicated the occurrence of fault planes with different orientations. These data, combined with facies studies and physical-stratigraphy analyses, allow for the distinction of different depositi…

Pantelleria island (Strait of Sicily): volcanic history and geomorphological landscape

2017

Pantelleria is a volcanic island located in the Strait of Sicily, 95 km far from the Sicilian coastline and 67 km from Cape Bon (Tunisia). The volcanological history of the island begins approximately 324 ka BP and the last eruptive event was a submarine eruption that occurred on 1891 A.D. Eruptive activity was characterized by seven very intense explosive events, the latest being the Green Tuff (44 ka). They have all produced ignimbrite sheets that covered large sectors of the island. The landscape of the island mirrors the variety of the eruptive styles and their interplay with volcano-tectonics. The most evident geomorphological features are represented by: (i) the mantle-like distributi…

Distribution and spatial structure of pelagic fish schools in relation to the nature of the seabed in the Sicily Channel (Central Mediterranean).

2009

Hydroacoustic data collected during two echosurveys carried out in the Sicily Channel in 1998 and 2002 were analysed to investigate the distribution and spatial structure of small pelagic fish species in relation to the sedimentological nature of the sea bottom. The study was carried out on two contiguous areas (labelled ZONE 1 and ZONE 2) of the continental shelf off the southern coast of Sicily, characterised by different dominant texture, ‘sand’ for ZONE 1 and ‘clayey-silt’ for ZONE 2. Simultaneous information on small pelagic fish schools and the seabed was obtained using a quantitative echo-sounder (SIMRAD EK500) that measures echoes due to the scattering from both fish schools and the…

Growth of Arundo donax L. and Cyperus alternifolius L. in a horizontal subsurface flow constructed wetland using pre-treated urban wastewater - a cas…

2013

Constructed wetland systems for wastewater treatment represent an excellent opportunity for the recovery of water resources in those areas subject to prolonged periods of water shortage. This paper presents a study of the efficiency of a pilot horizontal subsurface flow system using pre-treated urban wastewater from a small town in the West of Sicily. The pilot system had a total surface area of 100 m2 with two units. Unit A was planted with Arundo donax L. and unit B with Cyperus alternifolius L. The HLR was 10 cm d-1. The main objectives of research were to evaluate the growth and biomass yield of two macrophytes and determine the removal efficiency of physical-chemical and microbiologica…

Modelling groundwater processes in a carbonate catchment: a case study from the Madonie area (Northern Sicily)

2011

Abstract This study reports on the results of a hydrogeochemical survey carried out in the Madonie area, a carbonate massif located in Palermo Province, Northern Sicily. The large dataset (226 collected sites) is used to highlight the processes controlling the distribution of dissolved chemicals in groundwaters; and, more importantly, to develop a general model (based on reaction-path modelling, and using the EQ3/6 code) of rock–water reactions in a carbonate environment. The investigated groundwater samples have conductivity between 31.7 and 8220 μS/cm; their total dissolved solids (TDS) content is higher near the coast area, where the seawater contribution becomes important. Calcium and H…