Felt index, source parameters and ground motion evaluation for earthquakes at Mt. Vesuvius

Results of non-instrumental surveys carried out on the recent and past seismicity at Vesuvius fave been retaken in order to propose new analyses regarding source mechanisms and causative faults. We present the results of the October 9, 1999 earthquake, the most intense event since the 1944 eruption

Analysis of historical and present earthquakes at Vesuvius for seismic hazard evaluation

Introduction At Vesuvius about 600,000 people live on the volcano and the risk associated to a large eruption is very high, but its complete evaluation includes also the potential damage due to earthquakes accompanying eruptions. Moreover low-moderate energy earthquakes are also observed in volcanic active areas during quiescent periods. Generally such events are shallow and produce high intensities in the epicentral area. Today at Vesuvius the high housing density and economic value exposed make the area of considerable importance for mitigating seismic risk. To evaluate the effects of the earthquakes at Vesuvius, data are required on the location, source mechanism and damage levels of historical earthquakes, in addition to understanding how Vesuvius works. A damage map of the maximum earthquake recorded is proposed

Felt index, source parameters and ground motion evaluation for earthquakes at Mt. Vesuvius

Results of non-instrumental surveys carried out on the recent and past seismicity at Vesuvius fave been retaken in order to propose new analyses regarding source mechanisms and causative faults. We present the results of the October 9, 1999 earthquake, the most intense event since the 1944 eruption

Analysis of historical and recent earthquakes at Campi Flegrei caldera for seismic hazard evaluation

Introduction At Campi Flegrei about 500,000 people live on caldera and the risk associated to an eruption is very high, but its complete evaluation includes also the potential damage due to earthquakes accompanying eruptions. Moreover low-moderate energy earthquakes are also observed in volcanic active areas during quiescent periods. Generally such events are shallow and produce high intensities in the epicentral area. Today at Campi Flegrei the high housing density and economic value exposed make the area of considerable importance for mitigating seismic risk. To evaluate the effects of the earthquakes at Campi Flegrei, data are required on the location, source mechanism and damage levels of earthquakes, in addition to understanding how dynamic processes occur. A damage map of the maximum earthquake expected is proposed

Historical eartquakes at Ischia island and seismic hazard assessment

Hystorical data of seismicity at Ischia island (Southern Italy) cover a period of almost 800 years. Since 1228 numerous events exceeded VII MCS degree. The epicentral areas of the earthquakes are located in the northern sector of the island; only one earthquake (1302, VIII MCS degree) was correlated with the latter eruption occurred during 1301-02 AD along the eastern sector of the island. In few cases the earthquakes (1228, 1863, 1881, 1883 AD) were followed by landslides which have produces serious damage while, in average, ground effects (i.e. fractures, capacity and temperature variation of hot springs) were often observed before and after each event. The historical seismicity of Ischia shows the peculiar characteristics of volcanic earthquakes as shallow ipocentral depth ( 1 km), high intensity, strong directional attenuation of effects and local amplification of damages. At Ischia, the 1883 AD earthquake of “Casamicciola” represents the unique example of modern age earthquake in Mediterranean volcanic area which produced more than 2300 fatalities. The catastrophic effects of this earthquake (Imax=XI MCS degree) covered an area of about 3 km2 in the northern sector of the island, while strong attenuation effects were observed, especially along the south and east directions. From 1883 AD until today a seismic silence in the island has been observed. Some events have been felt from the beginning of the 20th century while, in the last 10 years just few events (M < 2), have been recorded by the INGV-OV surveillance seismic network, localized prevalently in the northern sector of the island. The lack of significant seismicity allow the study of macroseimic data of 1883 earthquake as the fundament issue for hazard assessment, also if considering the increasing of housing density and the high exposed value in the island. Data of earthquake damages and ground effects, obtained by archives sources and literature, have been utilized (also using GIS cross-correlation with geological data) in order to evaluate the tendency of the attenuation for different zones of the island, to detach the contribution of the source from the medium, and define the zones of maximum expected damage

A Review of Leadership Theory and Competency Frameworks

This report presents a review of leadership theory and competency frameworks that was commissioned to assist the development of the new National Occupational Standards in Management and Leadership. The report begins with a review of leadership theories and tracks their evolution over the past 70 years from the “great man” notion of heroic leaders, through trait theories, behaviourist theories, situational leadership, contingency theory and on to transactional and transformational leadership. Each of these offers some insights into the qualities of successful leaders, but there has been a shift in focus from the generic characteristics and behaviours of the individual to a recognition of the importance of responding to different situations and contexts and the leaders’ role in relation to followers. The review concludes with an introduction to the notion of “dispersed leadership” and a distinction between the process of “leadership” and the socially-constructed role of “leader”. The next section, on Leadership Models and Competency Frameworks, presents a range of leadership and management frameworks currently being used in organisations. These define the qualities required of people in leadership positions and help to inform the leadership development process. Seven private-sector, nine public sector and eight generic frameworks are discussed and web links to the full models included where available. The following section gives a brief overview of a selection of leadership development initiatives both associated with, and as alternatives to, a leadership competencies framework. The aim of this is to give an indication of how different techniques can be used to develop leadership capability within individuals and organisations and how this relates to the underlying philosophy of the programme. The section on Providing Governance, describes the key legal and ethical responsibilities of Directors and an indication of the kinds of skills, behaviours and values required to achieve these. The report concludes with a discussion of the competency framework approach to leadership and leadership development and a proposal as to alternative ways of addressing these issues. It is concluded that whilst this approach has its strengths, it leads to a particularly individualistic notion of leadership and a relatively prescribed approach to leadership development. The changing nature of work and society, it is argued, may demand new approaches that encourage a more collective and emergent view of leadership and leadership development and of sharing the role of “leader” more widely within organisations.Chase Consulting; Management Standards Centr

Terremoto del 29 dicembre 2013 nel Matese (MW = 5.0). Indagine speditiva degli effetti nell’area epicentrale e analisi preliminare della sequenza sismica.

Il 29 dicembre 2013 un terremoto di magnitudo Mw=5.0 (profondità 10.5 km) è avvenuto nell'area dei Monti del Matese alle ore 18:08:43 ora locale

L'Osservatorio Geofisico di Lipari ed i 40 anni della Rete Sismica Permanente del Tirreno Meridionale

In 1966, the Istituto Internazionale di Vulcanologia (I.I.V.), gave the go ahead to the ambitious project of setting up a seismic network in the southern Tyrrhenian Sea, an area of extraordinary geophysical interest, which until then was not covered by seismic monitoring. At the time, there were single seismic stations on the rest of the italian peninsula. These were inside universities, public and private bodies and at the numerous observatories of the Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica (founded in 1936 by Antonino Lo Surdo and becoming independent of the Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche (C.N.R,. in 1945) and still used mechanical seismographs, with masses weighing from 80 up to 1300 Kg. On the Aeolian Islands instead, electromagnetic seismometers were employed from the start. The experimental network, planned in the Willmore laboratories at Edinburgh and tested in the Aeolian Islands over a two-year period, represented the starting point for the Permanent Seismic Network (PSN) of the Southern Tyrrhenian. After the experience of the Laboratorio Internazionale per le Ricerche Vulcanologiche (L.I.R.V. - C.N.R.), of the Istituto di Vulcanologia of the University of Catania, the independent I.I.V. - C.N.R., together with the observatory, was launched in 1969. In the course of the seventies, every island of the Aeolian archipelago, was equipped with at least a seismic station and the 3 sensor systems (triaxial systems) began to become widely used. In the eighties, the “Sismologia Eolie” project was started, aimed at a further develop and update the seismic net. With the wide use of magnetic tape recording, the instrumental data stored could be more readily transported on suitable drums to the main centre in Catania for analysis. Here, Research Units were established in order to prepare the way for enhanced interaction between technical staff and research groups. The instrumental geophysical investigations, progressively extended and in a permanente form to Eastern Sicily and particular around Etna. From the nineties, operations room in Catania was fully active, working 24/24, and ensuring the seismic and volcanic surveillance of Etna, Stromboli and Vulcano. The Geophysical Observatory of Lipari and the main centre of the Institute in Catania, were merged in 2001 into the new Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia (INGV) and the network of the Aeolian Islands became an integral part of the Permanent Seismic Network (PSN) of Eastern Sicily and Southern Calabria. Special prominence will be given in the course of this historical reconstruction to the evolution of instrumental seismology, thanks to forty years of continuous input, indispensable for the understanding of the seismogenetic processes in the area, this still represents the chief undertaking of the geophysical observatory on Lipari, whose important scientific but also social role must be acknowledged in the growing interaction between research and civil protection

Numerical fluid dynamics simulation for drones’ chemical detection

The risk associated with chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, and explosive (CBRNe) threats in the last two decades has grown as a result of easier access to hazardous materials and agents, potentially increasing the chance for dangerous events. Consequently, early detection of a threat following a CBRNe event is a mandatory requirement for the safety and security of human operators involved in the management of the emergency. Drones are nowadays one of the most advanced and versatile tools available, and they have proven to be successfully used in many different application fields. The use of drones equipped with inexpensive and selective detectors could be both a solution to improve the early detection of threats and, at the same time, a solution for human operators to prevent dangerous situations. To maximize the drone’s capability of detecting dangerous volatile substances, fluid dynamics numerical simulations may be used to understand the optimal configuration of the detectors positioned on the drone. This study serves as a first step to investigate how the fluid dynamics of the drone propeller flow and the different sensors position on-board could affect the conditioning and acquisition of data. The first consequence of this approach may lead to optimizing the position of the detectors on the drone based not only on the specific technology of the sensor, but also on the type of chemical agent dispersed in the environment, eventually allowing to define a technological solution to enhance the detection process and ensure the safety and security of first responders

Enhancing Radiation Detection by Drones through Numerical Fluid Dynamics Simulations

This study addresses the optimization of the location of a radioactive-particle sensor on a drone. Based on the analysis of the physical process and of the boundary conditions introduced in the model, computational fluid dynamics simulations were performed to analyze how the turbulence caused by drone propellers may influence the response of the sensors. Our initial focus was the detection of a small amount of radioactivity, such as that associated with a release of medical waste. Drones equipped with selective low-cost sensors could be quickly sent to dangerous areas that first responders might not have access to and be able to assess the level of danger in a few seconds, providing details about the source terms to Radiological-Nuclear (RN) advisors and decision-makers. Our ultimate application is the simulation of complex scenarios where fluid-dynamic instabilities are combined with elevated levels of radioactivity, as was the case during the Chernobyl and Fukushima nuclear power plant accidents. In similar circumstances, accurate mapping of the radioactive plume would provide invaluable input-data for the mathematical models that can predict the dispersion of radioactivity in time and space. This information could be used as input for predictive models and decision support systems (DSS) to get a full situational awareness. In particular, these models may be used either to guide the safe intervention of first responders or the later need to evacuate affected regions