Notulae to the Italian alien vascular flora: 11

In this contribution, new data concerning the distribution of vascular flora alien to Italy are presented. It includes new records, confirmations, exclusions, and status changes for Italy or for Italian administrative regions. Nomenclatural and distribution updates published elsewhere are provided as Suppl. material 1

An overview of the 20-year collaboration between NATO and earth scientists to assess geohazards in the caucasus and other critical regions

We hereby provide an overview of four multi-year projects on geohazard assessment and mitigation, carried out under the umbrella of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), with the involvement of more than 80 scientists coming from several countries, among which the US, Georgia, Italy, Russia, Azerbaijan. The projects have been aimed at enhancing the security of people and the safety of vital infrastructures as well as facilitating cooperation between scientists from NATO and non-NATO countries. The study areas are located in the Caucasus (Georgia), in Central Asia (Kyrgyzstan) and Northeast Asia (Kamchatka). Our work clearly demonstrates how Earth Science can contribute to improving scientific collaboration among countries that are politically in tension; moreover, geoscience can play a key role in preventing situations that may escalate into conflicts. This paper showcases the main results of the NATO-funded projects, both in terms of their scientific relevance and their geopolitical importance

An innovative application of the kinect in earth sciences: Quantifying deformation in analogue modelling of volcanoes

Measuring surface deformation is critical in analogue modelling of Earth science phenomena. Here, we present a novel application of the Microsoft Kinect sensor to measure vertical deformation in a scaled analogue model of Nisyros volcano (Greece), simulating two magmatic sources and related surface deformation. The Kinect permits capture of real time, 640 × 480 pixel, true-colour images (RGB) and a grid of distances to the modelled surface with a horizontal and vertical resolution of ±1 mm. Using recorded distances permits quantification of vertical deformation in terms of maximum and average down- and uplift during deflation and inflation phases respectively, which is of crucial importance for defining the kinematics of faults formed during the modelling, determined from interpretation of the RGB images. Although other techniques have demonstrated similar or higher accuracy, our study demonstrates the cost-effectiveness of the Kinect in analogue modelling of volcanoes. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd

Commercial-UAV-based structure from motion for geological and geohazard studies

In the present work we applied the use of the UAV-based Structure from Motion technique (SfM) to geological and geohazard studies, with emphasis placed on active tectonics and volcano-tectonics cases. Our aim is to obtain high-resolution orthomosaics and Digital Surface Models (DSMs) in two study areas: the Theistareykir Fissure Swarm within the Northern Volcanic Zone (NVZ) of Iceland and the active Khoko landslide, Enguri reservoir, in the Greater Caucasus, Georgia. The first is affected by seismic and volcanic hazard, the second by landslide and hydrogeological hazard. Regarding the NVZ, by analysing the resulting Orthomosaics and DSMs we collected a total of 453 quantitative measurements of the amount of opening and opening direction of Holocene extension fractures and 36 measurements of the height of fault scarps. These data allowed us to assess an overall spreading direction of N106.4° during Holocene times within the studied rift zone, which has been compared with geodetic motion vectors, and a stretching ratio of 1.013–1.017 for 8–10 ka old lava units. We conclude that deformation in the area is related to both dyke intrusions and extensional tectonics. In the Greater Caucasus, we applied the method to identify the main geomorphological features related to the Khoko landslide and to measure the scarp height of the principal slip surfaces, in order to improve geomorphological knowledge of the landslide, and contribute to the assessment of the hydrogeological hazard of the area. At a general level, our results suggest that the use of UAV-based SfM is a convenient and efficient way to collect plenty of data aimed at better assessing geohazards in areas prone to catastrophic natural phenomena like earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and landslides

Geosite Assessment and Communication: A Review

This work is aimed at reviewing the current state of the art in geosite selection, assessment, and communication. We first highlight the main papers that have defined paramount concepts such as geodiversity, geoheritage, and geosites. We then delve into the theoretical principles and guidelines that have been proposed over the last twenty years by researchers who have thoroughly illustrated how to individuate and assess geosites. In doing so, we illustrate notable field examples of applications of qualitative and quantitative assessments of geosites in places such as Serbia, India, Iceland, Ecuador, Sardinia (Italy), Egypt, Tasmania (Australia), and Brazil. The third part of this work is dedicated to illustrating a list (by no means exhaustive) of works that have tried to come up with innovative tools, strategies, and solutions to promote and communicate geosites. From our work, it appears that geosites can be extremely effective as fully fledged outreach tools capable of bridging the gap between Earth science and the lay public

Seismicity and magma intrusions at Yellowstone supervolcano: new insights

ISSN:1029-7006ISSN:1607-796

Fracture Kinematics and Holocene Stress Field at the Krafla Rift, Northern Iceland

In the Northern Volcanic Zone of Iceland, the geometry, kinematics and offset amount of the structures that form the active Krafla Rift were studied. This rift is composed of a central volcano and a swarm of extension fractures, normal faults and eruptive fissures, which were mapped and analysed through remote sensing and field techniques. In three areas, across the northern, central and southern part of the rift, detailed measurements were collected by extensive field surveys along the post-Late Glacial Maximum (LGM) extension fractures and normal faults, to reconstruct their strike, opening direction and dilation amount. The geometry and the distribution of all the studied structures suggest a northward propagation of the rift, and an interaction with the Húsavík–Flatey Fault. Although the opening direction at the extension fractures is mostly normal to the general N–S rift orientation (average value N99.5° E), a systematic occurrence of subordinate transcurrent components of motion is noticed. From the measured throw at each normal fault, the heave was calculated, and it was summed together with the net dilation measured at the extension fractures; this has allowed us to assess the stretch ratio of the rift, obtaining a value of 1.003 in the central sector, and 1.001 and 1.002 in the northern and southern part, respectively

A multi-scale approach to the recent activity of the Stradella thrust in the seismotectonic context of the Emilia Arc (northwestern Italy)

The frontal thrusts and folds of the northern Apennines - Italy - are mainly covered under the alluvial deposits of the Po Plain. Some of these structures show geological evidence of Late Quaternary activity, thus posing the need for an accurate seismic hazard assessment due to widespread housing settlements, industries, lifeline infrastructures, and large towns. We present new morphostructural, geophysical, and seismological data to discuss the recent activity of the Broni-Sarmato fault, an 18 km-long outcropping section of the north-verging Stradella thrust, located 50 km south of Milan, along the Pede-Apennine thrust front (PTF) in the rear of the Emilia Arc thrust system. The new geoelectrical surveys across the fault scarp show deformation of the shallow deposits. The outcropping deformations, with a fault scarp ranging up to 25.8 m, are investigated within the seismotectonic framework of the PTF and the Emilia Arc. The analysis of the associated seismicity and new focal mechanisms highlight two seismogenic contractional volumes dipping at low-angle southwest-ward, at upper (<12 km) and lower crustal depths (~20–30 km). The shallow seismicity partially illuminates the Stradella thrust and its along-strike southeastward prosecution along the extent of the Stradella-Salsomaggiore Arc. Subordinately, it also illuminates some of the Emilia Arc thrust planes. The deeper seismogenic volume shows large patches of the basal thrust of the Emilia Arc fault system. We interpret the above multi-scale data as evidence of ongoing tectonic activity of the outer fronts of the Emilia Arc under a regional NNE-oriented compressional stress field, with some evidence of thrust involvement along the Pede-Apennine front. In our 3D fault-model reconstruction, all the analyzed thrust structures appear as expressions of a thick-skinned deformation that controls earthquake release at different structural levels

How Academics and the Public Experienced Immersive Virtual Reality for Geo-Education

Immersive virtual reality can potentially open up interesting geological sites to students, academics and others who may not have had the opportunity to visit such sites previously. We study how users perceive the usefulness of an immersive virtual reality approach applied to Earth Sciences teaching and communication. During nine immersive virtual reality-based events held in 2018 and 2019 in various locations (Vienna in Austria, Milan and Catania in Italy, Santorini in Greece), a large number of visitors had the opportunity to navigate, in immersive mode, across geological landscapes reconstructed by cutting-edge, unmanned aerial system-based photogrammetry techniques. The reconstructed virtual geological environments are specifically chosen virtual geosites, from Santorini (Greece), the North Volcanic Zone (Iceland), and Mt. Etna (Italy). Following the user experiences, we collected 459 questionnaires, with a large spread in participant age and cultural background. We find that the majority of respondents would be willing to repeat the immersive virtual reality experience, and importantly, most of the students and Earth Science academics who took part in the navigation confirmed the usefulness of this approach for geo-education purposes

How Academics and the Public Experienced Immersive Virtual Reality for Geo-Education

Immersive virtual reality can potentially open up interesting geological sites to students, academics and others who may not have had the opportunity to visit such sites previously. We study how users perceive the usefulness of an immersive virtual reality approach applied to Earth Sciences teaching and communication. During nine immersive virtual reality-based events held in 2018 and 2019 in various locations (Vienna in Austria, Milan and Catania in Italy, Santorini in Greece), a large number of visitors had the opportunity to navigate, in immersive mode, across geological landscapes reconstructed by cutting-edge, unmanned aerial system-based photogrammetry techniques. The reconstructed virtual geological environments are specifically chosen virtual geosites, from Santorini (Greece), the North Volcanic Zone (Iceland), and Mt. Etna (Italy). Following the user experiences, we collected 459 questionnaires, with a large spread in participant age and cultural background. We find that the majority of respondents would be willing to repeat the immersive virtual reality experience, and importantly, most of the students and Earth Science academics who took part in the navigation confirmed the usefulness of this approach for geo-education purposes