Η Σεισμο-Ηφαιστειακή Κρίση της Σαντορίνης 2011-2012. Ο ρόλος της Ειδικής Επιστημονικής Επιτροπής Παρακολούθησης Ηφαιστείου Σαντορίνης

Τον Ιανουάριο του 2011, άρχισε να παρατηρείται ασυνήθιστη αύξηση στη σεισμική δραστηριότητα του ηφαιστείου της Σαντορίνης. Συγκεκριμένα κατεγράφησαν σημαντικές μεταβολές στην παραμόρφωση του αναγλύφου, στη θερμοκρασία και στο χημισμό των θερμών ρευστών και των εδαφικών αερίων ενώ πλήθος σεισμών μικρού μεγέθους αναστάτωναν την τοπική κοινωνία. Τον Ιανουάριο του 2012, πραγματοποιήθηκε σύσκεψη στον Ο.Α.Σ.Π. (Οργανισμός Αντισεισμικού Σχεδιασμού και Προστασίας) στην οποία παρουσιάστηκαν τα μέχρι τότε αποτελέσματα. Πολλά ήταν τα επιστημονικά θέματα που έπρεπε να ληφθούν υπόψη σχετικά με την παρακολούθηση του ηφαιστείου. Επιτακτική όμως ήταν και η ανάγκη για το συντονισμό των δράσεων για την παρακολούθηση και τη σύσταση ανάλογης Επιτροπής. Για το λόγο αυτό, το Φεβρουάριο του 2012, με απόφαση του τότε Υφυπουργού Υποδομών, Μεταφορών και Δικτύων κ. Ι. Μαγκριώτη, συγκροτήθηκε η 18μελής Ειδική Επιστημονική Επιτροπή Παρακολούθησης Ηφαιστείου Σαντορίνης (Ε.Ε.Ε.Π.Η.Σ.) με διετή θητεία. Τα μέλη της ήταν καταξιωμένοι επιστήμονες γεωλόγοι, ηφαιστειολόγοι, σεισμολόγοι, μηχανικοί από φορείς όπως το Υπουργείο Υποδομών, Μεταφορών και Δικτύων, τον Οργανισμό Αντισεισμικού Σχεδιασμού και Προστασίας, το Γεωδυναμικό Ινστιτούτο, το Ινστιτούτο Γεωλογικών Μεταλλευτικών Ερευνών, το Ελληνικό Κέντρο Θαλασσίων Ερευνών, την Πολιτική Προστασία καθώς και από τον Πανεπιστημιακό χώρο (Εθνικό Καποδιστριακό Πανεπιστήμιο Αθηνών, Αριστοτέλειο Πανεπιστήμιο Θεσσαλονίκης, Πανεπιστήμιο Πατρών, Εθνικό Μετσόβιο Πολυτεχνείο). Ο ρόλος της επιτροπής ήταν η διαρκής παρακολούθηση και αξιολόγηση των επιστημονικών δεδομένων του ηφαιστείου, η γνωμοδότηση και η εισήγηση προς τον Ο.Α.Σ.Π. μέτρων προστασίας κατά περίπτωση. Επίσης η λήψη μέτρων και απαιτούμενων ενεργειών που σχετίζονται με την εξασφάλιση της επάρκειας και της συνεχούς και απρόσκοπτης λειτουργίας του επιστημονικού εξοπλισμού και των οργάνων παρακολούθησης. Με αυτόν τον τρόπο θα διασφαλίζονταν η συλλογή των καταγραφών και στοιχείων που κρίνονταν απαραίτητα για την παρακολούθηση της δραστηριότητας του ηφαιστείου. Για την καλύτερη λειτουργία της, συστάθηκαν τέσσερις Υποεπιτροπές με τους αντίστοιχους συντονιστές τους: α) Η Υποεπιτροπή Σεισμολογίας, β) Παρακολούθησης Παραμορφώσεων, γ) Παρακολούθησης των Φυσικοχημικών μεταβολών και δ) της Πολιτικής Προστασίας. Κατατέθηκε αίτημα χρηματοδότησης προς το Υπουργείο Υποδομών, Μεταφορών και Δικτύων για την υποστήριξη του έργου της Ε.Ε.Ε.Π.Η.Σ., η οποία χρηματοδοτήθηκε με το ποσό των 156.000 Ευρώ. Αυτά κατανεμήθηκαν για την περιορισμένη προμήθεια και εγκατάσταση νέου εξοπλισμού, επισκευές και συντηρήσεις υπάρχοντος εξοπλισμού και πραγματοποίηση μετρήσεων πεδίου. Τους πρώτους κιόλας μήνες, έγινε πρόσκληση σε 30 καταξιωμένους ξένους επιστήμονες για συνεργασία όσον αφορά στη συλλογή στοιχείων μετρήσεων, εξειδικευμένου εξοπλισμού, παροχή τεχνογνωσίας και συμβουλευτικές οδηγίες για τη διαχείριση του ηφαιστειακού κινδύνου. Οι περισσότεροι από αυτούς, αποδέχτηκαν την πρόσκληση με μεγάλη προθυμία χωρίς χρηματοδότηση. Στο πλαίσιο αυτό, η τρίτη σύσκεψη της Ε.Ε.Ε.Π.Η.Σ. πραγματοποιήθηκε στη Σαντορίνη, όπου τα μέλη της Ε.Ε.Ε.Π.Η.Σ. συναντήθηκαν με τους ξένους επιστήμονες και αντάλλαξαν απόψεις, κατά τη διάρκεια του workshop MeMoVolc. Στο διάστημα της θητείας της Επιτροπής, πραγματοποιήθηκαν δέκα συνεδριάσεις, στις οποίες συζητήθηκαν οι επιστημονικές εξελίξεις και λήφθηκαν σοβαρές αποφάσεις για τις περαιτέρω ενέργειες τόσο της Επιτροπής όσο και της Πολιτείας. Η Επιτροπή ενημέρωνε με εμπιστευτικά μηνύματα το Γενικό Γραμματέα Πολιτικής Προστασίας. Τον Ιούνιο του 2013, συντάχθηκε από τα μέλη της Υποεπιτροπής Πολιτικής Προστασίας, η τελική Έκθεση με αντικείμενο τη διαχείριση του ηφαιστειακού κινδύνου με τίτλο: «Σενάρια επαναδραστηριοποίησης και εκτίμηση ηφαιστειακού κινδύνου του ηφαιστειακού συμπλέγματος Σαντορίνης» η οποία υποβλήθηκε στη Γενική Γραμματεία Πολιτικής Προστασίας. Σύμφωνα με αυτήν, δύο ήταν τα σενάρια επαναδραστηριοποίησης. Το ακραίο σενάριο με μία υπο-πλινιακού τύπου έκρηξη και το πιθανότερο με μία ενδοκαλδερική επαναδραστηριοποίηση των ηφαιστειακών κέντρων των Καμένων. Αναλύθηκαν όλοι οι κίνδυνοι, τα πρόδρομα φαινόμενα, οι επηρεαζόμενες περιοχές, οι πιθανές επιπτώσεις στον πληθυσμό, τις υποδομές καθώς και τα προτεινόμενα μέτρα μετριασμού των επιπτώσεων.Since 1950, The Santorini volcano was in a state of rest. In January 2011 and for the first half of the 2012, the scientists, according to the permanent installed monitoring networks and a big number of campaign measurements, observed an increase of the volcanic activity. Significant changes in the deformation of the texture, temperature and chemistry of the hot fluid and soil gases were recorded while numerous small earthquakes upset the local community. Volcanotectonic earthquakes of small magnitude (M=3.6) were often along the Kameni line, of 6 km length, in a depth of 1-6 km for 15 months. The GPS networks as well as the radar interferometry, revealed a 10 cm uplift of the Kameni islands. The source of the inflation (Mogi source) was found beneath the northern caldera basin, in the depth of 3-6 km and the increase of the volume was estimated of about 10-20 million m3. During the unrest, there were small increases in the fluxes of H2 and CO2 derived from the mantle. According to the International Alert-Notification System for Volcanic Activity, the alert for Santorini volcano was the initial stage of the advisory phase, in the yellow color. The spring of 2012, the monitoring networks have indicated that the volcano had returned to the previous state of activity. In January 2012, a meeting was held in the Earthquake Planning and Protection Organization (E.P.P.O.) which featured the hitherto results. Many were the scientific issues that had to be taken into account on the monitoring of the volcano, but the need for coordination of actions to monitor and provide appropriate measures was urgent. So, in February 2012, by decision of the Minister of Infrastructures, Transport and Networks, a National Scientific Committee for Monitoring Santorini Volcano (N.S.C.M.S.V.) was established, with 18 members for two years term. The members were distinguished scientists, geologists, engineers, seismologists, volcanologists, all from Scientific Organizations, Ministries, Universities and Civil Protection. The role of the Committee was the continuous monitoring and evaluation of scientific volcanic data, the opinion and recommendation to the E.P.P.O. of appropriate protective measures, any other measures required and operations related to ensuring the adequacy and continuous operation of scientific equipment and monitoring instruments, so as to ensure the collection of records and information that are necessary to monitor the volcano's activity. For the best operation, 4 subcommittees were set up with their coordinators concerning the Seismology, the Deformation Monitoring, the Physicochemical changes and the Civil Protection. Each of them, took a budget and presented an output at the end. During the mandate of the Commission, ten meetings took place, in the offices of the Earthquake Planning and Protection Organization, with full written records, in which scientific developments were discussed and important decisions were taken for further actions of both the Commission and the State. Some of the decisions that were taken was the collaboration with other Institutions and scientists, Greek or Foreigner (e.g.Georgia Tech, N.E.R.C.), in terms of data, the development of a GIS programme with seismic and geodetic data in the web site of the Earthquake Planning and Protection Organization, funding of the actions, frequent updates to the General Secretariat of Civil Protection and the Minister of Infrastructures with confidential reports, composition of volcanic hazard maps and a final report including the hazard risks and the scenarios of reactivation. Funding request to the Ministry of Infrastructure, Transport and Networks was made to support the plans of the N.S.C.M.S.V., which was finally funded with the amount of 156,000 Euros. This amount was allocated to the limited supply and installation of new equipment, repairs and maintenance of existing equipment and making field measurements. The Universities of Athens, Thessaloniki, Patra, the Geodynamic Institute, the National Technical School of Athens, the Earthquake Planning and Protection Organization, the Institute of the Study and Monitoring of the Santorini Volcano, the Institute of Geological and Mineral Exploration, had offered their equipment for the monitoring of the activity. A network of 21 seismological stations,12 GPS stations, tide gauge and other geochemical instruments, were in the disposal of the Committee. In the first months, 30 renowned foreign scientists from Italy, France, England, Iceland, and United States of America were invited for cooperation on available data measurements, specialized equipment, providing expertise and advice for the management of volcanic risk. Most of them accepted the invitation with alacrity inexpensively. They were already in collaboration with the Greek scientists and had installed their own equipment. In this context, the third meeting of N.S.C.M.S.V. took place in Santorini, on March 27, 2012, where the N.S.C.M.S.V. members met some of the foreign scientists and exchanged views, during the MeMoVolc workshop. In June 2013, the members of the Subcommittee for Civil Protection, had fulfilled the final report about the volcanic risk management and entitled "Scenarios reactivation and volcanic hazard assessment of the Sanorini Volcanic Complex” which was submitted to the General Secretariat for Civil Protection. According to that, there are two scenarios of reactivation, based on the past behavior of the volcano and available research results. The extreme scenario with a sub-plinian type of explosion and most likely an inter-caldera reactivation of volcanic centers of Kameni islands. They analyzed all the risks, the precursor phenomena, the affected areas, the potential impacts on people, infrastructures and the recommended mitigation measures. In addition, two volcanic hazard maps of Santorini was given to the Civil Protection for each of these scenarios, given into account the volcanic, seismic and the geotechnical hazards of Santorini Volcanic Complex. Therefore, the Civil Protection would make all the plans, take all the measures and the actions for the safety of the inhabitants, the tourists and the infrastructures and to preserve the balance in the social and economical life in the region. On this basis, the Greek Civil Protection is about to establish an Emergency Plan for volcanic risk with the code name “Xenokratis-Volcanoes, Santorini” in the near future. The Greek Scientific Community is now more experienced in volcanic risk management. Despite the fact that the financial support was never not enough, all the members of the Committee had worked hard, with seriousness, prοfessionalism, unity even when scientific different aspects were present. The Committee had successfully fulflilled its purpose for the benefit of the State and set the basis for an effective volcanic management in the future

Sardines at a junction: seascape genomics reveals ecological and oceanographic drivers of variation in the {NW} Mediterranean Sea

By evaluating genetic variation across the entire genome, one can address existing questions in a novel way while raising new ones. The latter includes how different local environments influence adaptive and neutral genomic variation within and among populations, providing insights into local adaptation of natural populations and their responses to global change. Here, under a seascape genomic approach, ddRAD data of 4609 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) from 398 sardines (Sardina pilchardus) collected in 11 Mediterranean and one Atlantic site were generated. These were used along with oceanographic and ecological information to detect signals of adaptive divergence with gene flow across environmental gradients. The studied sardines constitute two clusters (FST = 0.07), a pattern attributed to outlier loci, highlighting putative local adaptation. The trend in the number of days with sea surface temperature above 19°C, a critical threshold for successful sardine spawning, was crucial at all levels of population structuring with implications on the species' key biological processes. Outliers link candidate SNPs to the region's environmental heterogeneity. Our findings provide evidence for a dynamic equilibrium in which population structure is maintained by physical and ecological factors under the opposing influences of migration and selection. This dynamic in a natural system warrants continuous monitoring under a seascape genomic approach that might benefit from a temporal and more detailed spatial dimension. Our results may contribute to complementary studies aimed at providing deeper insights into the mechanistic processes underlying population structuring. Those are key to understanding and predicting future changes and responses of this highly exploited species in the face of climate change

The “MetaCopepod” project: Designing an integrated DNA metabarcoding and image analysis approach to study and monitor the diversity of zooplanktonic copepods and cladocerans in the Mediterranean Sea

The timely and accurate analysis of marine zooplankton diversity is a challenge in ecological and monitoring studies. Morphology-based identification of taxa, which requires taxonomy experts, is time consuming and cannot provide accurate resolution at species level in several cases (e.g. immature stages, cryptic species, broken specimens). The “MetaCopepod” project is aimed at overcoming these limitations by developing a high-throughput and cost effective methodology that integrates DNA metabarcoding and image analysis. Utilizing the accuracy of DNA metabarcoding in species recognition and the quantitative results of image analysis, zooplankton diversity (mainly of copepods and cladocerans) is assessed both qualitatively (species' composition) and quantitatively (abundance, biomass and size-distribution). To achieve this goal, bulk zooplankton samples are first scanned and analyzed with ZooImage and then massively sequenced for a selected fragment of the mitochondrial 16S rRNA gene. Through a bioinformatic pipeline, sequences are compared to a reference genetic database, constructed within the project, and identified at species- level. The methodology was calibrated by using both mock and taxonomically identified samples and demonstrated on samples collected monthly from monitoring stations across the Mediterranean Sea. It is currently optimized for higher integration and accuracy and is expected to become a powerful tool for monitoring zooplankton in the long term and for early warning of bioinvasions and other ecosystem change

Analysis of the African coelacanth genome sheds light on tetrapod evolution

It was a zoological sensation when a living specimen of the coelacanth was first discovered in 1938, as this lineage of lobe-finned fish was thought to have gone extinct 70 million years ago. The modern coelacanth looks remarkably similar to many of its ancient relatives, and its evolutionary proximity to our own fish ancestors provides a glimpse of the fish that first walked on land. Here we report the genome sequence of the African coelacanth, Latimeria chalumnae. Through a phylogenomic analysis, we conclude that the lungfish, and not the coelacanth, is the closest living relative of tetrapods. Coelacanth protein-coding genes are significantly more slowly evolving than those of tetrapods, unlike other genomic features . Analyses of changes in genes and regulatory elements during the vertebrate adaptation to land highlight genes involved in immunity, nitrogen excretion and the development of fins, tail, ear, eye, brain, and olfaction. Functional assays of enhancers involved in the fin-to-limb transition and in the emergence of extra-embryonic tissues demonstrate the importance of the coelacanth genome as a blueprint for understanding tetrapod evolution

The European Reference Genome Atlas: piloting a decentralised approach to equitable biodiversity genomics.

ABSTRACT: A global genome database of all of Earth’s species diversity could be a treasure trove of scientific discoveries. However, regardless of the major advances in genome sequencing technologies, only a tiny fraction of species have genomic information available. To contribute to a more complete planetary genomic database, scientists and institutions across the world have united under the Earth BioGenome Project (EBP), which plans to sequence and assemble high-quality reference genomes for all ∼1.5 million recognized eukaryotic species through a stepwise phased approach. As the initiative transitions into Phase II, where 150,000 species are to be sequenced in just four years, worldwide participation in the project will be fundamental to success. As the European node of the EBP, the European Reference Genome Atlas (ERGA) seeks to implement a new decentralised, accessible, equitable and inclusive model for producing high-quality reference genomes, which will inform EBP as it scales. To embark on this mission, ERGA launched a Pilot Project to establish a network across Europe to develop and test the first infrastructure of its kind for the coordinated and distributed reference genome production on 98 European eukaryotic species from sample providers across 33 European countries. Here we outline the process and challenges faced during the development of a pilot infrastructure for the production of reference genome resources, and explore the effectiveness of this approach in terms of high-quality reference genome production, considering also equity and inclusion. The outcomes and lessons learned during this pilot provide a solid foundation for ERGA while offering key learnings to other transnational and national genomic resource projects.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Vitamin A and D intake in pregnancy, infant supplementation, and asthma development:the Norwegian Mother and Child Cohort

Background Western diets may provide excess vitamin A, which is potentially toxic and could adversely affect respiratory health and counteract benefits from vitamin D. Objective The aim of this study was to examine child asthma at age 7 y in relation to maternal intake of vitamins A and D during pregnancy, infant supplementation with these vitamins, and their potential interaction. Design We studied 61,676 school-age children (born during 2002–2007) from the Norwegian Mother and Child Cohort with data on maternal total (food and supplement) nutrient intake in pregnancy (food-frequency questionnaire validated against biomarkers) and infant supplement use at age 6 mo (n = 54,142 children). Linkage with the Norwegian Prescription Database enabled near-complete follow-up (end of second quarter in 2015) for dispensed medications to classify asthma. We used log-binomial regression to calculate adjusted RRs (aRRs) for asthma with 95% CIs. Results Asthma increased according to maternal intake of total vitamin A [retinol activity equivalents (RAEs)] in the highest (≥2031 RAEs/d) compared with the lowest (≤779 RAEs/d) quintile (aRR: 1.21; 95% CI: 1.05, 1.40) and decreased for total vitamin D in the highest (≥13.6 µg/d) compared with the lowest (≤3.5 µg/d) quintile (aRR: 0.81; 95% CI: 0.67, 0.97) during pregnancy. No association was observed for maternal intake in the highest quintiles of both nutrients (aRR: 0.99; 95% CI: 0.83, 1.18) and infant supplementation with vitamin D or cod liver oil. Conclusions Excess vitamin A (≥2.5 times the recommended intake) during pregnancy was associated with increased risk, whereas vitamin D intake close to recommendations was associated with a reduced risk of asthma in school-age children. No association for high intakes of both nutrients suggests antagonistic effects of vitamins A and D. This trial was registered at http://www.clinicaltrials.gov as NCT03197233. © 2018 American Society for Nutrition. This work is written by (a) US Government employee(s) and is in the public domain in the US

Understanding the genetic complexity of puberty timing across the allele frequency spectrum

Pubertal timing varies considerably and is associated with later health outcomes. We performed multi-ancestry genetic analyses on ~800,000 women, identifying 1,080 signals for age at menarche. Collectively, these explained 11% of trait variance in an independent sample. Women at the top and bottom 1% of polygenic risk exhibited ~11 and ~14-fold higher risks of delayed and precocious puberty, respectively. We identified several genes harboring rare loss-of-function variants in ~200,000 women, including variants in ZNF483, which abolished the impact of polygenic risk. Variant-to-gene mapping approaches and mouse gonadotropin-releasing hormone neuron RNA sequencing implicated 665 genes, including an uncharacterized G-protein-coupled receptor, GPR83, which amplified the signaling of MC3R, a key nutritional sensor. Shared signals with menopause timing at genes involved in DNA damage response suggest that the ovarian reserve might signal centrally to trigger puberty. We also highlight body size-dependent and independent mechanisms that potentially link reproductive timing to later life disease

Sub-ps Pulsed Laser Deposition of Boron Films for Neutron Detector Applications

In view of the demand for high-quality thermal neutron detectors, boron films have recently attracted widespread research interest because of their special properties. In this work, we report on the deposition of boron films on silicon substrates by sub-picosecond pulsed laser deposition (PLD) at room temperature. Particular emphasis was placed on the investigation of the effect of the laser energy density (fluence) on the ablation process of the target material, as well as on the morphological properties of the resulting films. In addition, based on the study of the ablation and deposition rates as a function of the fluence, the ablation/deposition mechanisms are discussed. We show that well-adherent and stable boron films, with good quality surfaces revealing a good surface flatness and absence of cracks, can be obtained by means of the PLD technique, which proves to be a reliable and reproducible method for the fabrication of thick boron coatings that are suitable for neutron detection technology