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Seismic hazard along San Leonardello Graben, on the lower eastern slope of Mt. Etna volcano
by
P. Carveni
Università di Catania, Dipartimento di Scienze Geologiche, Sezione Geologia e Geofisica, Corso Italia 55, 95125 - Catania, Italia.
Coauthors: S. Benfatto (**), R. Maniscalco (*), M. Salleo (***) , G. Sturiale (*). (*) Università di Catania, Dipartimento di Scienze Geologiche, Sezione Geologia e Geofisica, Corso Italia 55, 95125 - Catania, Italia. (**) Geologo, libero professionista, Via San Marco 91, 95047 - Paternò, Catania, Italia. (***) Naturalista, Via Machiavelli 155, 95047 – Paternò, Catania, Italia.
We analize in this paper historical records of earthquakes happened during last two centuries on a sector of lower eastern flank of Mt. Etna Volcano.
Mount Etna is located along the East coast of Sicily, near the boundary beetwen the continental crust of Iblean Plateau and the mesozoic oceanic crust of the Ionian bacin.
This area is affected by three main normal faults, ranging NNW-SSE, that represent the northernmost part of the Ibleo-Maltese Escarpment; they are named: Moscarello Fault, San Leonardello Fault and Macchia – Stazzo Fault; they form a structural-morphologic system named San Leonardello Graben.
Strong shallow earthquakes (d < 2 km) occurr along these fault and are frequently accompained by surface ground ruptures.
Macroseismic fields of most important earthquakes are presented; movements along fault are mainly vertical (maximum 80 cm, during 1911 Fondo Macchia Earthquake); dextral movement was recorded during 1989, January 29th Codavolpe Earthquake; moreover several phenomena of aseismic creep are present (range 0,2 ÷ 1,2 cm/y.).
Macroseismic data are resumed on a map that show seismic hazard of studied area.
From this paper results that seismic hazard along San Leonardello Graben is greater than that considered in seismic classification in current Italian law.
Date received: September 30, 2004
Copyright © 2004 by the author(s). The author(s) of this document and the organizers of the conference have granted their consent to include this abstract in Atlas Conferences Inc. Document # caon-67.