MINISTERO DELL'UNIVERSITÀ E DELLA RICERCA SCIENTIFICA E TECNOLOGICA
DIPARTIMENTO AFFARI ECONOMICI
PROGRAMMI DI RICERCA SCIENTIFICA DI RILEVANTE INTERESSE NAZIONALE
 
 Dynamics of the lithosphere: seismicity and deformation
in active regions of central Italy
Ac-Def Project
 
The major objective of the AC-DEF project is the multi-scale study of the dynamics and kinematics of the active deformation in the northern Apennines by means of an interdisciplinary approach based on geophysical, seismological and geodetic investigations.  AC-DEF   asks   why and  how does such deformation occur and how it evolves in time. We test various hypotheses for dynamic  processes  in the crust and mantle by means of numerical modelling and examine how elastic and inelastic deformation and rheological parameters can be  extracted  from  geologically  and  geodetically determined rates of deformation. Its long-term goal is to achieve a fundamental physical understanding  of  the earthquake process, to  explore  the  crust  and  mantle  rheology and develop advanced models of seismic hazard analysis for the studied area. Furthermore, we investigate the transient postseismic deformation following moderate size shallow earthquakes to develop models of time-dependent viscous and frictional relaxation processes. Improved  constraints  on  the  effective viscosity in  the  crust may lead to a means of better delineating the transfer of stress across fault zones.

 Project Coordinator:

Roberto Sabadini, Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra, Università di Milano
  Research Units: Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra, Università di Milano, Prof. R. Sabadini

Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra, Università di Trieste, Prof. G.F. Panza

Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra, Università di Genova, Prof. C. Eva

Dipartimento di Ingegneria Idraulica, Ambientale e del Rilevamento, Politecnico di Milano, Prof. R. Barzaghi

Dipartimento di Fisica, Università di Bologna, Prof. S. Tinti
 
 
  For information and comments, contact Karim Aoudia at
  aoudia@dst.univ.trieste.it