An infant grave excavated in Lang, Styria, Austria, had a small axe as a grave gift in addition to a ceramic urn. Another grave from the cemetery of Dobova (Slovenia), where also a child was buried, ...contained small objects in the form of an axe and a spearhead as well as a set of four vessels. In addition to these two graves, there are more graves known in the southeastern Alps, where small objects were given as grave goods. These graves are discussed in terms of the function and symbolism of these small objects and compared in a broader context with the northeastern Austrian region and the graves from the Dürrnberg.
The study of seismic source parameters is crucial for understanding the origin of seismicity and retrieving information on the energy balance and the stress involved in earthquake rupture processes. ...In active tectonic areas, where underground industrial activities are carried out, such parameters may help to understand whether earthquakes are induced, triggered, or natural. The Montello-Collalto area (Southeastern Alps) is located in an active tectonic environment and hosts a depleted natural reservoir used to store gas. Since 2012, a high-quality seismic network monitors the microseismicity occurring around the underground gas storage reservoir to understand if the storage activity might induce seismicity. In this paper, we estimate the source parameters of low magnitude events representative of the seismicity occurring in the area surrounding the reservoir. The analysis includes a preliminary removal of the site effects, specifically computed within this study, from all the records. Then, using a parametric multistep inversion scheme, we estimate the seismic moment, the corner frequency and the static stress drop, that can be set as reference for the microseismicity occurring in the study area. All the investigated earthquakes show low seismic efficiency compatible with overshoot processes, which is typical of natural (i.e., tectonic) earthquakes. Our procedure can be implemented in other tectonic regions hosting underground industrial activities to support the decisional processes related to real-time monitoring.
•Local high-quality seismic monitoring reveals some details of SE Alps seismicity.•Source parameters are estimated for 30 microearthquakes representative of this area.•M0 is well constrained while other parameters may have larger uncertainties.•The low seismic efficiency values found are compatible with overshoot processes.•Approach suitable for tectonically active areas hosting underground activities.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UILJ, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZAGLJ, ZRSKP
The paper presents various collective instruments used in the labelling, certification and branding of cheeses in the southeastern Alps of Slovenia and Italy. Based on long term ethnography it ...discusses four case studies of Montasio, Bovec, Tolminc, and Mohant cheeses, that were awarded protected designation of origin at European Union level. The impact of geographical indications on the local dairy chains is compared to other instruments, ranging from top-down European and national quality schemes and inventories of traditional agricultural products and heritage, to grass-root initiatives such as Slow Food instruments and local brands. The study finds substantial difference in the use and impact of geographical indications in Italy and Slovenia, as well as several ambiguous and dissonant effects in all the identified instruments.
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DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
The complex European–Adria geodynamic framework, which led to the formation of the Alpine belt, is considered responsible for the orogenic magmatism that occurred in the Central Alps along the ...Periadriatic/Insubric Line (late Eocene–early Oligocene) and the anorogenic magmatism that occurred in the Southeastern Alps (late Paleocene–early Miocene). While the subduction-related magmatic activities are, as expected, near convergent margins, the occurrence of the intraplate-related magmatism is still puzzling. Therefore, in this work new geochemical and geochronological data of magmatic products from the Veneto Volcanic Province (VVP, north–east Italy) are provided to constrain the Cenozoic intraplate magmatism of the Southeastern Alps. The VVP is formed by dominant basic–ultrabasic (from nephelinites to tholeiites) magmatic products and by localized acid (latitic, trachytic, and rhyolitic) volcanic and subvolcanic bodies. Trace element patterns and ratios suggest that the mantle source of the alkaline magma types was a garnet lherzolite possibly metasomatised by carbonatitic melts and with residual phlogopite.
According to the biostratigraphic records and our new 40Ar/39Ar ages, VVP eruptions occurred in several pulses, reflecting the extensional phases experienced by the Eastern Alpine domain. The volcanism started in the late Paleocene in the western sector of the VVP where activity was widespread also during the Eocene (45.21 ± 0.11 Ma – 38.73 ± 0.44 Ma). In the eastern sector eruptions took place in the early Oligocene (32.35 ± 0.09 Ma – 32.09 ± 0.29 Ma) and in the early Miocene (~23–22 Ma).
From the studies so far undertaken, the anorogenic magmatic activity of the VVP was interpreted as resulting from mantle upwellings through slab window(s) following the European slab break-off, which occurred at ~ 35 Ma. However, considering (i) new tomographic images evidencing a continuous subvertical (~ 500 km in depth) slab beneath the Central Alps, and (ii) the onset of magmatic activity in the VVP in the late Paleocene (i.e., before the slab break-off) and its continuation until the Miocene, a better suited geodynamic scenario is required to explain the anorogenic magmatism. The westward rollback of the European slab caused the retreat and steepening of the subducting plate. As a consequence, sub-slab mantle material escaped and upwelled from the front of the slab and created a poloidal mantle flow. The latter induced the breakdown of carbonates in calcareous metasediments and carbonated metabasics within the subducting oceanic slab, providing carbonatitic melts, which could be responsible for the metasomatism of the VVP mantle sources. After that, the poloidal mantle flow also induced (i) the extensional deformation in the overriding Adria microplate, (ii) the decompressional melting of VVP mantle sources, and (iii) the intraplate affinity of the VVP magmatism. During these processes, the Adria microplate also rotated counterclockwise, forming sedimentary basins, and allowing the poloidal mantle flow to affect different portions of the overlying lithosphere, generating syn-estensional magmatism within the VVP.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UILJ, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZAGLJ, ZRSKP
Global warming is causing an enrichment of summit flora worldwide. This article presents the case of a peak in the southeastern Alps (Lobbia Alta, 3,196 m a.s.l., Adamello, Trento, Italy), for which ...a complete list of tracheophytes dating back to 1935 was available. As this peak is well delimited by glaciers and vertical cliffs, it has been possible to faithfully repeat this floristic inventory. We made three surveys, in 1991, 2006 and 2021, exploring the whole area. It resulted that in 86 years the species present on this peak have tripled, increasing from 17 to 51, with an acceleration in recent years. The biological forms have increased from two to six. The average temperature and the nutritional indexes according to Ellenberg have increased as well. We found that as many as six species reach their elevation record in the Alps on the Lobbia Alta, suggesting that this area is particularly prone to species ascension. Particularly interesting is the discovery of a 35 cm-tall specimen of Larix decidua at 3,130 m a.s.l., which seems to be the elevational record of the species.
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DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
A close relationship between glacial and periglacial landforms is frequently observed in alpine environments, where a transition from glacial to periglacial processes often took place after the end ...of the Little Ice Age (LIA). Understanding the origin of these landforms is challenging, and assessing the current spatial domain of glacial and periglacial processes may be a difficult task in high-relief areas, where thick and widespread debris cover often characterize rapidly decaying glaciers. Here we present a comprehensive study of a composite landform located in the Dolomites (South-Eastern Alps), combining geomorphological, geophysical and topographic surveys with ground surface temperature measurements. Results indicate that a debris-covered glacier persists in the upper part, rather large compared to the LIA extent, but currently inactive and rapidly losing mass. An active rock glacier exists in the lower part, surrounded by discontinuous permafrost. A frozen body about 10m thick was detected in the rock glacier and geomorphological evidence suggests that this ice mass is completely detached from the debris-covered glacier. Our findings suggest that the lower part of the composite landform is probably a remnant of the ancient glacier tongue and is currently evolving under periglacial conditions. Periglacial processes are therefore replacing glacial processes which dominated in this site during the LIA.
•We investigated the geomorphology and the evolution of an alpine composite landform.•Geomorphological surveys were combined with various techniques and methods.•The lower part of the landform is an active rock glacier containing a frozen body.•The upper part is a Little Ice Age glacial remnant now inactive and debris-covered.•A change from glacial to periglacial processes occurred in this area since the LIA.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK
Underground fluid injection and extraction is able to change pore fluid pressure at depth and make faults unstable, due to friction-force reduction, with an increased possibility of triggering ...earthquakes. Studying the local seismicity, down to microearthquakes, and stress field in areas where such activities are developed are essential steps to discriminate between natural and induced events. In this context, the moment magnitude (M
W
) is a key-parameter to both evaluate the energy balance and the stress involved in earthquake rupture process and assess seismic hazard accurately. Here, we focus on the fast M
W
estimation of microearthquakes recorded around the underground gas storage of Collalto (Northeastern Italy) by a dedicated seismic monitoring network. The area of Montello-Collalto, where this industrial activity is carried out, is densely populated and characterized by relevant seismic hazard. We compute M
W
from the response spectra (SA) calculated at fixed periods (i.e., 1.0 and 0.3 s); we show that log (SA) and M
W
scale as 2/3 and extend our method to microseismicity by using response spectra at 0.1 s. We eventually estimate M
W
for 1659 events (0.4 ≤ M
W
≤ 3.5) and find that M
L
and M
W
scale as 2/3 too. The discrepancy between these two magnitude scales affects both the Gutenberg-Richter parameters and completeness magnitude estimations; therefore, it has consequences when those quantities are used for physical interpretation. Our procedure shows to be efficient and suitable to be implemented within standard routine analyses of real-time monitoring and feed decision-making processes about plant management, such as the traffic light protocols.
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EMUNI, FIS, FZAB, GEOZS, GIS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, MFDPS, NLZOH, NUK, OBVAL, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, SBMB, SBNM, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK, VKSCE, ZAGLJ
To investigate the potential of Norway spruce (Picea abies L. Karst) as a palaeoclimate archive in the southeastern European Alps, tree ring chronologies were developed from trees growing at two ...sites in Slovenia which differed in their ecological and climatological characteristics. Ring width, maximum latewood density, annual height increment and latewood cellulose carbon isotope composition were determined at both sites and the resulting time-series compared with and verified against instrumental climate data for their common period (AD 1960-AD 2002). Results indicate that ring width sensitivity to summer temperature is very site-dependent, with opposing responses at alpine and lowland sites. Maximum density responds to September temperatures, indicating lignification after cell division has ceased. Stable carbon isotopes have most potential, responding strongly to summer temperature in both alpine and lowland stands. Height increment appears relatively insensitive to climate, and is likely to be dominated by local stand dynamics.
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EMUNI, FIS, FZAB, GEOZS, GIS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, MFDPS, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, SBMB, SBNM, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK, VKSCE, ZAGLJ
SUMMARY
We investigated the high frequency attenuation of S waves in the southeastern Alps and northern External Dinarides using waveforms from 331 earthquakes (3.0 < Mw < 6.5). The spectral decay ...parameter, k, was computed using 1345 three component high quality records, collected by the Italian Strong Motion Network (RAN) and by the Short‐Period Seismometric Network of northeastern Italy (NEI) in the period 1976–2007. Weak motion data from 11 stations of the NEI network and strong motion data collected by five accelerometers of the RAN were analysed. The k parameter was estimated in the 0–250 km distance range, in a frequency band extending from the corner frequency of the event up to 25 or 45 Hz, using the amplitude acceleration Fourier spectra of S waves. The observed record‐to‐record variability of k was modelled by applying a generalized inversion procedure, using both parametric and non‐parametric approaches. Our results evidence that k is independent on earthquake size, while it shows both site and distance dependence. Stations of the NEI network present the same increase of k with epicentral distance, RE, and show values of the zero‐distance k parameter, k0(S), between 0.017 and 0.053 s. For the whole region, the k increase with distance can be described through a linear model with slope dk/dRE= (1.4 ± 0.1) × 10−4 s km–1. Assuming an average S‐wave velocity, km s–1 between 5 and 15 km depth, we estimate an average frequency independent quality factor, , for the corresponding crustal layer. The non‐parametric approach evidences a weak positive concavity of the curve that describes the k increase with RE at about 90 km distance. This result can be approximated through a piecewise linear function with slopes of 1.0 × 10−4 and 1.7 × 10−4 s km–1, in accordance with a three layers model where moving from the intermediate to the bottom layer both and decrease. Two regional dependences were found: data from earthquakes located westward to the NEI network evidence weaker attenuation properties, probably because of S‐wave reflections from different parts of the Moho discontinuity under the eastern Po Plain, at about 25–30 km depth, while earthquakes located eastward (in western Slovenia), where the Moho deepens up to 45–50 km, evidence a higher attenuation. Moreover, the k estimates obtained with data from earthquakes located in the area of the 1998 (Mw= 5.7) and 2004 (Mw= 5.2) Kobarid events are 0.017 s higher than the values predicted for the whole region, probably because of the high level of fracturing that characterizes fault zones. The comparison between measured and theoretical values of k, computed at a few stations with available S‐wave velocity profiles, reveals that the major contribution to the total k0(S) is due to the sedimentary column (from surface to 800 m depth). The hard rock section contribution is limited to 0.005 s, in accordance with a maximum contribution of 0.010 s predicted by the non‐parametric inversion.
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BFBNIB, FZAB, GIS, IJS, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
The smelting copper slags from the archaeological sites of Transacqua and Segonzano in Trentino (Italy) were fully analysed to study the extraction of copper from copper and iron sulphide minerals ...that were carried out in the southeastern Alps during the Late Bronze Age. A combined approach involving physical, chemical, mineralogical and petrographic analyses was applied on over 130 copper slags from Transacqua and Segonzano. Three different types of slags were distinguished from the mineralogical and chemical points of view, differing in the size and relative amount of the unreacted sulphides and matte, the size of metallic copper prills, the ratio between unreacted quartz and newly formed silicate phases and viscosity. By combining all the observations, it is suggested that the three types of slags are the product of a Cu-smelting process formed by three main operations: slagging, matting and refining, which were standardised in the southeast Alps between the fourteenth and the eleventh century BC.
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EMUNI, FIS, FZAB, GEOZS, GIS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, MFDPS, NLZOH, NUK, OBVAL, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, SBMB, SBNM, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK, VKSCE, ZAGLJ
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