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Seismological data recorded in the Ionian Sea by a network of seven Ocean Bottom Seismometers (OBSs) during the 2017–2018 SEISMOFAULTS experiment provides a close-up view of seismogenic structures that are potential sources of medium-high magnitude earthquakes. The high-quality signal-to-noise ratio waveforms are observed for earthquakes at different scales: teleseismic, regional, and local earthquakes as well as single station earthquakes and small crack events. In this work, we focus on two different types of recording: 1) local earthquakes and 2) Short Duration Events (SDE) associated to micro-fracturing processes. During the SEISMOFAULTS experiment, 133 local earthquakes were recorded by both OBSs and land stations (local magnitude ranging between 0.9 and 3.8), while a group of local earthquakes (76), due to their low magnitude, were recorded only by the OBS network. We relocated 133 earthquakes by integrating onshore and offshore travel times and obtaining a significant improvement in accuracy, particularly for the offshore events. Moreover, the higher signal-to-noise ratio of the OBS network revealed a significant seismicity not detected onshore, which shed new light on the location and kinematics of seismogenic structures in the Calabrian Arc accretionary prism and associated to the subduction of the Ionian lithosphere beneath the Apennines. Other signals recorded only by the OBS network include a high number of Short Duration Events (SDE). The different waveforms of SDEs at two groups of OBSs and the close correlation between the occurrence of events recorded at single stations and SDEs suggest an endogenous fluid venting from mud volcanoes and active fault traces. Results from the analysis of seismological data collected during the SEISMOFAULTS experiment confirm the necessity and potential of marine studies with OBSs, particularly in those geologically active areas of the Mediterranean Sea prone to high seismic risk.

The south-western edge of the Calabrian Arc in southern Italy has been investigated throughout a joint analysis of field, marine and geophysical data which provided constraints on the fault pattern and on the seismotectonic potential. The study was focused on a poorly known sector of a larger belt of seismically active faults slicing across the NE corner of Sicily, the so-called Tindari Fault System. Our data pointed out that the investigated area, including the mainland and the Ionian offshore, is deformed by oblique faulting with a general NW-SE tectonic trend. Earthquake distribution and seismic profiles pointed out active deformation in the offshore while the mainland is characterized by the occurrence of a NW-SE oriented, >20 km-long, structural belt. However, scarce seismicity has been recorded in the last 30 years alongside this tectonic structure, accounting for a possible silent segment of the larger fault system. Tomographic images revealed that the Moho discontinuity is deformed by a NE-dipping lithospheric tectonic structure which has been here retained the main mode of deformation and responsible for coseismic displacement in the area. As a whole, field and geophysical data agree with a general NW-SE trend segmented pattern of recent/active faults that have the potentiality of generating magnitude 6.5–7 earthquakes.

The Calabrian Arc subduction-rollback system along the convergent Africa/Eurasia plate boundary is among the most active geological structures in the Mediterranean Sea. However, its seismogenic behaviour is largely unknown, mostly due to the lack of seismological observations. We studied low-to-moderate magnitude earthquakes recorded by the seismic network onshore, integrated by data from a seafloor observatory (NEMO-SN1), to compute a lithospheric velocity model for the western Ionian Sea, and relocate seismic events along major tectonic structures. Spatial changes in the depth distribution of earthquakes highlight a major lithospheric boundary constituted by the Ionian Fault, which separates two sectors where thickness of the seismogenic layer varies over 40 km. This regional tectonic boundary represents the eastern limit of a domain characterized by thinner lithosphere, arc-orthogonal extension, and transtensional tectonic deformation. Occurrence of a few thrust-type earthquakes in the accretionary wedge may suggest a locked subduction interface in a complex tectonic setting, which involves the interplay between arc-orthogonal extension and plate convergence. We finally note that distribution of earthquakes and associated extensional deformation in the Messina Straits region could be explained by right-lateral displacement along the Ionian Fault. This observation could shed new light on proposed mechanisms for the 1908 Messina earthquake.

Databases of tectonic stress indicators are commonly based on different types of observations at different spatial and temporal scales. Each single indicator can be variously representative of the real stress field and the relative importance of all the indicators should be accounted for before any following elaboration. We propose a semi-quantitative procedure which assigns weights to each indicator on the basis of its quality and its representative volume. In this way the indicators can be reliably combined to produce, for example, stress field maps or stress trajectories. The proposed weighting criterion has been applied to a dataset of 440 crustal stress indicators specifically compiled, gathering focal mechanisms and geological data from the literature, and original data from structural features derived from devoted fieldwork, for the southern part of the Calabrian Arc (Italy). This area represents an interesting case study because of its complex geodynamic and structural arrangement. Data were ranked and the orientation of the minimum horizontal stress (Sh) has been interpolated and smoothed on a regular grid. We drew maps of the principal stress axes and inferred the stress regimes over the investigated area. Results are in agreement with independent information from the literature and display the non-uniform orientation of the tectonic stresses and the occurrence of perturbations both at regional and local scale.

Large-scale submarine gravitational land movements involving even more than 1,000 m thick sedimentary successions are known as megalandslides. We prove the existence of large-scale gravitational phenomena off the Crotone Basin, a forearc basin located on the Ionian side of Calabria (southern Italy), by seismic, morpho-bathymetric and well data. Our study reveals that the Crotone Megalandslide started moving between Late Zanclean and Early Piacenzian and was triggered by a contractional tectonic event leading to the basin inversion. Seaward gliding of the megalandslide continued until roughly Late Gelasian, and then resumed since Middle Pleistocene with a modest rate. Interestingly, the onshore part of the basin does not show a gravity-driven deformation comparable to that observed in the marine area, and this peculiar evidence allows some speculations on the origin of the megalandslide.

The Pliocene-Quaternary evolution of the western margin of the Calabrian Arc has been investigated by analysing the configuration and distribution of local sedimentary basins and their relationship with shallow and deep tectonic structures. Research focussed on the evolution of the more recent offshore sedimentary basins located to the east of Sicily, along the Alfeo Fault System, using multichannel seismic lines, high-resolution bathymetry and newly acquired single-channel seismic profiles. The chosen study area encompasses a crustal sector where external thrusts of the Calabrian Arc branch into the Malta Escarpment, and this zone has been interpreted as a Subduction Transform Edge Propagator (STEP) Fault. The Western Ionian Sea is bounded by regional faults that controlled the deposition of the Pliocene-Quaternary sequences and define the present-day bathymetry. In this work we identified four main seismic sequences and three main unconformities in the basins, to better understand the geometry and the depositional setting of the basins. In addition, lateral correlation and 3D reconstruction of the sedimentary basins allows us to establish the direct relationship between the Alfeo Fault System activity and the geometry, the thickness, the evolution and filling phases of the sedimentary basins in this area. Results presented show how the Alfeo Fault drove the development of separate basin depocenters in the early stages of tectonic activity, resulting in a single elongated basin in the latest phases. The inferred fault kinematics, the analysis of displacements along strike and sediment thickening suggest a link with the slab geometry, as occurs in other subduction systems that develop subduction related faults. The results and the method applied in this study can also be applied for the interpretation of similar systems with similar geological settings in other areas of the world.

Along the northern Ionian margin of Calabria, three Neogene basins comprise wedge-top depozones containing syntectonic deposits which cover the frontal part of the fold-thrust belt. One of the best exposed onshore allochthonous siliciclastic successions is represented by the Cariati Nappe, cropping out in the Ciro Basin. Field geological mapping and aerial interpretations were used to characterize the stratigraphy and tectonics of the area between the Arso Stream and Nica River catchments (about 170 km2), including a Paleozoic metamorphic basement complex unconformably overlain by Upper Oligocene to Quaternary siliciclastic deposits and minor carbonates. This paper presents a 1:25,000 scale map of the Ionian study area, providing lithological and structural data towards reconstructing its tectono-sedimentary evolution.

Understanding magmatic systems and deep hydrothermal circulation beneath arc-volcanoes provides insights into deep processes associated with slab-subduction and mantle-wedge partial melting. Here we analyze hydrothermal flow below a structural high (Capo Vaticano Ridge, CVR) located offshore Capo Vaticano (western Calabria) and affected by magmatic intrusions generated from above the Ionian subducting-slab. In order to explain observations, we combine geophysical and numerical modelling results. Fluid-flow modelling shows that temperature distribution and geothermal gradient are controlled mainly by hydrothermal circulation, in turn affected by heat source, fault pattern, rock permeability, basement topography and sediment thickness. Two main faults, shaping the structural high and fracturing intensely the continental crust, enable deep hydrothermal circulation and shallow fluid discharge. Distribution of seismicity at depth supports the hypothesis of a slab below Capo Vaticano, deep enough to enable mantle-wedge partial melting above the subduction zone. Melt migration at shallow levels forms the magmatic intrusions inferred by magnetic anomalies and by δ3He enrichment in the discharged fluids at the CVR summit. Our results add new insights on the southern Tyrrhenian Sea arc-related magmatism and on the Calabrian inner-arc tectonic setting dissected by seismogenic faults able to trigger high-destructive earthquakes.

Between June 2011 and September 2013, the Nebrodi Mountains region was affected by a seismic swarm consisting of > 2700 events with local magnitude 1.3 ≤ ML ≤ 4.6 and located in the 5–9 km depth interval. The seismic swarm defines a seismogenetic volume elongated along the E-W direction and encompasses the NW-SE-oriented tectonic boundary between the Calabrian arc (north-eastward) and the Sicilide units (south-westward). By exploring the recent tectonic deformation and the seismic behavior of the region, this study aims at providing additional constraints on the seismogenetic faults at the southern termination of the Calabrian arc. Waveform similarities analysis allowed observing that ~ 45% of the whole dataset can be grouped into six different families of seismic events. Earthquake multiplet families are mainly located in the eastern part of the seismogenetic volume. We suggest that such a feature is responsive to the lateral lithological variations as highlighted by geology (at the surface) and P-wave seismic tomography (at depth of 10 km). Stress tensor inversions performed on FPSs indicate that the investigated region is currently subject to a nearly biaxial stress state in an extensional regime, such that crustal stretching occurs along both NW-SE and NE-SW directions. Accordingly, mesoscale fault geometries and kinematics analyses evidence that a younger normal faulting stress regime led to a tectonic negative inversion by replacing the pre-existing strike-slip one. Based on our results and findings reported in recent literature, we refer such a crustal stretching to mantle upwelling process (as evidenced by diffuse mantle-derived gas emissions) coupled with a tectonic uplift involving north-eastern Sicily since Middle Pleistocene. Moreover, seismic swarms striking the region would be related to the migration of mantle and sub-crustal fluids toward the surface along the complex network of tectonic structures cutting the crust and acting as pathways.

The Calabrian Arc is a narrow subduction-rollback system resulting from Africa/Eurasia plate convergence. We analysed the structural style of the frontal accretionary wedge through a multiscale geophysical approach. Pre-stack depth-migrated crustal-scale seismic profiles unravelled the overall geometry of the subduction complex; high-resolution multi-channel seismic and sub-bottom CHIRP profiles, together with morpho-structural maps, integrated deep data and constrained the fine structure of the frontal accretionary wedge, as well as deformation processes along the outer deformation front. We identified four main morpho-structural domains in the western lobe of the frontal wedge: the proto-deformation area at the transition with the abyssal plain; two regions of gentle and tight folding; a hummocky morphology domain with deep depressions and intervening structural highs; a highstanding plateau at the landward limit of the salt-bearing accretionary wedge, where the detachment cuts through deeper levels down to the basement. Variation of structural style and seafloor morphology in these domains are related to a progressively more intense deformation towards the inner wedge, while abrupt changes are linked to inherited structures in the lower African plate. Our data suggest focusing of intense shallow deformation in correspondence of deeply rooted faults and basement highs of the incoming plate. Back-arc extension in the Southern Tyrrhenian Sea has recently ceased, producing a slowdown of slab rollback and plate-boundary re-organization along trans-tensional lithospheric faults segmenting the continental margin. In this complex setting, it is not clear if the accretionary wedge is still growing through frontal accretion. Our data suggest that shortening is still active at the toe of the wedge, and uplift rates along single folds are in the range of 0.25-1.5 mm/yr. An unconformity within the Plio-Quaternary sediments suggests a discontinuity in sedimentation and tectonic processes, i.e. a slowdown of shortening rate or an increase in sedimentation rate, but not a real inactivation of frontal accretion, which still contributes to the migration of the outer deformation front towards the foreland.

The Catanzaro Trough is a Neogene-Quaternary basin developed in the central Calabrian Arc, between the Serre and the Sila Massifs, and filled by up to 2000 m of continental to marine deposits. It extends from the Sant’Eufemia Basin (SE Tyrrhenian Sea), offshore, to the Catanzaro Basin, onshore. Here, onshore structural data have been integrated with structural features interpreted using marine geophysical data to infer the main tectonic processes that have controlled the geodynamic evolution of the western portion of the Catanzaro Trough, since Upper Miocene to present. The data show a complex tectonostratigraphic architecture of the basin, which is mainly controlled by the activity of NW–SE and NE–SW trending fault systems. In particular, during late Miocene, the NW-SE oriented faults system was characterized by left lateral kinematics. The same structural regime produces secondary fault systems represented by E-W and NE-SW oriented faults. The ca. E-W lineaments show extensional kinematics, which may have played an important role during the opening of the WNW–ESE paleo-strait; whereas the NE-SW oriented system represents the conjugate faults of the NW-SE oriented structural system, showing a right lateral component of motion. During the Piacenzian-Lower Pleistocene, structural field and geophysical data show a switch from left-lateral to right-lateral kinematics of the NW-SE oriented faults, due to a change of the stress field. This new structural regime influenced the kinematics of the NE-SW faults system, which registered left lateral movement. Since Middle Pleistocene, the study area experienced an extensional phase, WNW-ESE oriented, controlled mainly by NE-SW and, subordinately, N-S oriented normal faults. This type of faulting splits obliquely the western Catanzaro Trough, producing up-faulted and down-faulted blocks, arranged as graben-type system (i.e Lamezia Basin). The multidisciplinary approach adopted, allowed us to constrain the structural setting of the central Calabria segment. The joined onshore with offshore structural data analysis allowed us to image a more faithful geodynamic evolution of the Calabrian Arc, included in the wider geodynamic framework of the Mediterranean region Moreover, our results show the close correlation between the NE-SW and N-S normal fault systems and evidence of deformed Quaternary deposits. These findings are relevant to seismic hazard understanding in an area which is historically considered at the highest risk of earthquake and tsunami and where are present important infrastructures and cities.

Highlights • Plate boundary re-organization in the central Mediterranean Sea • Segmentation of the subduction complex along lithospheric transverse faults • STEP faults in the Ionian Sea • Pleistocene active faulting and Mt. Etna formation Abstract The Calabrian Arc is a narrow subduction-rollback system resulting from Africa/Eurasia plate convergence. While crustal shortening is taken up in the accretionary wedge, transtensive deformation accounts for margin segmentation along transverse lithospheric faults. One of these structures is the NNW-SSE transtensive fault system connecting the Alfeo seamount and the Etna volcano (Alfeo-Etna Fault, AEF). A second, NW-SE crustal discontinuity, the Ionian Fault (IF), separates two lobes of the CA subduction complex (Western and Eastern Lobes) and impinges on the Sicilian coasts south of the Messina Straits. Analysis of multichannel seismic reflection profiles shows that: 1) the IF and the AEF are transfer crustal tectonic features bounding a complex deformation zone, which produces the downthrown of the Western lobe along a set of transtensive fault strands; 2) during Pleistocene times, transtensive faulting reactivated structural boundaries inherited from the Mesozoic Tethyan domain which acted as thrust faults during the Messinian and Pliocene; 3) the IF and the AEF, and locally the Malta escarpment, accommodate a recent tectonic event coeval and possibly linked to the Mt. Etna formation. Regional geodynamic models show that, whereas AEF and IF are neighboring fault systems, their individual roles are different. Faulting primarily resulting from the ESE retreat of the Ionian slab is expressed in the northwestern part of the IF. The AEF, on the other hand, is part of the overall dextral shear deformation, resulting from differences in Africa-Eurasia motion between the western and eastern sectors of the Tyrrhenian margin of northern Sicily, and accommodating diverging motions in the adjacent compartments, which results in rifting processes within the Western Lobe of the Calabrian Arc accretionary wedge. As such, it is primarily associated with Africa-Eurasia relative motion.

A Middle Miocene-Middle Pleistocene regional NW-SE left-lateral strike-slip fault system profoundly conditioned the evolution of central Calabria, during the late tectonic phases which involved the Apulian block and the Calabrian Arc. This system dissected an Oligocene-Early Miocene orogenic belt, made of Alpine nappes overthrusted the Apennine Chain. In the present study, three major faults, arranged in a right-hand en echelon pattern, have been identified within the mentioned strike-slip system: the Falconara-Carpanzano Fault, the Amantea-Gimigliano Fault, and the Lamezia-Catanzaro Fault. A wide active transtensional area (N-S-trending Crati Graben), developed since Late Pliocene, is located at the SE termination of the Falconara-Carpanzano Fault. In the sectors of overlapping of the faults, the transpressional regime induced tectonic extrusions of the deep-seated units of the Chain, producing push-ups within the overlying complexes. In particular, push-ups are either made of Mesozoic carbonate rocks at Mt. Cocuzzo–Mt. Guono and Mt. S. Lucerna, or of ophiolite rocks at Mt. Reventino and Gimigliano. In these sectors, the primary geometric relationships among the units of the orogenic belt were locally altered. The en echelon arrangement of the above-mentioned NW-SE major strike-slip faults indicates the existence of a left-lateral crustal shear zone, striking on average N160. The age of the regional NW-SE left-lateral strike-slip system deserves thorough investigation. Besides evidence from historical and instrumental earthquakes, and from paleoseismological investigations, the kinematic data suggests that the “cause” of the transtensional sector (Crati Graben) could be found in the regional Falconara-Carpanzano Fault.

Magma upwelling forming volcanic plumbing systems in back arc settings is typically controlled by extensional tectonic structures of the upper crust. Here we investigate this process in the area between the volcanic arc of the Aeolian Islands and the Calabrian arc (SE Tyrrhenian Sea) by integrating morpho-bathymetry and reflection seismic data with the outcomes of “Inverse 3D magnetic modeling” of previously gathered aeromagnetic data. Morpho-bathymetric data highlight the presence of a seamount ∼10 km offshore Capo Vaticano Promontory (eastern Calabria). This feature, named Capo Vaticano seamount is composed of a series of NE-trending ridges, the greatest of which (R1) is ∼12 km long, and 2.4 km wide, displays asymmetric flanks with a landward steep slope, oblique morphological steps and elongated NE-trending rims. The position of the R1 ridge summit fits the Reduced-to-the-Pole peak of a high-intensity magnetic anomaly straddling Capo Vaticano Promontory and its offshore prolongation. Seismic and bathymetric data highlight two extensional fault systems affecting the offshore of Capo Vaticano Promontory during the Plio-Pleistocene: (a) a Pliocene NW-trending, SW-dipping normal fault system, and (b) a Pleistocene NE-trending, SE-dipping normal fault system. The younger system is composed of a series of en-echelon branching normal faults bounding the eastern side of the R1 ridge. Aeromagnetic data modeling imaged a complex 3D-magnetized body below the R1 ridge exhibiting a sub-vertical conduit-like structure in the shallow part, and a NE-striking, sheet-like shape inclined by 45° in depth. The location of the sub-vertical conduit coincides with the summit of the R1 ridge. The magma uprising at the root of the volcano was controlled by the Pliocene NW-trending faults whereas its further upwards migration was ostensibly controlled by the Pleistocene NE-trending faults. Both fault systems are responsible for the high level of fracturing that likely favored the upward migration of magma. The younger extensional systems also controls the present-day, mantle derived, fluid escapes observed at the summit of the R1 ridge. Relying on seismic stratigraphic evidence as well as the normal polarity of the magnetic anomaly, the R1 ridge probably started to form during the Olduvai chron (early Pleistocene, 1.81–1.96 Ma). Accordingly, the Capo Vaticano volcano may represent the result of magmatic activity that predates the Aeolian volcanic arc.

The 28 December, 1908 Reggio Calabria and Messina earthquake (named after the two most damaged cities on the coasts of Messina Strait) was one of the strongest (MW 7.1) ever to occur in Italy, and was also followed by a tsunami that severely impacted the coasts of the Strait. Although there is general agreement that its epicentre is located offshore in the Messina Strait, the source fault has never been detected; a century-long question is therefore pending on the source of both the 1908 earthquake and tsunami. Within the ongoing debate on this subject, little attention has been given, so far, to morphological insights from high resolution bathymetric (multibeam) data, particularly as regarding the evidence of faults affecting the seafloor and the question of whether a submarine landslide may had been the cause of the tsunami. We aim to address this issue by presenting the results of a morpho-bathymetric study in the Messina Strait and surroundings, investigated by means of high-resolution swath bathymetry. The primary morpho-structural feature in this area is the axial channel of the Messina Canyon, towards which flow several tributary canyons that incise the steep continental slope on the Calabrian and Sicilian margins. These canyons carve deeply into a very narrow (almost lacking) continental shelf and merge laterally forming a continuous erosional margin rimming the Messina Strait. This giant, composite canyon environment is the locus of intense erosional and depositional processes that superimpose on active tectonic deformation, resulting in a complex geomorphology that hinders the distinction between tectonic and sedimentary features. Seafloor ruptures that may be linked to fault systems compatible with the source of the 1908 earthquake and tsunami could not be identified based from our morpho-bathymetric analysis; however, we provide evidence of several geomorphic features indicative of tectonic deformation in the Messina Strait, define the presence and distribution of submarine landslides, and evaluate their possible role as tsunami sources.

We present geophysical data integrated with the analysis of well-targeted sediment samples in order to contribute to a better understanding of fluid circulation in the Calabrian Arc accretionary wedge. Two cores (BS81/II 5 and BS81/II 10) collected on a swell in the hangingwall of the inner deformation front show upper Pleistocene mud breccias that include Cretaceous to Late Miocene rock fragments mechanically incorporated into the eruption deposit by the upward transport of overpressured fluids. An additional core (CALA 21) came from the summit of a topographic high in the footwall of the inner deformation front of the accretionary wedge and contains a mud breccia patchy/cloudy facies where sediment disturbance is caused by fluid expulsion. Integration of the entire data set provides evidences of the interplay among tectonics, fluid emissions and sedimentation, and enables the identification of two new volcanoes in the accretionary prism where overpressuring due to Pliocene and Pleistocene sediment accumulation and the evolution of active fault systems triggered fluid circulation and the formation of those structures.

Recognizing the seismogenic source of major historical earthquakes, particularly when these have occurred offshore, is a long-standing issue across the Mediterranean Sea and elsewhere. The destructive earthquake (M ~. 7) that struck western Calabria (southern Italy) on the night of 8 September 1905 is one such case having various authors proposed a seismogenic source, with apparently diverse hypotheses and without achieving a unique solution. To gain novel insight into the crustal volume where the 1905 earthquake took place and to seek a more robust solution for the seismogenic source associated with this destructive event, we carried out a well-targeted multidisciplinary survey within the Gulf of S. Eufemia (SE Tyrrhenian Sea), collecting geophysical data, oceanographic measurements, and biological, chemical and sedimentary samples.We identified three main tectonic features affecting the sedimentary basin in the Gulf of S. Eufemia: 1) a NE-SW striking, ca. 13-km-long, normal fault, here named S. Eufemia Fault; 2) a WNW-striking polyphased fault system; and 3) a likely E-W trending lineament. Among these, the normal fault shows evidence of activity witnessed by the deformed recent sediments and by its seabed rupture along which, locally, fluid leakage occurs. Features in agreement with the anomalous distribution of prokaryotic abundance and biopolymeric C content, resulted from the shallow sediment analyses.The numerous seismogenic sources proposed in the literature during the past 15. yr make up a composite framework of this sector of western Calabria, that we tested against a) the geological evidence from the newly acquired dataset, and b) the regional seismotectonic models. Such assessment allows us to propose the NE-SW striking normal fault as the most probable candidate for the seismogenic source of the 1905 earthquake. Reappraising a major historical earthquake as the 1905 one enhances the seismotectonic picture of western Calabria. Further understanding of the region and better constraining the location of the seismogenic source may be attained through integrated interpretation of our data together with a) on-land field evidence, and b) seismological modeling. © 2013 Elsevier B.V.

The analysis of repeated high precision leveling observations during the last 40 years along lines of the Italian fundamental network allowed us to estimate very recent vertical movements in eastern Sicily and southern Calabria (Italy). The network is measured by the Italian Istituto Geografico Militare (IGM) and we have analyzed three leveling lines. Because of the lack of an absolute reference datum, we have conducted the analyses in terms of relative elevation changes compared to reference benchmarks. Although the processing of the different time series obtained from the high precision leveling has allowed us to estimate only relative rates, their extreme accuracy, together with the large extension of networks, makes this type of measurement fundamental for the estimate of recent vertical deformation. In addition, correlating instrumental and geological data makes it possible to identify active tectonic structures whose elastic strain accumulation could be responsible for vertical deformation. In particular, vertical motion can be related to the activity of a W-E trending fault separating the Catania Plain from the Hyblean Plateau in southeastern Sicily, a N-S trending normal fault occurring north of the Messina town and the NE-SW trending Scilla normal fault in south-western Calabria. The last two are located on the sides of the Messina Straits, an area of broad interest for the planning of the single-span bridge between Sicily and mainland Italy.

Detailed mapping of geomorphological, biological and archaeological sea-level markers around the Capo Schiso volcanic headland, a few kilometers south of Taormina, north-eastern Sicily, has documented the occurrence of three Holocene paleo-shorelines raised at different altitudes. The uppermost shoreline (PS1) is represented by a fossiliferous beach deposit that is heavily eroded and only few small sections, at elevations ranging between similar to 3 and similar to 5 m above the present sea-level, are visible. The middle shoreline (PS2) was found at a maximum altitude of similar to 3 m and is represented by algal rims, remnants of barnacle bands and vermetid concretions, and by a fossiliferous beach deposit. The lowermost shoreline (PS3) includes remnants of algal rims, vermetid concretions, fossil barnacle bands and a beachrock, and reaches an elevation of 1.60-1.80 m. New radiocarbon dating results, integrated with published ages from nearby paleo-shoreline outcrops, constrains for the Taormina region an average uplift rate of 1.7-1.8 mm/yr in the last 5 ka, and the occurrence of three co-seismic uplift events at 4.4-3.9 ka, 2.1-1.8 ka and

The tectonics and geodynamics of the Calabria region are presented in this study. These are inferred by precise computation of Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) permanent station velocities in a stable Eurasian reference framework. This allowed computation of the coordinates, variance and covariance matrixes, and horizontal and vertical velocities of the 36 permanent sites analyzed, together with the strain rates, and using different techniques. Interesting geodynamic phenomena are presented, including compressional, and deformational fields in the Tyrrhenian coastal sites of Calabria, extensional trends of the Ionian coastal sites, and sliding movement of the Crotone Basin. Conversely, on the northern Tyrrhenian side of the network near the Cilento Park area, the usual extensional tectonic perpendicular to the Apennine chain is observed. The large-scale pattern of the GNSS height velocities is shown, which is characterized by general interesting geodynamic vertical effects that appear to be due to geophysical movement and anthropic activity. Finally, the strain-rate fields computed through three different techniques are compared.