Journal
TECTONOPHYSICS
Volume 745, Issue -, Pages 349-365Publisher
ELSEVIER SCIENCE BV
DOI: 10.1016/j.tecto.2018.08.021
Keywords
Soft-sediment deformation; Travertine; Seismites; Earthquake; Neotectonics
Categories
Ask authors/readers for more resources
Earthquakes-related soft-sediment deformations (seismites) are relevant structures to help reconstructing the palaeoseismicity in a region. Nevertheless, although seismites have been described for a large variety of palaeoenvironments and stratigraphic settings, they are rare and, in some cases, ambiguous structures. In this paper, we document, for the first time, impressive seismites affecting a latest Quaternary travertine deposit located in southern Tuscany (Serre di Rapolano, Italy). These structures are extremely relevant, as seismites have been never described for this kind of terrestrial deposits. The seismites developed within a 2.5 m thick stratigraphic succession made of alternating terrigenous and carbonate sediments, embedded within the travertine deposits. Earthquake produced liquefaction and fluidization of some terrigenous levels and the injection of fluidized silty sediments (dykes and sills) into carbonate and terrigenous levels; slumped levels and associated decollement surfaces produced highly non-cylindrical folds, overall induced by the loss of brittle shear strength along the basin slopes. The occurrence of these soft-sediment deformations implies an important seismic event that took place in a time spam encompassed between 84 +/- 8 and 48.92 +/- 5.08 ka, in an area characterized by low seismicity and scarce knowledge of its seismotectonic setting. Their spectacular exposition and preservation in saw-cuts of an abandoned quarry (Cava Oliviera quarry) highlights their relevance and importance.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available