The cruise R/V Urania TIR10, has been scheduled for the acquisition of multichannel seismic profiles (MCS), in the framework of the CROP (CROsta Profonda) project SCROCCA2003-CROP, CARRARA2007 to study the tectonic setting and the geodynamic evolution of three important structures in the Tyrrhenian Sea backarck basin: (a) the Pontine Islands escarpment, (b) the Messina Strait, that connects the Southern Tyrrhenian Sea to the Ionian Sea, and (3) the volcanic area surrounding the Gulf of Naples (Campi Flegrei). The study of these areas by high resolution reflection seismic can contribute to the definition and prevention of geological, seismic and volcanic hazards, since the Pontine escarpment and Messina Strait are seismogenetic structures with an high tsunamigenic potential, and the Campi Flegrei volcanic risk is enhanced due to the large population and antropic activities involved.
Different topics of interest will be analyzed, among them (1) the characters of the transition from a continental to an oceanic crust, (2) the transfer zone between the Calabrian oceanic and the Sicilian continental subductions, (3) the complex volcanic district characterized by frequent explosive eruptions of Pontine Islands and Gulf of Naples.
Furthermore, TIR10 will includes measurements and data acquisitions in the fields of Oceanography and Seismic Oceanography, taking advantage of the high resolution MCS surveying, as in previous R/V Urania cruise ADRIASEIS09 in Southern Adriatic Sea CARNIEL2009-AS09.