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JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH, VOL. 113, B10102, doi:10.1029/2007JB005172, 2008

The Stromboli 2002 tsunamigenic submarine slide: Characteristics and possible failure mechanisms

Francesco L. Chiocci

Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra, University of Roma La Sapienza, Rome, Italy
Istituto di Geologia Applicata e Geoingegneria, CNR, Roma, Italy


Claudia Romagnoli

Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra e Geologico-Ambientali, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy


Paolo Tommasi

Istituto di Geologia Ambientale e Geoingegneria, CNR, Rome, Italy


Alessandro Bosman

Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra, University of Roma La Sapienza, Rome, Italy
Istituto di Geologia Applicata e Geoingegneria, CNR, Roma, Italy


Abstract

On 30 December 2002, a major instability event, deeply involving the submarine slope, occurred on the Sciara del Fuoco, on the western flank of Stromboli volcano, in the Aeolian Islands. Tsunami waves with a maximum runup of over 10 m in Stromboli were generated, having a measurable impact as far as the Sicily coast. Just 10 months before the event, a multibeam bathymetry had been collected in the area down to 1000 m of depth. A repetition of the survey after the slide allowed the unique opportunity to verify the occurrence of a large submarine slide and to define volumes involved and morphology generated by the event, through the comparison of the preevent and postevent bathymetric grids. A morphological characterization of the slope before and after the submarine landslide is presented, showing how the preexisting features interacted with the slide event in controlling the instability. Mechanisms of the submarine failure are discussed on the basis of the geometrical characters of the landslide event, structural and stratigraphic setting of the submerged slope, and geotechnical considerations on the behavior of slope material.

Received 17 May 2007; accepted 15 May 2008; published 4 October 2008.

Keywords: landslide-generated tsunami; Stromboli volcano; submarine instability.

Index Terms: 3045 Marine Geology and Geophysics: Seafloor morphology, geology, and geophysics; 3070 Marine Geology and Geophysics: Submarine landslides; 8404 Volcanology: Volcanoclastic deposits.

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Citation: Chiocci, F. L., C. Romagnoli, P. Tommasi, and A. Bosman (2008), The Stromboli 2002 tsunamigenic submarine slide: Characteristics and possible failure mechanisms, J. Geophys. Res., 113, B10102, doi:10.1029/2007JB005172.