Preliminary data concerning the morphology of a Calabrian Ionian margin area: Caulonia and Marina di Gioiosa canyons.

Abstract

In the framework of the Vector National Italian Project (VulCost line), aimed to study the role of the morphology and the geology of the Ionian Calabrian margin in the coastline evolution, an oceanographic cruise was planned to collect geophysical data along two canyon systems: Caulonia andMarina di Gioiosa. The survey explored the continental shelf and slope from a depth of 15m to more than 1150m, using Multibeam Echosounder to investigate the seafloor topography. This work provides an outline of the erosive feature of the slope, shaped mostly by seasonal river input and by the connection to the structural and geological characteristics of the margin, made interesting by a narrow shelf and steep slope and influenced by a recent Quaternary tectonic, cause of the crustal regional seismicity. The collected data allowed us to perform a first characterisation of the geo-morphological peculiarities of the study area, constituting the base for the evaluation of the coastal zone evolution.