Volcanism and tearing in the Tyrrhenian subduction system: the CAVEAT project

In retreating subduction zones the proposed lithosphere tearing processes at slab edges are typically related to segmentation of subducting plate. A direct response to lithosphere tearing is the channeling of new asthenospheric mantle that can initiate magmatism. Tearing mechanisms have also been proposed for the Calabrian Arc, where slab migration led to the formation of the southeastern Tyrrhenian basin and was progressively accommodated by inherited and newly formed vertical tear faults whose oldest (~2 Ma) and youngest (~0.8 Ma) tectonic expressions in the upper plate are the Sisifo-Alicudi and the Aeolian-Tindari-Letojanni fault systems, respectively. The Western and Central-Southern Aeolian Islands nested along these structures as highlighted by a large number of geological and geophysical studies in the last decades. CAVEAT aims to apply a multidisciplinary approach to study in detail the local lithospheric structure, the pattern of crustal deformation and the geochemical signature of the Central-Southern Aeolian Islands. The acquisition of new data will provide a broad overview of the ongoing geodynamics of the southern Tyrrhenian region and will allow us to properly study the interplay of present-day tectonics and volcanic deformation and the related role and nature of the fluids and the hydrothermal activity.