CARG-based (Sheet 416, 417, and 364) volume reassessment for the caldera-forming, VEI 6/7 ignimbrites along the Roman Magmatic Province

The renewed start and funding of the CARG project in volcanic areas have enabled new surveys and refinements of data on the volumes and extents of ignimbrites across the Roman Magmatic Province (RMP). To date, the investigation has focused particularly on the Roccamonfina volcano (Sheets 416 Sessa Aurunca and 417 Teano) and the Bracciano caldera (Sheet 364 Bracciano). The project is enhancing field data from areas already surveyed in past decades, while integrating new models and technologies to obtain more accurate quantifications of erupted magma volumes and a consequent re-evaluation of eruption magnitudes. Preliminary results indicate that the volume of some ignimbrites increases by more than one order of magnitude, suggesting that many other ignimbrites within the RMP may have been significantly underestimated, such as the Brown Leucitic Tuff and the White Trachytic Tuff pertaining to the Roccamonfina volcano. This reassessment potentially characterizes the RMP as an ignimbrite flare-up system, comparable to some of the largest and most impactful volcanic provinces worldwide, such as the Taupo Volcanic Zone. In this framework, new field and literature data, borehole stratigraphy, and GIS-integrated methodologies were combined to refine the bulk volume, areal extension, and magnitude of a case-study ignimbrite, with the aim of developing a standardized procedure for computing and integrating field surveys applicable to all ignimbrites.