25-31 March 2012

Il Ciocco, Castelvecchio Pascoli, Lucca, Italy

CONVENERS:

Donald Fisher

Dept. of Geosciences, Penn State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, USA, dmf6@psu.edu

César Ranero

Barcelona Center for Subsurface Imaging, Barcelona, Spain,

cranero@cmima.csic.es

Paola Vannucchi

Dipto. di Scienze della Terra, Università degli Studi di Firenze, Firenze, Italia, paola.vannucchi@unifi.it

Organizing Committee

Eli Silver, Univ. of California at Santa Cruz; Demian Saffer, Penn State Univ.; Greg Moore, Univ. of Hawaii; Kelin Wang, Univ. of Victoria; Onno Onken, GFZ Potsdam; Timoty Dixon, Univ. of Miami; Carlo Doglioni, Univ. di Roma "La Sapienza"; Claudio Faccenna, Univ. di Roma 3; Jean-Yves Collot, Geoazur Nice; Francesca Remitti, Univ. di Modena e Reggio Emilia; Giancarlo Molli, Univ. di Pisa; Roland von Huene, Univ. of California at Davis; Serge Lallemand, Geosciences Montpellier; Sean Willett, ETH Zurich.

Cosponsored by the European Geosciences Union, the Italian Geological Society, the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation, and the U.S. National Science Foundation.

Description and Objectives

This Penrose Conference will explore recent developments related to deformation, fluid flow, and mass transfer in the forearc of convergent plate boundaries and their potential relationships to earthquake phenomena and seismogenesis. Numerous recent observations are potentially of great consequence to forearc behavior: (1) evidence for hydration of the oceanic mantle prior to subduction and its dehydration during subduction; (2) recognition of the oceanic crust as a zone of high permeability in the incoming plate; (3) evidence for complex subduction fault behavior, including slow slip within and adjacent to the seismogenic zone; (4) observations by seafloor observatories of tectonically induced transient fluid flow events; (5) observations of complex structure for the forearc, including out-of-sequence faults and a wide array of fault types from extension to shortening; (6) extensive records of slope basin seismic stratigraphy and structure; (7) high-resolution multi-beam images of a significant number of margins that span the full range of convergent margin behavior; (8) discovery of pseudotachylyte (paleo-earthquakes) in accreted sediments; (9) records of coseismic and interseismic deformation from geodetic, especially GPS, measurements; and finally (10) 3-D seismic surveys of both an accretionary and an erosive margin. The recent Great Tohoku Earthquake of 11 March 2011 has thrown into doubt the paradigm that the plate boundaries of erosive convergent margins are too segmented to allow for great earthquakes. This conference will provide an opportunity for researchers to address these and other recent developments in a format that allows for discussion, integration of ideas, and development of collaborations and future directions.

The meeting is an opportunity for integration of onshore and marine observations, experiments on mechanics and fluid flow, and results of geodynamic modeling. Discussions will consider a range of time scales from the short-term secular variations of the seismic cycle to the long-term evolution of structure and topography. The topics that will be emphasized as part of the program include:

• Material balances—the processes and rates of accretion and erosion and their influence on seismogenesis;
• Interactions between the subducting and overriding plates, including continental slope and forearc basins;
• Wedge dynamics and links between seismic and geologic time scales;
• Fluid flow in the forearc and tectonics—evidence from direct observations and inferences from rock microstructures and geochemistry; and
• The timescales of the earthquake cycle—Is the magnitude and frequency of earthquakes influenced by forearc geology?

Preliminary Agenda

Day 1, 26 March: Field Trip in the Modena-Reggio Emilia Apennine foothills
Day 2, 27 March: Field Trip in the Modena-Reggio Emilia Apennine foothills
Day 3, 28 March: Meeting in Il Ciocco
Day 4, 29 March: Meeting in Il Ciocco
Day 5, 30 March: Meeting in Il Ciocco

This five-day meeting will begin in Modena, Italy (airport: Bologna), on 26 March 2012, with a two-day field trip that crosses the Ligurian forearc. Day one will involve observations of the External Ligurides; the second day will focus on a mélange interpreted as part of an erosive subduction channel. The field trip will end at Il Ciocco, a conference venue situated 500 m above sea level, 70 km north of Pisa airport. A short, half day field trip will be organized in the nearby Apuan Alps to visit the metamorphic rocks deformed during continental subduction of the Adria plate. Transportation to Pisa will be provided at the conclusion of the meeting.

Attendees and Estimated Costs

The registration fee will cover hotel lodging for six nights (double occupancy), all meals (breakfast, lunch, and dinner) for five days, handouts, and transportation for the field trips and meeting dates. Airfare is not included, and participants must make their own travel arrangements. Registration fees have not yet been finalized.

Application and Registration

Application deadline: 30 Nov. 2011
Registration deadline: 30 Jan. 2011

Participants will have to commit to attending the full five days of the conference. To apply, please contact the conveners at dmf6@psu.edu with a letter of intent that includes a brief statement of interests, the relevance of your recent work to the themes of the conference, the subject of your proposed presentation, and contact information. Interested graduate students and early career faculty are strongly encouraged to apply. Once you have been selected to participate, you will be sent registration information.

Info at: http://www.geosociety.org/penrose/12italy.htm

Il Gruppo Italiano di Geologia Strutturale mette a disposizione una borsa per uno studente di dottorato o assegnista di ricerca Italiano pari all’importo dell’iscrizione (€ 962). Chi volesse far richiesta della borsa è pregato di spedire una copia dell’application a paola.vannucchi@unifi.it, oltre a quella richiesta nel sito web della conferenza. Si prega inoltre di allegare all’application un breve CV.