Master's projects

Tectonic geomorphology of the river Biferno and the activity of the Chieuti high (Molise-Puglia regions, southern Italy)

Classic tectonic geomorphology project with mapping of alluvial terraces, dating with radiocarbon, and tectonic modelling of the deformed markers Climatic and anthropic forcing on hillslope processes with examples from the Italian Northern Apennines.

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Onset of exhumation in the northern Apennines: thermochronologic constraints from the most internal units.

The Northern Apennine mountains of Italy are an active orogen characterized by contemporaneous compressional tectonics in the pro-wedge and extensional tectonics in the retro-wedge. The interplay between extension and compression has affected the overall tectonic evolution of the Northern Apennines and, in particular, its exhumational and topographic evolution. Tertiary foredeep siliciclastic sandstones were accreted at the front of the Northern Apennines since the Oligocene and were overthrust by ophiolitic units during the Miocene. Siliciclastic sediments were deposited on top of the overriding thrust sheet until the Tortonian in the northwestern part of the northern Apennines. With the exception of the metamorphic dome of the Alpi Apuane, maximum burial temperatures across the Northern Apennines are relatively low, less than 200–250°C (Reutter et al., 1983), and increase almost steadily along NE to SW swath profiles with maximum values near the Ligurian coastline. Although the sedimentary record constraints to the Tortonian, after 10 Ma, the onset of emersion and erosional exhumation of the northern Apennines wedge, the available thermochronologic data may be interpreted as indicating that exhumation in the internal units might have started earlier, around 13 Ma (Balestrieri et al. 1996; Ventura et al.; 2001). New thermal and thermochronologic data integrated with field observations along a NE-SW transect across Val di Vara and Cinque Terre, in eastern Liguria, where the internal units are exposed, could provide new constraints on the maximum burial temperatures and on the onset time of cooling in relation to either erosional or tectonic exhumation.

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Topographic signatures of glacial erosion (digital mapping and landscape evolution modelling)

Tectonic geomorphology uses digital mapping combined with theoretical insights to infer knowledge about tectonic deformation rates from topography in actively deforming mountain ranges around the world. Today, most work is done with landscapes eroded by rivers, and landscapes that have been shaped by glacial erosion are often ignored because the theory of glacial erosion lags behind fluvial erosion. Using recent theory, this project will adapt tools from the digital mapping of fluvial landscapes to glacial landscapes to improve our understanding of how glaciers shape landscapes.

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Hydraulics of steep mountain rivers (drone work, constructing 3D topographic models)

Bedrock rivers are a key process that erode and shape rapidly uplifting mountain ranges around the world. One of the most fundamental aspects of any river, bedrock rivers included, is the friction between the water and the river boundary. This friction, termed flow resistance, is strongly affected by the size of the sediment grains in a river. When grains are small - e.g. sand and gravel, the flow resistance is well understood. When grains are large - e.g. boulders, the understanding of what controls flow resistance is poor. This is a major issue for understanding the dynamics of bedrock rivers, which are often filled with boulders. In this project, we will go out to boulder mantled rivers in Switzerland and use a drone to photograph the river bed. These images will be used to build 3D models of the river bed to support ongoing studies into the flow resistance of bedrock rivers.

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