© Salvatore LaportaThe Solfatara crater, part of the Campi Flegrei Volcano in Pozzuoli, the biggest caldera of southern Italy.
Cracks in walls and falling cornices were reported, Italy's Fire Brigade spokesman confirmed to CNN.
The 4.4 earthquake at a depth of 3 kilometers is the strongest earthquake to hit the highly seismic area in the past 40 years, according to INGV data. The quake is part of an ongoing "seismic storm" that has seen more than a dozen events over 2.0 magnitude in the past 48 hours.
The 4.4 tremblor at 8:10 p.m. local time was preceded by a 3.5 earthquake an hour earlier.
The INGV recorded 1,252 earthquakes in the Campi Flegrei area in the month of April 2024, most with a magnitude less than 1.0.
The last major eruption of the supervolcano was in 1538, which resulted in the creation of a new bay on the southern Italian coast. The INGV has noted an increase of seismic activity since 2022, which could be due either to the building up of magma under the surface or the building up of gases, according to several volcanologists.
The volcano is about 50 kilometers (31 miles) from Mt. Vesuvius, and prone to a phenomenon known as bradyseism, during which the ground raises and falls due to pressure under the surface. The last major cycle was in 1984, but several volcanologists told CNN that the area is experiencing a new cycle of the phenomenon.
More than 500,000 people live in the red zone directly adjacent to the Campi Flegrei, according to the Italian Civil Protection agency, which has been working this year to update evacuation plans in the event of a major disaster.
Reader Comments
"The earliest known eruptive products are dated 47 000 years BP. The caldera formed following two large explosive eruptions, the massive Campanian ignimbrite about 36 000 BP, and the over 40 km3 Neapolitan Yellow Tuff (NYT) about 15 000 BP.
Following the eruption of the NYT a large number of eruptions originated from widely scattered subaerial and submarine vents. Most activity occurred during three intervals: 15 000 – 9 500, 8 600 – 8 200, and 4 800 – 3 800 BP. The latest eruption was in 1158 CE at Solfatara and activity in 1538 CE that formed the Monte Nuovo cinder cone" [Link]
More than half a million residents in towns and villages surrounding the Campi Flegrei supervolcano are at direct risk. The Italian cabinet is working to ensure their safety following months of seismic activity which has featured well-over 1,100 earthquakes, the most powerful of which measured in at an impressive M4.2 — the region’s strongest quake in the last 40 years" [Link]
Article at the link is very good.
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