Digital mapping of geological events in European Seas
Geological mapping has been fundamental in understanding Earth history and in gathering information necessary to tackle land-use related problems. In recent decades, digital mapping and database criteria have provided additional contributions to traditional cartography management. The Geological Survey of Italy is involved in the EMODnet Geology Project, which promotes the collection and harmonization of marine geological data in European Seas, to be represented on digital maps at multiple scales, accessible online through a dedicated Portal. Data are subdivided into Work Packages (WP) dealing with different features. The Geological Survey of Italy has contributed constructively to the realization of geological datasets and leads the WP "Geological Events and Probabilities" with the aim to identify and map significant earthquakes, submarine landslides, volcanic centers, tectonics, tsunamis and fluid emissions occurring in European Seas. In order to provide harmonized European digital maps, the process of WP6 deliverable production was subdivided into several phases: Guidelines elaboration, data collection, harmonization, data processing and implementation. The activity resulted in the collection of a large amount of data which are displayed on the Portal. A few examples are provided to illustrate digital maps and how to browse through them and use data contained in the attached database.
DOI: 10.3301/GFT.2020.01