RECENT ADVANCES IN PERI-ADRIATIC GEODYNAMICS AND FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS

This volume presents the current status of research into the geodynamics of the Adriatic region and the surrounding areas of Italy, the Alps, the Pannonian basin, and the eastern margin of the Adriatic as far south as Greece. Contributions here come from the fields of technical and applied geodesy, tectonics, structural geology, paleomagnetism, seismology, and other fields. Papers are grouped together into five major themes: (1) Introduction and regional tectonic framework; (2) Geologic evidence of Adria motion; (3) Geodetic infrastructure and technology; (4) Geodetic measurements and geodynamics; and (5) Seismology, seismic hazard, and societal impacts of Adria tectonics. Several areas of consensus and several unresolved questions have emerged in this field. First, recent GPS surveys almost universally Conclude that Adria currently is moving independent of both Eurasia and Africa/Nubia. However, Nubia motion remains imperfectly constrained, and a better distribution and density of GPS measurements across Africa is desirable. The precise boundaries of Adria also remain open to a variety of different interpretations. To the northeast, current deformation appears to be distributed over a broad zone, with "Adria push" penetrating through the Dinarides and Pannonian basin. This on-going motion of Adria appears to be driving active lateral extrusion to the northeast, and similar processes may be active at the northwestern corner of Adria, in and around the Western Alps. Within the Adriatic region itself, seismicity and variations in GPS vectors across the region have been interpreted by some as internal fragmentation of Adria, and several geometries have been proposed. In the future, expanded research focused on regional peri-Adriatic geodynamics would have both theoretical scientific benefits as well as tangible applications. The motion of Adria and Adria-driven deformation exert first-order controls on earthquake hazard and other natural hazards such as slope failure and soil erosion. In addition, the geodynamic pattern and tectonic history also control the distribution of minerals and other economic resources; in particular Adria-related tectonics have controlled hydrocarbon accumulation in locations such as the Pannonian basin. Potential for future research includes cross-disciplinary work, for example linking GPS geodetic measurements with geological or perhaps paleoseismic techniques to identify specific structures and their history of deformation integrated through several full seismic cycles. In addition, future geodetic research should be international, fully spanning the Adriatic block and its boundary zones, with the goal of producing a dense, methodologically homogenous velocity field.