Seismo-stratigraphic framework of the Cape Licosa ridge in the frame of the CORSUB project

Preliminary results on the seismo-stratigraphic framework of the Cape Licosa ridge, located in the Southern Tyrrhenian Sea (Italy) are herein presented based on the geological interpretation of a grid of Subbottom Chirp profiles recorded in the frame of the PRIN22 CORSUB project. The project has investigated enigmatic bedforms discovered between 70 and 90 meters of water depth. In particular, the studied area corresponds to a ridge located offshore Cape Licosa (Tyrrhenian Sea, Italy), where a dense network of seismic profiles has been recorded during the TREMOR oceanographic cruise. Seismic data processing has been carried out using the GeoSuite AllWorks software package and consisted of the application of correction and enhancement algorithms and in the conversion of the seismic data from raster to SEG-Y and then to JPG format. The seismo-stratigraphic analysis of Chirp profiles has allowed for the distinction of three main seismo-stratigraphic units, separated by three regional unconformities. The 737 Chirp profile has suggested the occurrence of prograding sequences, cut parallel to the main progradation direction. These sequences could be interpreted as relict deposits, or alternatively, as beach deposits genetically related to the isotopic stages 4 and 5. The stratigraphic architecture is characterized by the occurrence of filled paleochannels. These are ancient rivers or stream valleys that have been cut into older rock and subsequently filled with younger sediments. In stratigraphy, they serve as crucial geological records. We suppose that these paleochannels were formed when rivers cut downwards into existing rock during periods of falling sea level (lowstands), highlighting the boundary between the first and the second seismo-stratigraphic units into the basin. The incision and filling process provides insight into past changes in base-level (e.g., sea-level rise/fall or tectonic uplift), highlighting that the Cilento offshore represented a highly dynamic continental shelf during the Late Quaternary.