On May 27, 2020, a multidisciplinary study was published in Geosciences journal, leading to recognition of a sedimentary deposit belonging to an historical tsunami (Sansò et al., 2020). Due to the use of advanced technologies such as Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) and Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (AMS), the Authors were able to date some sand deposits in southern Puglia, attributed to sudden flooding caused by a tsunami.
The analysis carried out along the Apulia coast between the site of La Strea (municipality of Porto Cesareo) and the site of L'Arenile (municipality of Nardò) were compared with the historical catalogues of earthquakes and tsunamis, leading the authors of the study to hypothesize that the tsunamigenic event was the earthquake of April 25, 1836 with epicenter near Rossano, on the coast of Calabria Ionica.
Studying these deposits for the reconstruction of tsunamis of the past is very important, as it integrates and corroborates the often limited historical data, leading to a better knowledge of the tsunami hazard in the Mediterranean Sea and in Italy.
Sansò, P.; Calcagnile, L.; Fago, P.; Mazzotta, S.; Negri, S.; Quarta, G.; Romagnoli, C.; Vitale, A.; Mastronuzzi, G. Sand Ridges on Rocky Coastal Platforms as Markers of Tsunami Impact: A Multi-Disciplinary Analysis along the Ionian Coast of Southern Apulia (Italy). Geosciences 2020, 10, 204. https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3263/10/6/204