Seabed doming found in Bay of Naples

(ANSA) - Rome, March 1 - Italian scientists have found evidence of active seabed doming and gas discharge in the Gulf of Naples, according to a paper published in the on-line journal Scientific Reports on Tuesday. The discovery is the result of an oceanography survey conducted by members of Italy's national research institute (CNR), national institute of geophysics and volcanology (INGV) and the university of Florence.
    The doming is located around 5 km from the port of Naples and 2.5 km from Posillipo and is caused by the rise of gas from a depth of 10-20 km, the researchers say. "The structure is situated half way between the active volcanoes of the Phlegraean Fields and Vesuvius, at a variable depth of between 100m and 170m," said Salvatore Passaro of the CNR. The researchers surveyed 35 gas emissions and over 650 small craters linked to gas discharge over the past 12,000 years. The data is evidence of "activity linked to a secondary volcanic phenomenon that is not currently associated to a direct rise of magma," said Guido Ventura of INGV.