Infrared remote sensing techniques applied to the “Salinelle” mud volcanoes (Paternò, Sicily)

Abstract

The Salinelle are the surface expression of overpressurised sedimentary fluids hosted within clay sediments typical of compressive tectonic settings. Particularly at Paternò (lower SW flank of Mt. Etna), fluids are slightly thermalised and contaminated by magmatic gases (mainly CO2), due to the nearby active volcanic system of Mt. Etna. Overall, the composition of the Salinelle gases shows temporal variations that have been correlated to the geodynamic activity of the area. Monitoring of mud volcanoes geochemical and thermal parameters has typically been performed by direct measurement techniques, thus implying long duration of the surveys. In order to speed up data collection and to simultaneously test the reliability of remote sensing techniques for studying the Salinelle activity, we carried out both groundbased thermal imagery and Fourier Transfer InfraRed (FTIR) measurements.