Gianmaria Sannino

ENEA | ENEA · Climate Modelling Laboratory, Department of Sustainability (SSPT-MET-CLIM)

The submerged sill in the Strait of Messina, which is located today at a minimum depth of 81 m below sea level (bsl), represents the only land connection between Sicily and mainland Italy (and thus Europe) during the last lowstand when the sea level locally stood at about 126 m bsl. Today, the sea crossing to Sicily, although it is less than 4 km a...

Complex air-sea interactions play a major role in both the variability and the extremes of the Mediterranean climate. This study investigates the differences between an atmosphere-only and an ocean-coupled model in reproducing Mediterranean cyclones and their associated atmospheric fields. To this end, two simulations are performed using the ENEA-R...

In the framework of the coordinated regional modeling initiative Med-CORDEX (Coordinated Regional Climate Downscaling Experiment), we present an updated version of the regional Earth System Model ENEA-REG designed to downscale, over the Mediterranean basin, the models used in the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project phase 6 (CMIP6). The regional E...

Highlights • The soundscape is an intrinsic property of an ecosystem and influences the species that live in it. • Here, we examined the soundscape of a beach where every year the loggerhead sea turtle Caretta caretta lays eggs. • The aim was to analyze the sounds to which turtles embryos were exposed throughout the development. • Marine and lan...

Regional coupled and Earth system models are fundamental numerical tools for climate investigations, downscaling of predictions and projections, process-oriented understanding of regional extreme events, and many more applications. Here we introduce a newly developed coupled regional modeling framework for the Mediterranean region, called MESMAR (M...

Regional coupled and Earth System models are fundamental numerical tools for climate investigations, downscaling of predictions and projections, process-oriented understanding of regional extreme events, and many more applications. Here we introduce a newly developed coupled regional modeling framework for the Mediterranean region, called MESMAR (M...

This chapter provides a general background on the dynamics of the sea surface from the short time and spatial scales of the gravity waves produced by the wind to long scales produced by planetary waves. It considers marine storms (including wind waves and storm surges), astronomical tides, and tsunamis (including events caused by earthquakes, lands...

Availability of detailed short-term forecasts of the ocean main characteristics (circulation and waves) is essential for a correct management of the human activities insisting on coastal areas. These activities include the extraction of renewable energy, which has developed in recent years, and will play an important role in the context of future b...

This study presents an approach developed to derive a Delayed-Multivariate Exposure-Response Model (D-MERF) useful to assess the short-term influence of temperature on mortality, accounting also for the effect of air pollution (O3 and PM10). By using Distributed, lag non-linear models (DLNM) we explain how city-specific exposure-response functions...

This study presents results of long-term monitoring activities carried out by SCUBA divers inside the Gulf of Naples, in the context of an ongoing citizen science project. In the last five years, systematic high-frequency measurements of the sea temperature have been performed at three different depths over the Santa Croce Bank, a shallow area in t...

Heat and cold temperatures associated with exposure to poor air quality lead to increased mortality. Using a generalized linear model with Poisson regression for overdispersion, this study quantifies the natural-caused mortality burden attributable to heat/cold temperatures and PM10 and O3 air pollutants in Rome and Milan, the two most populated It...

We present results of three simulations of the Mediterranean Sea climate: a hindcast, a historical run, and a RCP8.5 scenario simulation reaching the year 2100. The simulations are performed with MED16, a new, tide-including implementation of the MITgcm model, which covers the Mediterranean—Black Sea system with a resolution of 1/16°, further incre...

The Mediterranean basin is a hot spot of climate change where the Posidonia oceanica (L.) Delile (PO) and other seagrasses are under stress due to its effect on marine coastal habitats and the rising influence of anthropogenic activities (i.e., tourism, fishery). The PO and seabed ecosystems, in the coastal environments of Pantelleria and Lampedusa...

This paper presents major gaps and challenges for implementing the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (2021-2030) in the Mediterranean region. The authors make recommendations on the scientific knowledge needs and codesign actions identified during two consultations, part of the Decade preparatory-phase, framing them in the Medi...

The Mediterranean basin is a hot spot of climate change where the Posidonia oceanica (L.) Delile (PO) and other seagrass are under stress due to its effect on marine habitats and the rising influence of anthropogenic activities (tourism, fishery). The PO and seabed ecosystems, in the coastal environments of Pantelleria and Lampedusa, suffer additio...

The city of Venice and the surrounding lagoonal ecosystem are highly vulnerable to variations in relative sea level. In the past ∼150 years, this was characterized by an average rate of relative sea-level rise of about 2.5 mm/year resulting from the combined contributions of vertical land movement and sea-level rise. This literature review reassess...

In this study, a new regional Earth system model is developed and applied to the Med-CORDEX (Coordinated Regional Climate Downscaling Experiment) region. The ENEA-REG system is made up of two interchangeable regional climate models as atmospheric components (RegCM, REGional Climate Model, and WRF, Weather Research and Forecasting), a river model (H...

We present results of three simulations of the Mediterranean Sea climate: a hindcast, a historical run, and a RCP8.5 scenario simulation reaching the year 2100. The simulations are performed with MED16, a new, tide-including implementation of the MITgcm model, which covers the Mediterranean - Black Sea system with a resolution of 1/16°, further inc...

Knowledge about marine circulation and its variability is a basic requirement for the correct management of activities aimed at exploiting marine resources and for the prevention and eventual mitigation of the risks involved. The activities of the Marine Hazard Project, to which this special number of Sustainability is dedicated, focus on geotherma...

In recent years, the territorial impacts connected to sea level rise have prompted a reflection on the responsibilities of policy makers in transposing these issues into urban agendas. The need also emerged to both broaden and update the skills of urban planners and to improve territorial governance tools, with the aim of developing feasible regene...

In this study, a new regional Earth system model is developed and applied to the Med-CORDEX region. The ENEA-REG system is made up of two interchangeable regional climate models as atmospheric components (RegCM and WRF), a river model (HD), and an ocean model (MITgcm); processes taking place at the land surface are represented within the atmospheri...

The City of Venice and the surrounding lagoonal ecosystem are highly vulnerable to variations in relative sea level. In the past ~150 years, this was characterized by a secular linear trend of about 2.5 mm/year resulting from the combined contributions of vertical land movement and sea-level rise. This literature review reassesses and synthesizes t...

Abstract We introduce a new version of the Earth System Regional Climate model RegCM‐ES and evaluate its performances for the first time over the Mediterranean region. The novel aspect of this coupled system is the possibility to simulate the dynamics of the marine ecosystem through a biogeochemical model, BFM (Biogeochemical Flux Model), coupled o...

In tutto il mondo il degrado del suolo si sta diffondendo a causa di molteplici fattori di stress: cattive pratiche di coltivazione, uso irrazionale dell’acqua, di diserbanti e fitofarmaci, taglio di alberi, ma anche incendi, siccità, precipitazioni intense riducono la capacità di assorbire carbonio, amplificando la crisi climatica e l’insicurezza...

The tides in the Mediterranean Sea are generally weaker than in other regions of the world ocean, but are locally intensified in passages with complex bathymetry, such as the Gibraltar Strait and the Sicily Channel. To date, a detailed understanding of their effects on the circulation, on the short time scales relevant to forecasting, is still miss...

Twenty-first century projections for the Mediterranean water properties have been analyzed using the largest ensemble of regional climate models (RCMs) available up to now, the Med-CORDEX ensemble. It is comprised by 25 simulations, 10 historical and 15 scenario projections, from which 11 are ocean–atmosphere coupled runs and 4 are ocean forced sim...

Sediment dynamics is the primary driver of the evolution of the coastal geomorphology and of the underwater shelf clinoforms. In this paper, we focus on mesoscale and sub-mesoscale processes, such as coastal currents and river plumes, and how they shape the sediment dynamics at regional or basin spatial scales. A new methodology is developed that c...

The Mediterranean community represented in this paper is the result of more than 30 years of EU and nationally funded coordination, which has led to key contributions in science concepts and operational initiatives. Together with the establishment of operational services, the community has coordinated with universities, research centers, research i...

Extreme ocean warming events, known as marine heatwaves (MHWs), have been observed to perturb significantly marine ecosystems and fisheries around the world. Here, we propose a detection method for long-lasting and large-scale summer MHWs, using a local, climatological 99th percentile threshold, based on present-climate (1976–2005) daily SST. To as...

In this study, underwater noise from a full-scale wave energy converter system (ISWEC), installed on the coast of Pantelleria Island (central Mediterranean Sea), was characterized. The noise was measured using an autonomous acoustic recorder anchored to the sea bottom 40 m from the ISWEC hull. Acoustic monitoring continued for 15 months, starting 7...

We implement a 3D state-of-the-art hydrodynamic-biogeochemical model that is based on MITgcm-BFM online coupling to describe the temporal scales of the variability of the multi-decadal marine biogeochemistry in the Mediterranean Sea. This model is characterised by a horizontal resolution of 1/12° and a multi-nutrient and multi-plankton framework an...

The European Climate Research Alliance (ECRA) is an association of leading European research institutions in the field of climate research (http://www.ecra-climate.eu/, last access: 6 December 2018). ECRA is a bottom-up initiative and helps to facilitate the development of climate change research, combining the capacities of national research insti...

1st National Workshop on Climate Change and Sea Level Rise in the Mediterranean; Rome, Italy, 5–6 July 2018

Large-scale circulation anomalies over the North Atlantic and Euro-Mediterranean regions described by dominant climate modes, such as the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO), the East Atlantic pattern (EA), the East Atlantic/Western Russian (EAWR) and the Mediterranean Oscillation Index (MOI), significantly affect interannual-to-decadal climatic and h...

Energy transitions require strategic plans that minimize inefficiencies and maximize energy production in a sustainable way. This aspect is fundamental in the case of innovative technologies based on marine renewable energies. Marine renewable energies involve problems and advantages which imply a reconceptualization of marine space and its managem...

Vertical transfers of heat, salt and mass between the inflowing and outflowing layers at the Strait of Gibraltar are explored basing on the outputs of a three-dimensional fully nonlinear numerical model. The model covers the entire Mediterranean basin and has a very high spatial resolution around the strait (1/200∘). Another distinctive feature of...

Large-scale circulation anomalies over the North Atlantic and Euro-Mediterranean regions described by dominant climate modes, such as the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO), the East Atlantic pattern (EA), the East Atlantic/Western Russian (EAWR) and the Mediterranean Oscillation Index (MOI), significantly affect interannual-to-decadal climatic and h...

This works aims to describe current perspectives for marine energy exploitation in the Mediterranean basin, highlighting challenges and opportunities as well as the factors that still limit its market deployment. Technologies for the conversion of Marine Energy (ME) into electricity are now ready for full-scale deployment in farms of devices, makin...

Characterizing and understanding the basic functioning of the Mediterranean Sea in terms of heat and salt redistribution within the basin is a crucial issue to predict its evolution. Here we quantify and analyze the heat and salt transfers using a simple box model consisting of four layers in the vertical for each of the two (western and eastern) b...

This study evaluates the Mediterranean Sea heat budget components from a set of forced and coupled simulations performed in the frame of the Med-CORDEX project. The simulations use regional climate system models (RCSMs) dedicated to the Mediterranean area and driven by the ERA40/ERA-Interim reanalyses. The study focuses on the period 1980–2010. Int...

Vertical transfers of heat, salt and mass between the inflowing and outflowing layers at the Strait of Gibraltar are explored basing on the outputs of a three-dimensional, fully non-linear numerical model. The model covers the entire Mediterranean basin and has a very high spatial resolution around the Strait (1/200°). Another distinctive feature o...

In this study we investigated the tidal dynamics in a system of inter-connected land-locked basins formed by the Mediterranean, the Marmara, the Black and the Azov seas (MMBA system). Through the application of an unstructured grid hydrodynamic model to a unique domain representing the whole MMBA system, we simulated the tidal propagation and trans...

The coastal areas of the central Mediterranean Sea are sensitive to climate change and the consequent relative sea level rise. Both phenomena may affect densely urbanized and populated areas, causing severe damages. Our maps show the land-marine flooding projections as effects of the expected relative sea level rise for four Italian coastal plains...

Underwater acoustic monitoring combined with real-time sea surface observations and numerical model forecasts could improve the efficiency of natural and anthropogenic sound source discrimination. In this work, acoustic sound pressure levels at different frequencies were compared with significant wave heights, measured using an X-band radar system,...

In this paper we present and discuss data concerning the morphostructural evolution at Ustica Island (Tyrrhenian Sea, Italy) during Late Quaternary. New insights on the relative sea-level changes of Ustica are coming from data collected during a geomorphological field survey around the island, together with the bathymetric analysis of the surroundi...

Earth’s oceans represent important sources of clean and renewable energy, and ocean energy technologies are currently being developed to exploit such potential. Although in Europe the Atlantic seaboard offers the largest amount of resource, the Mediterranean Sea also provides substantial opportunities for significant energy production and faster te...

In this work we use a set of recent multi-year simulations to develop a simplified sea surface height index (SSH). The index characterizes the dynamics of Ionian upper layer circulation and its links with sea surface height and salinity in the Southern Adriatic and Aegean Seas during the period 1987-2008. The analysis highlights a covariant behavio...

We describe a new, state-of-the-art, Earth System Regional Climate Model (RegCM-ES), which includes the coupling between the atmosphere, ocean and land surface, as well as an hydrological and ocean biogeochemistry model, with the capability of using a variety of physical parameterizations. The regional coupled model has been implemented and tested...

This paper presents a review of the state-of-the-art in understanding and quantification of the Mediterranean heat and mass (i.e. salt and water) budgets. The budgets are decomposed into a basin averaged surface component, lateral boundary components (through the Gibraltar and the Dardanelles Straits), a river input component and a content change c...

We present a validation analysis of a regional earth system model system (RegESM) for the Mediterranean Basin. The used configuration of the modeling system includes two active components: a regional climate model (RegCM4) and an ocean modeling system (ROMS). To assess the performance of the coupled modeling system in representing the climate of th...

Subaqueous bedforms (or sand waves) are typically observed in those environments that are exposed to strong currents, characterized by a dominant unidirectional flow. However, sand-wave fields may be also observed in ma- rine environments where no such current exists; the physical processes driving their formation are enigmatic or not well understo...

In this paper, we present a coupling scheme between the Massachusetts Institute of Technology general circulation model (MITgcm) and the Biogeochemical Flux Model (BFM). The MITgcm and BFM are widely used models for geophysical fluid dynamics and for ocean biogeochemistry, respectively, and they benefit from the support of active developers and use...

High-resolution modelling, for the first time, is used to study the basic hydrodynamics of the Turkish Straits System (TSS). Hydraulic controls in the Bosphorus and Dardanelles Straits are found to be essential in determining the coupled response of the TSS, which directly influences the interaction between the Mediterranean and Black Seas. The mix...

Wave Energy is a widespread, reliable renewable energy source. The early study on Wave Energy dates back in the 70’s, with a particular effort in the last and present decade to make Wave Energy Converters (WECs) more profitable and predictable. The PeWEC (Pendulum Wave Energy Converter) is a pendulum-based WEC. The research activities described in...

Abstract We depict the relative sea-level rise scenarios for the year 2100 from four areas of the Italian peninsula. Our estimates are based on the Rahmstorf (2007) and IPCC-AR5 reports 2013 for the RCP-8.5 scenarios (www.ipcc.ch) of climate change, adjusted for the rates of vertical land movements (isostasy and tectonics). These latter are inferre...

During the summer 2015, we have investigated the ecological structure of Posidonia oceanica (L) Delile meadows located along the northern coast of Pantelleria Island, a zone interested to a possible impacts of sea wave renewable energy production. This small Island is situated at 110 km southwest of Sicilia island, Italy (36°47’27”N 11°59’38”E). In...

Subaqueous, asymmetric sand waves are typically observed in marine channel/canyon systems, tidal environments, and continental slopes exposed to strong currents, where they are formed by current shear resulting from a dominant unidirectional flow. However, sand-wave fields may be readily observed in marine environments where no such current exists;...

In this paper, we present a coupling scheme between the Massachusetts Institute of Technology general circulation model (MITgcm) and the Biogeochemical Flux Model (BFM). The MITgcm and BFM are widely used models for geophysical fluid dynamics and for ocean biogeochemistry, respectively, and they benefit from the support of active developers and use...

The Mediterranean is expected to be one of the most prominent and vulnerable climate change "hotspots" of the twenty-first century, and the physical mechanisms underlying this finding are still not clear. Furthermore, complex interactions and feedbacks involving ocean-atmosphere-land-biogeochemical processes play a prominent role in modulating the...

Joint marine geology and physical oceanography studies seek to demonstrate the inherited connection between seafloor sedimentary processes and seawater dynamics in a fruitful exchange. While seafloor morphology highlights the long-term action of bottom currents, oceanographic models attempt to explain and predict morphogenetic processes and sedimen...

Marine renewable energy extraction plays a key role both in energy security of small islands and in mitigation of climate change, but at the same time poses the important question of monitoring the effects of the interaction of such devices with the marine environment. In this work we present a new methodology, integrating satellite remote sensing...

In this work we consider a numerical study of hydrodynamics in the coastal zone using two different models, SHYFEM (shallow water hydrodynamic finite element model) and MITgcm (Massachusetts Institute of Technology general circulation model), to assess their capability to capture the main processes. We focus on the north Adriatic Sea during a stron...

Marine renewable energy extraction plays a key role both in energy security of small islands and in mitigation of climate change, but at the same time poses the important question of monitoring the effects of the interaction of such devices with the marine environment. In this work we present a new methodology, integrating satellite remote sensing...

Marine renewable energy extraction plays a key role both in energy security of small islands and in mitigation of climate change, but at the same time poses the important question of monitoring the effects of the interaction of such devices with the marine environment. In this work we present a new methodology, integrating satellite remote sensing...

This paper presents a theoretical and experimental investigation about the modelling of a 1:45 scale prototype Wave Energy Converter (WEC). An analytical model is implemented to describe its behaviour in a wave tank. The aim is to provide a contribution to modelling tools used for WEC characterization and design. Hydrodynamic characterization softw...

The Mediterranean is expected to be one of the most prominent and vulnerable climate change “hot spots” of the 21st century, and the physical mechanisms underlying this finding are still not clear. Furthermore complex interactions and feedbacks involving ocean-atmosphere-land-biogeochemical processes play a prominent role in modulating the climate...

The paper will present the activities and results of a transnational programme of European territorial cooperation (MED Programme) financed by the European Union. The BLUENE project aims to map key actors, existing initiatives and define guidelines related to Blue energy in Mediterranean Sea. “Blue energy” is not only offshore wind power generation...

Recent works (Evelpidou et al., 2012) suggest that the modern tidal notch is disappearing worldwide due sea level rise over the last century. In order to assess this hypothesis, we measured modern tidal notches in several of sites along the Mediterranean coasts. We report observations on tidal notches cut along carbonate coasts from 73 sites from I...

GIS technologies are able to provide useful tools for estimating the energy resource from the sea waves, assessing whether this energy is exploitable and evaluating possible environmental impacts. The idea to convert the energy associated with the marine wave motion (both off-shore and coastal) into exploitable electrical energy is not new and over...

The objective of this paper is to provide a synthetic tool for determining expeditiously the wave climate conditions in several areas of the Mediterranean Sea. In the open literature, several authors have already conducted this specific analysis also for the area under examination in this paper. However, the need of discussing aspects strictly rela...