An averaged model for the Adriatic subplate

Two new techniques in surface wave analysis, the modified moving window method and the method of stacking and cleaning, are used to determine average group and phase velocities over the area covering the Adriatic Sea and the Northern and Central Apennines, while avoiding the anomalous region under the Po plain. The data indicate that the lateral homogeneity of the region is sufficiently good to allow for an 'averaged' model of the lithosphere. Backus-Gilbert inversion of the data leads to an averaged model with a thick sedimentary cover (10-11 km), a normal continental Moho depth of about 35 km, and a velocity rise with depth below the crust. The extremely low group velocity data that are encountered both in the Apennine region and in the Adriatic Sea suggest a similarity between the crustal structure of this area and the Eastern Mediterranean.