The reshaping of the South West Adriatic Margin by cascading of dense shelf waters

The South West Adriatic Margin (SAM) includes a steep and morphologically complex continental slope stretching about 600km from the Pelagosa sill to the Otranto strait. The margin is clearly dissected by submarine slides, active fault systems (e.g.: the Gondola deformation belt), numerous shallowly incised and relatively straight canyons located south of Bari Canyon, and a variety of large-scale erosional and depositional features. This area is seasonally impacted by dense shelf water forming in the North Adriatic through wind-forced winter cooling, moving south along the western side of the basin, and cascading across the South Adriatic slope.