We present a 1:25,000 scale map of the coseismic surface ruptures following the 30 October 2016 M_w 6.5 Norcia normal-faulting earthquake, central Italy. Detailed rupture mapping is based on almost 11,000 oblique photographs taken from helicopter flights, that has been verified and integrated with field data (>7000 measurements). Thanks to the common efforts of the Open EMERGEO Working Group (130 people, 25 research institutions and universities from Europe), we were able to document a complex surface faulting pattern with a dominant strike of N135°-160° (SW-dipping) and a subordinate strike of N320°-345° (NE-dipping) along about 28 km of the active Mt. Vettore–Mt. Bove fault system. Geometric and kinematic characteristics of the rupture were observed and recorded along closely spaced, parallel or subparallel, overlapping or step-like synthetic and antithetic fault splays of the activated fault systems, comprising a total surface rupture length of approximately 46 km when all ruptures were considered.

We provide a database of the coseismic geological surface effects following the Mw 6.5 Norcia earthquake that hit central Italy on 30 October 2016. This was one of the strongest seismic events to occur in Europe in the past thirty years, causing complex surface ruptures over an area of >400 km². The database originated from the collaboration of several European teams (Open EMERGEO Working Group; about 130 researchers) coordinated by the Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia. The observations were collected by performing detailed field surveys in the epicentral region in order to describe the geometry and kinematics of surface faulting, and subsequently of landslides and other secondary coseismic effects. The resulting database consists of homogeneous georeferenced records identifying 7323 observation points, each of which contains 18 numeric and string fields of relevant information. This database will impact future earthquake studies focused on modelling of the seismic processes in active extensional settings, updating probabilistic estimates of slip distribution, and assessing the hazard of surface faulting.

Identifying accurate topographic variations associated with volcanic eruptions plays a key role in obtaining information on eruptive parameters, volcano structure, input data for volcano processes modelling, and civil protection and recovery actions. The 2021 eruption of Cumbre Vieja volcano is the largest eruptive event in the recorded history for La Palma Island. Over the course of almost 3 months, the volcano produced profound morphological changes in the landscape affecting both the natural and the anthropic environment over an area of tens of km². We present the results of a UAS (Unoccupied Aircraft System) survey consisting of >12,000 photographs coupled with Structure-from-Motion photogrammetry that allowed us to produce a very-high-resolution (0.2 m/pixel) Digital Surface Model (DSM). We characterised the surface topography of the newly formed volcanic landforms and produced an elevation difference map by differencing our survey and a pre-event surface, identifying morphological changes in detail. The present DSM, the first one with such a high resolution to our knowledge, represents a relevant contribution to both the scientific community and the local authorities.

Fault displacement hazard assessment is based on empirical relationships that are established using historic earthquake fault ruptures. These relationships evaluate the likelihood of coseismic surface slip considering on‐fault and off‐fault ruptures, for given earthquake magnitude and distance to fault. Moreover, they allow predicting the amount of fault slip at and close to the active fault of concern. Applications of this approach include land use planning, structural design of infrastructure, and critical facilities located on or close to an active fault.To date, the current equations are based on sparsely populated datasets, including a limited number of pre‐2000 events. In 2015, an international effort started to constitute a worldwide and unified fault displacement database (SUrface Ruptures due to Earthquakes [SURE]) to improve further hazard estimations. After two workshops, it was decided to unify the existing datasets (field‐based slip measurements) to incorporate recent and future cases, and to include new parameters relevant to properly describe the rupture.This contribution presents the status of the SURE database and delineates some perspectives to improve the surface‐faulting assessment. Original data have been compiled and adapted to the structure. The database encompasses 45 earthquakes from magnitude 5–7.9, with more than 15,000 coseismic surface deformation observations (including slip measurements) and 56,000 of rupture segments. Twenty earthquake cases are from Japan, 15 from United States, two from Mexico, Italy, and New Zealand, one from Kyrgystan, Ecuador, Turkey, and Argentina. Twenty‐four earthquakes are strike‐slip faulting events, 11 are normal or normal oblique, and 10 are reverse faulting.To pursue the momentum, the initial and common implementation effort needs to be continued and coordinated, and the maintenance and longevity of the database must be guaranteed. This effort must remain based on a large and open community of earthquake geologists to create a free and open access database.