Active fold deformation and crustal shortening rates of the Qilian Shan Foreland Thrust Belt, NE Tibet, since the Late Pleistocene

Yang, Haibo; Yang, Xiaoping; Zhang, Huiping; Huang, Xiongnan; Wei-liang, Huang; Zhang, Ning

doi:10.1016/j.tecto.2018.05.019

Cited by 37 publications

(39 citation statements)

References 59 publications

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“…Along the west and east portions of the NJSF, the N‐S trending overall crustal shortening rates are both constrained to be ~0.30 mm/a. These rates are significantly lower than fault slip rates calculated for the Qilian fold‐and‐thrust belts on the SW side of the ATF, such as the North Qilian Thrust at an a vertical slip rate of 1.0–1.2 mm/a (e.g., Hetzel et al, , ; Yang, Yang, Huang, et al, , Yang; Yang, Zhang, et al, , and reference therein; Yang et al, ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 86%

A Regionally Evolving Transpressional Duplex Along the Northern Margin of the Altyn Tagh Fault: New Kinematic and Timing Constraints From the Sanweishan and Nanjieshan, China

Yang

Cunningham

et al. 2020

Tectonics

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In this study, we document the kinematics and Late Quaternary slip rates of actively developing faults and folds on the northern side of the Altyn Tagh Fault (ATF) that accommodate uplift and lateral expansion of the northern Tibetan Plateau. Field observations and detailed measurements using Unmanned-Aerial-Vehicle Structure-from-Motion high-resolution imagery of offset fan surfaces, gullies, and channel risers coupled with optically stimulated luminescence and 10 Be ages constrain the timing and slip rates of the Sanweishan Fault (SWSF) and Nanjieshan Fault (NJSF) systems. The NE striking SWSF is characterized by sinistral strike slip with a top-to-the-NW thrusting component. Offset geomorphic markers and dating results yield Pleistocene strike slip and vertical uplift rates of 0.06-1.25 mm/a and 0.05-0.08 mm/a, respectively. The E-W trending NJSF is dominated by north and south directed thrusting and km-scale folding with variable components of sinistral strike slip. The calculated total N-S shortening rate across the NJSF is~0.3 mm/a. Low rates of deformation for the SWSF and NJSF account for less than 10% of the total intraplate strain accommodated along the northeasternmost ATF system. Over a 1,000-km length, the northward expansion of the Tibetan Plateau occurs by progressive northeastward growth of a transpressional duplex rooted SE into the ATF. An assumed crustal strength discontinuity along the northeast trending southern margin of the Tarim Craton focuses oblique convergence along the ATF. Oblique-slip thrusting and sinistral strike slip along the ATF and to the north accommodate the oblique convergence, consistent with the ENE directed geodetically derived crustal velocity field driven by India's continued indentation 1,500 km to the south.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 86%

A Regionally Evolving Transpressional Duplex Along the Northern Margin of the Altyn Tagh Fault: New Kinematic and Timing Constraints From the Sanweishan and Nanjieshan, China

Yang

Cunningham

et al. 2020

Tectonics

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“…These thrust belts accommodated significant Cenozoic shortening across northern Tibet (e.g., Gaudemer et al, 1995;Meyer et al, 1998;Wang and Burchfiel, 2004;Yin et al, 2007aYin et al, , 2007bYin et al, , 2008aYin et al, , 2008bZheng et al, 2010;Cheng et al, 2015;Allen et al, 2017;Yang et al, 2018; see also Fig. 1).…”

Section: Cenozoic Geologymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The predominantly north-directed North Qilian thrust system places Proterozoic-Paleozoic-Mesozoic strata over Cenozoic basin deposits of the Hexi Corridor (Li and Yang, 1998;Zhuang et al, 2011;Zheng et al, 2010;Yang et al, 2018). Typically, one major north-directed thrust system bounds the northern extent of the North Qilian Shan (e.g., Yang et al, 2007;Zheng et al, 2010;Yang et al, 2018), with some prominent exceptions, such as the Yumu Shan (e.g., Tapponnier et al, 1990), which is a diverging fault splay of the main North Qilian Shan thrust. The Hexi Corridor foreland basins to the north of these thrusts are variably deformed by discrete south-directed back-thrust systems to the north, off of the Tibetan Plateau.…”

Section: North Qilian Shanmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…5B). Despite numerous conjugate-fault sets, map-view and field relationships require north-directed thrusting of Carboniferous strata over Cenozoic foreland basin deposits (e.g., Yang et al, 2018). At another location-NQ3 in Figure 1-fault splays are observed in the footwall rocks of the North Qilian thrust system, duplicating Cenozoic strata.…”

Section: North Qilian Shanmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…These observed minor faults may represent incipient range-bounding structures. Yang et al (2018) reported that the west-trending Hujiatai anticline to the west of the Yumu Shan is shortening at a rate of 0.8 mm/yr.…”

Section: North Qilian Shanmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Underthrusting and duplexing beneath the northern Tibetan Plateau and the evolution of the Himalayan-Tibetan orogen

Zuza

Wang

et al. 2018

Lithosphere

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The Cenozoic Qilian Shan thrust belt is the northern margin of the Tibetan Plateau, which developed in part due to progressive India-Asia convergence during Himalayan-Tibetan orogeny. Available geologic observations suggest that this thrust belt started deforming shortly after initial India-Asia collision at 60-55 Ma, and thus its kinematic development is intrinsically related to the construction and evolution of the Tibetan Plateau. Here, we present new field observations from a geologic traverse across the Qilian Shan to elucidate the style of deformation across the active thrust belt. In particular, we infer protracted out-of-sequence deformation here that is consistent with this thrust system remaining a stationary northern boundary to the Tibetan Plateau since the early Cenozoic. We present a lithosphere-scale model for this region that highlights the following: (1) coupled distributed crustal shortening and underthrusting of the North China craton beneath Tibet, which explains the spatial and temporal distribution of observed crustal shortening and thickness, (2) this underthrusting exploited the south-dipping early Paleozoic Qilian suture paleo-subduction mélange channel, and (3) development of a lower-crustal duplex at the lithospheric underthrusting ramp. This last inference can explain the relatively high elevation, low relief, and thickened crust of the central Qilian Shan, as well as the comparative aseismicity of the region, which experiences fewer earthquakes due to less upper-crustal faulting. Both the northern and southern margins of the Himalayan-Tibetan orogen appear to have developed similarly, with continental underthrusting and crustal-scale imbrication and duplexing, despite vastly different climatic and plate-velocity boundary conditions, which suggests that the orogen-scale architecture of the thrust belt is controlled by neither of these forcing mechanisms. Instead, strength anisotropies of the crust probably control the kinematics and style of deformation, including the development of northern Tibet, where thrust systems are concentrated along pre-Cenozoic suture zones.

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10Be and OSL dating of Pleistocene fluvial terraces along the Hongshuiba River: Constraints on tectonic and climatic drivers for fluvial downcutting across the NE Tibetan Plateau margin, China

Yang

Wei-liang

et al. 2020

Geomorphology

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Active fold deformation and crustal shortening rates of the Qilian Shan Foreland Thrust Belt, NE Tibet, since the Late Pleistocene

Cited by 37 publications

References 59 publications

A Regionally Evolving Transpressional Duplex Along the Northern Margin of the Altyn Tagh Fault: New Kinematic and Timing Constraints From the Sanweishan and Nanjieshan, China

A Regionally Evolving Transpressional Duplex Along the Northern Margin of the Altyn Tagh Fault: New Kinematic and Timing Constraints From the Sanweishan and Nanjieshan, China

Underthrusting and duplexing beneath the northern Tibetan Plateau and the evolution of the Himalayan-Tibetan orogen

10Be and OSL dating of Pleistocene fluvial terraces along the Hongshuiba River: Constraints on tectonic and climatic drivers for fluvial downcutting across the NE Tibetan Plateau margin, China

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