Detrital zircon U–Pb geochronology and fluvial basin evolution of the Liuqu Conglomerate within the Yarlung Zangbo Suture Zone: A critical geochronometer for the collision tectonics of the Tibetan-Himalayan Orogenic Belt

Xie, Yanxue; Dilek, Yıldırım

doi:10.1016/j.geogeo.2023.100178

Cited by 3 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 167 publications

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“…Conversely, in the Eastern Asian section of the Tethyan Orogenic Belt (i.e. Tibetan sector), an Andean-type orogeny along the southern margin of Eurasia from the Early Jurassic to the Early Cretaceous has been proposed to explain deformation and sedimentation patterns in the southern Tibetan Plateau (Kapp et al, 2007;Zhang et al, 2012;Xie and Dilek, 2023). This process was punctuated by Toarcian-Aalenian back-arc rifting event resulting from retreat of the subducting Neo-Tethyan seafloor (Hou et al, 2015;Wei et al, 2017).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Alternating Extensional and Contractional Tectonics in the West Kunlun Mountains during Jurassic: Responses to the Neo-Tethyan Geodynamics along the Eurasian Margin

Wu,

Chen,

Zuza

et al. 2024

Preprint

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Abstract. The Tethyan Orogenic Belt records a long-lived geological cycle involving subduction and collision along the southern margin of the Eurasian continent. The West Kunlun Mountains, located at the junction between the Tibetan and Western Asian Tethyan realm, records multiple orogenic events from the Paleozoic to the Cenozoic that shape the northwestern Tibetan Plateau. However, deciphering the complex Mesozoic contractional and extensional tectonics to interpret the broader Tethyan geodynamics remains challenging. To address the tectonic transition following the early Cimmerian (Late Triassic) collision, this study investigates the newly identified Jurassic sedimentary strata and volcanic rocks in the West Kunlun Mountains. Zircon geochronological results of basalts and sandstones reveal that this ~ 2.5-km-thick package was deposited at ca. 178 Ma, rather than the previously reported Neoproterozoic age. The alkaline basalts at the top of the formation exhibit chemical compositions similar to oceanic island basalts, consistent with the intracontinental extension environment revealed by the upward-fining sedimentary pattern. Provenance analysis, integrating conglomerate clast lithologies with detrital zircons, suggests a substantial contribution from adjacent basement sources, likely influenced by the normal faulting during initial rift stage. These findings indicate that the West Kunlun Mountains rapidly transitioned into an extensional setting after suturing with Cimmerian terranes. The regional structure, stratigraphy and magmatism suggest that this Early - Middle Jurassic basin was subsequently inverted during the Late Jurassic and earliest Cretaceous. We propose that the Mesozoic deformational history in the West Kunlun Mountains was related to the northward subduction of the Neo-Tethys Ocean, as it transitioned from southward retreat to northward flat-slab advancement. Comparing with the entire strike-length of the Eurasian Tethyan orogen, we find that the subduction mode varied from the west to the east, reflecting the broad geodynamic changes to, or initial conditions of, the Neo-Tethyan system.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Alternating Extensional and Contractional Tectonics in the West Kunlun Mountains during Jurassic: Responses to the Neo-Tethyan Geodynamics along the Eurasian Margin

Wu,

Chen,

Zuza

et al. 2024

Preprint

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Timing of India-Asia collision and significant coupling between them around 51 Ma: Insights from the activation history of the Zhongba-Gyangze thrust in southern Tibet

Zhao,

Yan,

Tonai

et al. 2023

Geology

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Constraining the timing of tectonic coupling between converging plates is crucial for understanding the transition from continental subduction to continental collision. In the case of the India-Asia collision, thrusting of an accretionary complex onto the Indian continental margin provides the most direct temporal constraint on the early stages of continental collision, as it represents the most immediate upper-crustal fault system corresponding to plate coupling. Here, we used structural analysis combined with K-Ar dating and hydrogen isotopes of authigenic illite and muscovite to unravel the time-progressive development of the Zhongba-Gyangze thrust (ZGT), which represents a tectonic boundary fault in southern Tibet. Our results suggest that the ZGT evolved from its initiation as a single fault zone infiltrated by metamorphic fluids with high δD values (−47‰ to −55‰) at ca. 80 Ma to multiple deformation localization zones starting around 51 Ma. This latter phase is represented by the development of different generations of authigenic 1M/1Md illite and significant input of meteoric fluids with δD values ranging from −71‰ to −98‰ through multiple episodes of brittle fault reactivation. A Late Cretaceous tectono-thermal event related to the subduction of a Neotethyan oceanic ridge may have been responsible for the formation of 2M1 illite/muscovite at ca. 80 Ma. The oldest (ca. 51 Ma) 1M/1Md illite age coincides with the first major pulse of shortening in the upper plate after the initial India-Asia contact. Given the synchronous deceleration of India-Asia convergence, the ca. 51 Ma deformation pulse across the Yarlung-Zangbo suture zone demarcates strong coupling (i.e., the onset of continental collision) between India and Asia at this time.

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Double arc–continent collision record in the latest Mesozoic–Cenozoic tectonic history of the Himalayan–Tibetan orogenic belt in western Pakistan

Ullah,

Xue,

Yang

et al. 2023

JGS

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Our recent field investigations in western Pakistan have revealed that serpentinized peridotites here are crosscut by numerous intrusions of gabbro and tonalite. New zircon U–Pb dating of these plutons indicates Late Cretaceous–Early Eocene ages of their crystallization. They have arc-like geochemical signatures and constitute the middle crust of an island arc complex. Together with their extrusive counterparts they form the RasKoh island arc (RIA), defined for the first time in this study. The RIA and the Chaiga continental arc to the north represent the manifestations of two separate subduction zone systems within Neotethys, developed between India and Eurasia. We posit that this Neotethyan domain contained two oceanic plates. Subduction of the leading plate beneath Eurasia generated the Jurassic–Late Oligocene Chaiga continental arc, and the northward subduction of the trailing plate resulted in the development of the Late Cretaceous–Oligocene, ensimatic RasKoh arc. Arrival of the Indian subcontinent at the latitude of the RasKoh arc in the earliest Miocene caused the emplacement of the RasKoh arc onto India via oblique arc–continent collision. The subsequent collision of this composite Indian plate with Eurasia resulted in extensive deformation of Late Cretaceous flysch deposits and the ophiolitic arc basement. Thematic collection: This article is part of the Ophiolites, melanges and blueschists collection available at: https://www.lyellcollection.org/topic/collections/ophiolites-melanges-and-blueschists Supplementary material: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.c.6795686

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Detrital zircon U–Pb geochronology and fluvial basin evolution of the Liuqu Conglomerate within the Yarlung Zangbo Suture Zone: A critical geochronometer for the collision tectonics of the Tibetan-Himalayan Orogenic Belt

Cited by 3 publications

References 167 publications

Alternating Extensional and Contractional Tectonics in the West Kunlun Mountains during Jurassic: Responses to the Neo-Tethyan Geodynamics along the Eurasian Margin

Alternating Extensional and Contractional Tectonics in the West Kunlun Mountains during Jurassic: Responses to the Neo-Tethyan Geodynamics along the Eurasian Margin

Timing of India-Asia collision and significant coupling between them around 51 Ma: Insights from the activation history of the Zhongba-Gyangze thrust in southern Tibet

Double arc–continent collision record in the latest Mesozoic–Cenozoic tectonic history of the Himalayan–Tibetan orogenic belt in western Pakistan

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