Miocene cooling in the northern Qilian Shan, northeastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau, revealed by apatite fission-track and vitrinite-reflectance analysis

Research Article| October 01, 2001 Miocene cooling in the northern Qilian Shan, northeastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau, revealed by apatite fission-track and vitrinite-reflectance analysis Annette D. George; Annette D. George 1Tectonics Special Research Centre, University of Western Australia, Crawley, Western Australia 6009, Australia Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Susan J. Marshallsea; Susan J. Marshallsea 2Geotrack International, Melbourne, West Brunswick, Victoria 3070, Australia Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Karl-Heinz Wyrwoll; Karl-Heinz Wyrwoll 3Department of Geography, University of Western Australia, Crawley, Western Australia 6009, Australia Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Chen Jie; Chen Jie 4Institute of Geology, China Seismological Bureau, P.O. Box 9803, Beijing 100029, China Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Lu Yanchou Lu Yanchou 4Institute of Geology, China Seismological Bureau, P.O. Box 9803, Beijing 100029, China Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Author and Article Information Annette D. George 1Tectonics Special Research Centre, University of Western Australia, Crawley, Western Australia 6009, Australia Susan J. Marshallsea 2Geotrack International, Melbourne, West Brunswick, Victoria 3070, Australia Karl-Heinz Wyrwoll 3Department of Geography, University of Western Australia, Crawley, Western Australia 6009, Australia Chen Jie 4Institute of Geology, China Seismological Bureau, P.O. Box 9803, Beijing 100029, China Lu Yanchou 4Institute of Geology, China Seismological Bureau, P.O. Box 9803, Beijing 100029, China Publisher: Geological Society of America Received: 16 Jan 2001 Revision Received: 11 Jun 2001 Accepted: 28 Jun 2001 First Online: 02 Jun 2017 Online ISSN: 1943-2682 Print ISSN: 0091-7613 Geological Society of America Geology (2001) 29 (10): 939–942. https://doi.org/10.1130/0091-7613(2001)0292.0.CO;2 Article history Received: 16 Jan 2001 Revision Received: 11 Jun 2001 Accepted: 28 Jun 2001 First Online: 02 Jun 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Permissions Search Site Citation Annette D. George, Susan J. Marshallsea, Karl-Heinz Wyrwoll, Chen Jie, Lu Yanchou; Miocene cooling in the northern Qilian Shan, northeastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau, revealed by apatite fission-track and vitrinite-reflectance analysis. Geology 2001;; 29 (10): 939–942. doi: https://doi.org/10.1130/0091-7613(2001)0292.0.CO;2 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Refmanager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentBy SocietyGeology Search Advanced Search Abstract Apatite fission-track and vitrinite-reflectance data from Phanerozoic rocks of the northern Qilian Shan and Jiuxi basin, at the northeastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau, show a complex thermal history with multiple paleothermal events. Peak paleotemperatures, reached in the middle Cretaceous, suggest that hydrocarbon generation occurred in the basin at that time. Paleozoic-Mesozoic samples show evidence of a middle Tertiary cooling episode between 20 and 10 Ma. This thermal fingerprint is significant because stratigraphic evidence for Miocene exhumation is overwhelmed by spectacular Pliocene-Pleistocene deformation and erosion. We interpret the Miocene cooling as recording initial exhumation of the northern Qilian Shan—earlier than other models have proposed (i.e., after 6– 5 Ma). Miocene cooling is broadly coincident with Cenozoic uplift and exhumation recorded elsewhere in the Tibetan-Tarim region. You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.