The non-equilibrium landscape of the southern Sierra Nevada, California

The paleoelevation of the Sierra , California, is important to understanding of the Cenozoic evolution of the North –Pacific plate boundary, the current debate is fueled by that argue for conflicting elevation . The non-equilibrium transient landscape of the Sierra contains information about past and present controls on the of the range. Using geomorphology thermochronometry, parts of the landscape of different significance and age be identified: (1) a long-lived, eroding low-relief highland or landscape, which we relate to period of lower relief and elevation 80–32 Ma; and (2) younger, rapidly- river gorges created by at two stages of elevation and relief since 32 Ma. Our data argue moderate range elevation of ~1500 at the cessation of arc magmatism in Cretaceous time, followed by two at between 32 and 3.5 Ma and 3.5 Ma that increased the range to the 4000 m observed elevation .