Tectonic and erosional history of southern Tibet recorded by detrital chronological signatures along the Yarlung River drainage

Research Article| May 01, 2017 Tectonic and erosional history of southern Tibet recorded by detrital chronological signatures along the Yarlung River drainage Barbara Carrapa; Barbara Carrapa † 1Department of Geosciences, University of Arizona, 1040 E. 4th Street, Tucson, Arizona 85721, USA †bcarrapa@email.arizona.edu Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Mohd Faiz bin Hassim; Mohd Faiz bin Hassim 1Department of Geosciences, University of Arizona, 1040 E. 4th Street, Tucson, Arizona 85721, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Paul A. Kapp; Paul A. Kapp 1Department of Geosciences, University of Arizona, 1040 E. 4th Street, Tucson, Arizona 85721, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Peter G. DeCelles; Peter G. DeCelles 1Department of Geosciences, University of Arizona, 1040 E. 4th Street, Tucson, Arizona 85721, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar George Gehrels George Gehrels 1Department of Geosciences, University of Arizona, 1040 E. 4th Street, Tucson, Arizona 85721, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Author and Article Information Barbara Carrapa † 1Department of Geosciences, University of Arizona, 1040 E. 4th Street, Tucson, Arizona 85721, USA Mohd Faiz bin Hassim 1Department of Geosciences, University of Arizona, 1040 E. 4th Street, Tucson, Arizona 85721, USA Paul A. Kapp 1Department of Geosciences, University of Arizona, 1040 E. 4th Street, Tucson, Arizona 85721, USA Peter G. DeCelles 1Department of Geosciences, University of Arizona, 1040 E. 4th Street, Tucson, Arizona 85721, USA George Gehrels 1Department of Geosciences, University of Arizona, 1040 E. 4th Street, Tucson, Arizona 85721, USA †bcarrapa@email.arizona.edu Publisher: Geological Society of America Received: 02 Jun 2016 Revision Received: 30 Sep 2016 Accepted: 17 Nov 2016 First Online: 06 Jul 2017 Online Issn: 1943-2674 Print Issn: 0016-7606 © 2017 Geological Society of America GSA Bulletin (2017) 129 (5-6): 570–581. https://doi.org/10.1130/B31587.1 Article history Received: 02 Jun 2016 Revision Received: 30 Sep 2016 Accepted: 17 Nov 2016 First Online: 06 Jul 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn MailTo Tools Icon Tools Get Permissions Search Site Citation Barbara Carrapa, Mohd Faiz bin Hassim, Paul A. Kapp, Peter G. DeCelles, George Gehrels; Tectonic and erosional history of southern Tibet recorded by detrital chronological signatures along the Yarlung River drainage. GSA Bulletin 2017;; 129 (5-6): 570–581. doi: https://doi.org/10.1130/B31587.1 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 SocietyGSA Bulletin Search Advanced Search Abstract The Indus-Yarlung suture zone, within the larger Indo-Asia collision zone in southern Tibet, is characterized by a central depression with two oppositely directed axial rivers: the eastward-flowing Yarlung River and the westward-flowing Indus River. The axial valley is flanked by high-elevation ranges of the southern Lhasa terrane to the north and the Tethyan Himalaya to the south. This study analyzes the detrital geochronological and thermochronological signatures of rivers draining into the Indus-Yarlung suture zone as a proxy for the timing of tectonic, magmatic, and erosional processes in southern Tibet. Zircon U-Pb ages reflect source area crystallization ages, and their distribution is proportional to the relative area of source rocks exposed in the catchment areas. Rivers draining the northern side of the collision zone are dominated by ages between ca. 40 Ma and ca. 60 Ma, similar to ages of rocks in the Gangdese arc, whereas one river sample draining the southern side records a Tethyan Himalayan signature characterized by age clusters at ca. 500 Ma and ca. 1050 Ma. U-Pb zircon ages from the modern drainages are similar to signals preserved in the Oligocene−Miocene Liuqu and Kailas basins, suggesting that the geology of the Cenozoic drainages was similar to modern, albeit with significant erosion in the Miocene. New apatite fission-track (AFT) ages from some of the same rivers show an early Miocene regional exhumation signature, which is interpreted to record regional uplift-induced erosion coupled with efficient river incision by the Indus-Yarlung fluvial system as a result of renewed underthrusting (following rollback) of India under Asia. Late Miocene (ca. 8 Ma) apatite (U-Th)/He (AHe) ages are consistent with cooling and exhumation associated with E-W extension followed by a decrease in erosion after ca. 6 Ma. You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.