Cenozoic tectono-geomorphological growth of the SW Chinese Tian Shan: Insight from AFT and detrital zircon U–Pb data

Jia, Yunfang; Fu, Bihong; Jolivet, Marc; Zheng, Sheng

doi:10.1016/j.jseaes.2015.06.023

Cited by 42 publications

(33 citation statements)

References 98 publications

(179 reference statements)

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“…Palaeocurrent directions during the Early Cretaceous were mainly considered to be south-directed in the basin (Figure 10a; Yang, Guo, Jiang, et al, 2017), similar to the Meso-Cenozoic foreland basins in front of the South Tianshan Orogen (Hendrix, 2000;Li et al, 2004;Li & Peng, 2010), indicating that the source area may be situated in the piedmont region of South Tianshan Orogen. Framework compositions of polymictic conglomerate and gravelly sandstone in this study have revealed that the Late Carboniferous-Permian alkali granite, F I G U R E 1 3 (a) Relative probability plots of these apatite fission-track (AFT) ages and apatite (U-Th)/He (AHe) ages across the western Tianshan Orogen showing multistage Meso-Cenozoic exhumation history (Bullen et al, 2001;Chang, Qiu, & Li, 2012;De Grave et al, 2011Dumitru et al, 2001;Glorie et al, 2010Glorie et al, , 2011Jia et al, 2015;Macaulay et al, 2013;Nachtergaele et al, 2017;Sobel, Chen, & Heermance, 2006;Sobel, Oskin, et al, 2006;Yang et al, 2014;Zhang, Li, et al, 2009;Zhang, Huang, et al, 2009); (b) Summary of AFT ages and apatite (U-Th)/He (AHe) ages of the Late Jurassic-Early Cretaceous across the western Tianshan Orogen (Bullen et al, 2001;Chang et al, 2012;De Grave et al, 2011Dumitru et al, 2001;Glorie et al, 2010Glorie et al, , 2011Jia et al, 2015;Macaulay et al, 2013;Nachtergaele et al, 2017;Sobel, Chen, & Heermance, 2006;Sobel, Oskin, et al, 2006;Yang et al, 2014;Zhang, Li, et al, 2009;Zhang, Zhu, et al, 2009;…”

Section: Sedimentary Provenancementioning

confidence: 86%

“…It is therefore coincident with the basin‐range reversal during Late Jurassic–Early Cretaceous period (Rolland et al, ; Yang, Guo, & Luo, ). Previous numerous low‐temperature thermochronological datasets including apatite fission‐track ages (AFT) and apatite (U‐Th)/He (AHe) ages have revealed multistage Meso‐Cenozoic uplifting of the Western Tianshan Orogen (Figure 13a; Bullen, Burbank, Garver, & Abdrakhmatov, ; Chang et al, ; De Grave et al, , ; Dumitru et al, ; Glorie et al, , ; Jia et al, ; Macaulay et al, ; Nachtergaele et al, ; Sobel, Chen, & Heermance, ; Sobel, Oskin, Burbank, & Mikolaichuk, ; Yang et al, ; Zhang, Zhu, et al, ), possibly responding to the accretion of the various Cimmerian blocks to the southern Asian margin (Jia et al, ; Li et al, ; Roger, Jolivet, & Malavieille, ). In particular, an intensive uplifting of late Early Cretaceous with a peak age of 121.2 Ma has been detected by the statistical analysis of AFT/AHe ages in the western Tianshan Orogen (Figure 13a), and it is also indicated by the sedimentary transition in the upper part of the Lower Cretaceous Kezilesu Group in the Ulugqat Basin.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…(a) Relative probability plots of these apatite fission‐track (AFT) ages and apatite (U‐Th)/He (AHe) ages across the western Tianshan Orogen showing multistage Meso‐Cenozoic exhumation history (Bullen et al, 2001; Chang, Qiu, & Li, ; De Grave et al, , ; Dumitru et al, ; Glorie et al, , ; Jia et al, ; Macaulay et al, ; Nachtergaele et al, ; Sobel, Chen, & Heermance, ; Sobel, Oskin, et al, ; Yang et al, ; Zhang, Li, et al, ; Zhang et al, ; Zhang, Huang, et al, ); (b) Summary of AFT ages and apatite (U‐Th)/He (AHe) ages of the Late Jurassic–Early Cretaceous across the western Tianshan Orogen (Bullen et al, 2001; Chang et al, ; De Grave et al, , ; Dumitru et al, ; Glorie et al, , ; Jia et al, ; Macaulay et al, ; Nachtergaele et al, ; Sobel, Chen, & Heermance, ; Sobel, Oskin, et al, ; Yang et al, ; Zhang, Li, et al, ; Zhang, Zhu, et al, ; Zhang, Huang, et al, ) and adjacent Pamir salient (Yang, Guo, & Luo, and references therein). MTS, Middle Tianshan; NTS, North Tianshan; STS, South Tianshan; MPT, Main Pamir Thrust; PFT, Pamir Frontal Thrust [Color figure can be viewed at wileyonlinelibrary.com]…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The western Tianshan Orogen extends east–west for 2,500 km through western China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan in central Asia, with the highest peak up to 7,400 m (Allen & Windley, ; Jia, Fu, Jolivet, & Zheng, ). As an important segment of the Central Asian Orogenic Belt, the western Tianshan Orogen has experienced multiple accretions of island arcs and amalgamations of different continental blocks during the Palaeozoic (Charvet et al, ; Glorie et al, ; Windley, Alexeiev, Xiao, Kröner, & Badarch, ) and complex intracontinental structural reactivations during the Meso‐Cenozoic period, which controlled coeval basin‐range evolution and surface process (Li, Guo, Wang, & Lin, ; Li & Peng, ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Provenance of the uppermost clastic rocks of the Lower Cretaceous Kezilesu Group from the Ulugqat Basin, Xinjiang, NW China and its tectonic implications: Insights from sedimentary records and detrital zircon U–Pb geochronology

et al. 2020

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The Ulugqat Basin is located at the juncture of the Tarim Basin, the western Tianshan Orogen of the Central Asian Orogenic Belt, and the Pamir salient of the Tethys domain. A comprehensive provenance study using sedimentology, petrology, and detrital zircon U–Pb geochronology was carried out on the clastic rocks of the fifth member of the Lower Cretaceous Kezilesu Group from the Ulugqat Basin, aiming to better understand the nature of its relationships with the neighbouring tectonic units as well as the formation of sandstone‐hosted Zn–Pb mineralization. The fifth member consists of conglomerate, gravelly sandstone, sandstone, and mudstone interbeds, and is interpreted as alluvial fan–braid river–braid river delta sediments. The conglomerate and gravelly sandstone contain different kinds of lithic fragments, including phyllite, quartzite, chert, chalcedony, and some felsic igneous rocks, with low compositional maturities. The detrital zircon U–Pb ages of sandstone from the uppermost part of the fifth member range widely from 229.7 to 2,984.9 Ma, concentratedly distributed in five groups: 230–300, 390–480, 750–880, 1,600–2,200, and 2,300–3,000 Ma. The identified palaeocurrent directions, heavy mineral assemblages, specific provenance indicators, and distributions of detrital zircon U–Pb ages all indicate that these clastic rocks are probably sourced from the South Tianshan Orogen to the north, rather than the Pamir salient, probably involving the Proterozoic Aksu metamorphic rocks, Palaeozoic sedimentary rocks, Late Carboniferous–Early Permian alkali granite, and some mafic/ultramafic rocks of ophiolitic mélange. This interpretation is consistent with a late Early Cretaceous uplifting of the South Tianshan Orogen according to previous low‐temperature thermochronological data sets. The thick deposition of these Lower Cretaceous clastic rocks and associated uplifting of the South Tianshan Orogen are interpreted to be related to the coeval collision of the Karakoram–Lhasa Block with the southern Asian margin.

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Section: Sedimentary Provenancementioning

confidence: 86%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Provenance of the uppermost clastic rocks of the Lower Cretaceous Kezilesu Group from the Ulugqat Basin, Xinjiang, NW China and its tectonic implications: Insights from sedimentary records and detrital zircon U–Pb geochronology

et al. 2020

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“…The successful application of a Bayesian model within an MCMC framework to aeolian sands of a small erg in this study demonstrates the potential of this approach more widely. It is particularly likely to complement detrital zircon U–Pb dating provenance studies, and may prove especially useful in settings where there are insufficient zircon grains to enable the application of this method (Thorpe et al ., ; Nie and Peng, ; Ren et al ., ; Jia et al ., ). Further application of the methods demonstrated here is required to test the ability of such methods globally, but these results suggest a promising future, and a new direction for aeolian provenance studies.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Aeolian sediment fingerprinting using a Bayesian mixing model

Gholami

Telfer

Blake

et al. 2017

Earth Surf Processes Landf

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Identifying sand provenance in depositional aeolian environments (e.g. dunefields) can elucidate sediment pathways and fluxes, and inform potential land management strategies where windblown sand and dust is a hazard to health and infrastructure. However, the complexity of these pathways typically makes this a challenging proposition, and uncertainties on the composition of mixed‐source sediments are often not reported. This study demonstrates that a quantitative fingerprinting method within the Bayesian Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) framework offers great potential for exploring the provenance and uncertainties associated with aeolian sands. Eight samples were taken from dunes of the small (~58 km2) Ashkzar erg, central Iran, and 49 from three distinct potential sediment sources in the surrounding area. These were analyzed for 61 tracers including 53 geochemical elements (trace, major and rare earth elements (REE)) and eight REE ratios. Kruskal–Wallis H‐tests and stepwise discriminant function analysis (DFA) allowed the identification of an optimum composite fingerprint based on six tracers (Rb, Sr, 87Sr, (La/Yb)n, Ga and δCe), and a Bayesian mixing model was applied to derive the source apportionment estimates within an uncertainty framework. There is substantial variation in the uncertainties in the fingerprinting results, with some samples yielding clear discrimination of components, and some with less clear fingerprints. Quaternary terraces and fans contribute the largest component to the dunes, but they are also the most extensive surrounding unit; clay flats and marls, however, contribute out of proportion to their small outcrop extent. The successful application of these methods to aeolian sediment deposits demonstrates their potential for providing quantitative estimates of aeolian sediment provenances in other mixed‐source arid settings, and may prove especially beneficial where sediment is derived from multiple sources, or where other methods of provenance (e.g. detrital zircon U–Pb dating) are not possible due to mineralogical constraints. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

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Cenozoic intracontinental deformation and exhumation at the northwestern tip of the India-Asia collision-southwestern Tian Shan, Tajikistan, and Kyrgyzstan

et al. 2016

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Along the Ghissar-Alai Range of the southwestern Tian Shan (southwestern Kyrgyzstan, northern Tajikistan), the deformation front of the India-Asia collision-the Pamir-Tibet orogen-is interacting with the intracontinental Tian Shan orogen without the intervening Tarim Craton. Apatite fission track (n = 33,~3.3-145.6 Ma, 27% <10 Ma) and (U-Th)/He (n = 32,~1.9-26.1 Ma, 56% <10 Ma) thermochronologic ages suggest approximate isothermal holding (very slow cooling to weak reheating) during relative tectonic quiescence between~150 and 15 Ma. Accelerated exhumation (~0.2-1.0 km/Myr, median~0.5 km/Myr) and cooling (11-16°C/Myr) occurred over the last~10 Myr. Geomorphologic parameters-incision, river steepness, and concavity-confirm the youth of the southwestern Tian Shan's mountain building. High exhumation/cooling rates are correlated with pronounced local relief, produced by Cenozoic faults reactivating inherited (Late Paleozoic) structures. Regions with similarly young exhumation are centered along rims of rigid crustal blocks in the central and eastern Tian Shan. Structurally, the Ghissar-Alai Range is a broad, east trending zone of dextral transpression that includes the northern Tajik Basin (Illiak Fault Zone) and the Pamir Thrust System of the frontal northern Pamir. It is the particular deformation field at the northwestern tip of the India-Asia collision-the interaction of the westward gravitational collapse of the Pamir Plateau into the Tajik Basin with the bulk northward motion of the Pamir-that transformed the southwestern Tian Shan into a dextral transpression belt. The dextral transpression in the southwestern Tian Shan contrasts with sinistral strike-slip shear localized along inherited fault zones, accommodating dominant north-south shortening, in the central and eastern Tian Shan. The deformation field influenced by the Pamir and the associated young exhumation make the Ghissar-Alai Range a unique feature in the Tian Shan orogen.

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Cenozoic tectono-geomorphological growth of the SW Chinese Tian Shan: Insight from AFT and detrital zircon U–Pb data

Cited by 42 publications

References 98 publications

Provenance of the uppermost clastic rocks of the Lower Cretaceous Kezilesu Group from the Ulugqat Basin, Xinjiang, NW China and its tectonic implications: Insights from sedimentary records and detrital zircon U–Pb geochronology

Provenance of the uppermost clastic rocks of the Lower Cretaceous Kezilesu Group from the Ulugqat Basin, Xinjiang, NW China and its tectonic implications: Insights from sedimentary records and detrital zircon U–Pb geochronology

Aeolian sediment fingerprinting using a Bayesian mixing model

Cenozoic intracontinental deformation and exhumation at the northwestern tip of the India-Asia collision-southwestern Tian Shan, Tajikistan, and Kyrgyzstan

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