Evaluating the role of climate and tectonics during non-steady incision of the Yellow River: evidence from a 1.24Ma terrace record near Lanzhou, China

Pan, Baotian; Su, Huai; Hu, Zhenbo; Hu, Xiaofei; Gao, Hongshan; Li, Jijun; Kirby, Eric

doi:10.1016/j.quascirev.2009.09.003

Cited by 130 publications

(101 citation statements)

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“…Pan et al, 2009) have shown that fluvial aggradation took place during periglacial conditions on the Tibetan Plateau during the Pleistocene, caused by changes in precipitation, cessation of soil development and decrease of vegetation cover as a response to climate deterioration, which is in agreement with general observations (e.g. Vandenberghe, 1995Vandenberghe, , 2003Bridgland and Westaway, 2008;Srivastava et al, 2008;Vandenberghe, 2008).…”

Section: Introductionsupporting

confidence: 88%

Late Quaternary paleoclimatic and geomorphological evolution at the interface between the Menyuan basin and the Qilian Mountains, northeastern Tibetan Plateau

Vandenberghe

et al. 2013

Quat. res.

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The Tibetan Plateau is regarded as an amplifier and driver of environmental change in adjacent regions because of its extent and high altitude. However, reliable age control for paleoenvironmental information on the plateau is limited. OSL appears to be a valid method to constrain the age of deposits of glacial and fluvial origin, soils and periglacial structures in the Menyuan basin on the northeastern Tibetan Plateau. Dating results show glaciers advanced extensively to the foot of the Qilian mountains at~21 ka, in agreement with the timing of the global Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) recorded in Northern Hemisphere ice cores. Comparison with results from the eastern Tibetan Plateau suggests that the factor controlling glacial advance in both regions was decreased temperature, not monsoon-related precipitation increase. The areas of the Menyuan basin occupied by glacio-fluvial deposits experienced continuous permafrost during the LGM, indicated by large cryoturbation features, interpreted to indicate that the mean annual temperature was ≥7°C lower than at present. Glacio-fluvial systems in the Menyuan basin aggraded and terraces formed during cold periods (penultimate glaciation, LGM, and possibly the Younger Dryas) as a response to increased glacial sediment production and meltwater runoff then.

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Section: Introductionsupporting

confidence: 88%

Late Quaternary paleoclimatic and geomorphological evolution at the interface between the Menyuan basin and the Qilian Mountains, northeastern Tibetan Plateau

Vandenberghe

et al. 2013

Quat. res.

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“…In erosional settings such as high mountains, fluvial terraces above a modern river record periods of fluvial stability that interrupt prevalent incision (e.g., Vandenberghe et al, 2011). The factors behind changes in the fluvial dynamic associated with sediment deposition, terrace abandonment and subsequent incision may be complex because of the interplay of tectonics and climate (e.g., Pazzaglia et al, 1998;Burbank and Anderson, 2001;Formento-Trigilio et al, 2002;Pan et al, 2009). Globally compiled fluvial records indicate that terrace formation is primarily a consequence of tectonic uplift combined with cyclic climate (e.g., Bridgland and Westaway, 2008;Westaway et al, 2009).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, the interpretation of incision rates in terms of relative bedrock uplift rates or climatic control is debated. It requires careful evaluation of intrinsic effects of the studied fluvial systems such as timescale dependencies or river channel evolution (e.g., Burbank et al, 1996;Leland et al, 1998;Carcaillet et al, 2009;Pan et al, 2009;Vandenberghe et al, 2011;Finnegan et al, 2014).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Rates of river incision across the main tectonic units of the Pamir identified using optically stimulated luminescence dating of fluvial terraces

et al. 2014

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Calculated incision rates along the Panj, the main river of the Pamir, are used to investigate any influence by tectonics or climate on the architecture of the river. The depositional ages of Panj river terraces were calculated using optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating of terrace sand. Fluvial incision rates were generated by integrating the terrace depositional ages with accurate kinematic GPS measurements of terrace heights above the modern Panj. We investigated 16 terraces along the Panj at the western Pamir margin and one terrace from the Vakhsh River to the north of the Pamir. The results reveal brief periods of fluvial deposition over the past 26 kyr. The oldest Panj terrace depositional ages coincide with early MIS 2 and MIS 2/1 glaciations on the Pamir Plateau. Younger terrace ages have no apparent link with glacial cycles. Terraces with varying heights above the modern Panj at different localities yielded similar depositional ages. This suggests that local conditions have determined fluvial incision rates. Combining all of the terrace measurements, the average incision rate of the Panj over the last 26 kyr has been ∼5.6 mm/yr. A high mean incision rate of ∼7.3 mm/yr was calculated from terraces where the Panj has cut a steep-sided valley through the Shakhdara Dome. Significantly lower incision rates (∼2 -3 mm/yr) were calculated from terraces where the Panj flows along the southern boundaries of the Shakhdara and Yazgulom domes. At those localities, graded segments of the Panj river profile and increased valley widths are indicative of local base levels. Downstream of the Yazgulom Dome, river incision rates are generally lower (∼4 -5 mm/yr) than the Panj average. However, there is one exception where higher incision rates (∼6 mm/yr) were calculated upstream of the Darvaz Fault Zone, a major tectonic feature that forms the western boundary of the Pamir. The Vakhsh river terrace to the north of the Pamir yielded a lower incision rate (∼3 mm/yr) compared to the Panj average. Variation in incision rates along the Panj does not correspond to changes in rock type or river catchment area. Instead, incision rates appear to have been primarily influenced by river capture across the southern and central metamorphic domes of the Pamir. Wherever the Panj cuts these domes it displays a convex river profile. The combination of localized river profile convexity and changes in incision rates across the Pamir domes indicates that the dome boundaries have been active recently.

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“…A single factor or multiple coupled factors lead to the erosion, transport or deposit of fluvial sediments to form a terrace (Li et al, 1996). The tectonic movement and climate change based on the study of river terrace has been becoming a hot topic (Maddy, 1997;Bridgland et al, 2000;Pan et al, 2009).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For example, Pan et al (2009) concluded in detail the age of terrace sequences of Yellow River at Lanzhou, in the northeastern Tibetan Plateau. The results declaimed that in past 1.2 Ma there were two stage periods for terrace formation in the upper reach of Yellow River, one ranging from 1.2 to 0.83 Ma, the other from 0.13 to 0.05 Ma, which was correlated to two phases of rapid uplifting, Kunhuang movement and Gonghe movement.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

ESR geochronology of the Minjiang River terraces at Wenchuan, eastern margin of Tibetan Plateau, China

et al. 2013

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Abstract:The Minjiang River terrace along the Longmen Shan fault zone near Wenchuan, at the eastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau, China, provides archives for tectonic activity and quaternary climate change. However, previous studies were not able to provide ages older than 100 ka due to the limitations of dating material or/and methods applied to date the fluvial sediments. In this study, we used the ESR signal of the Ti-Li center in quartz to obtain the ages of four higher terraces (T3-T6). According to the results, the terraces T3 to T6 were formed at 64±19 ka, 101±15 ka, 153±33 ka, and 423±115 ka, respectively. Combined with previous studies, these results indicate that the formations of all terraces correspond to glacial/interglacial transition periods, such as, T1-T5 being correlated to MIS2/1, MIS4/3, MIS5d/5c, and MIS6/5e respectively, while T6 probably to MIS12/11. According to these data, it is found that the average incision rate was significantly higher over the last 150 ka than that previous 100 ka (250 to 150 ka). As both tectonics and climate have affected the formation of these terraces, in addition to the overall uplifting of Tibetan Plateau, the regional uplift due to isostasy would be an additional tectonic factor in the formation of river terraces in the eastern margin of Tibetan plateau.

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Evaluating the role of climate and tectonics during non-steady incision of the Yellow River: evidence from a 1.24Ma terrace record near Lanzhou, China

Cited by 130 publications

References 50 publications

Late Quaternary paleoclimatic and geomorphological evolution at the interface between the Menyuan basin and the Qilian Mountains, northeastern Tibetan Plateau

Late Quaternary paleoclimatic and geomorphological evolution at the interface between the Menyuan basin and the Qilian Mountains, northeastern Tibetan Plateau

Rates of river incision across the main tectonic units of the Pamir identified using optically stimulated luminescence dating of fluvial terraces

ESR geochronology of the Minjiang River terraces at Wenchuan, eastern margin of Tibetan Plateau, China

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