Tomographic evidence for wholesale underthrusting of India beneath the entire Tibetan plateau

Zhou, Hua‐wei; Murphy, Michael A.

doi:10.1016/j.jseaes.2004.04.007

Cited by 156 publications

(129 citation statements)

References 56 publications

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“…Figure 4b shows the mantle seismic shear velocity (Vs) structure beneath the Greater Tibetan Plateau [17]. The high Vs layer of ~ 100 km thick at depth of ~ 100 -200 km extends continuously from beneath India northward throughout the Tibetan plateau, which is most consistent with the underthrust of the Indian continental lithosphere beneath the Tibetan plateau lithosphere [16]. This offers evidence against slab-breakoff model, suggesting that alternative interpretations need considering on the origin of the syncollisional magmatism preserved in southern Tibet [7].…”

Section: Observations That Do Not Support Slab-breakoffmentioning

confidence: 84%

“…Existing tomographic studies (seismic Vp), as exemplified in Fig. 4a [15,16], seem to show that the Indian plate remains continuous beneath the Greater Tibetan plateau, suggesting that complete slab breakoff may not happen. Although the validity of this tomographic interpretation needs verifying, we should not neglect these studies in explaining the syncollisional granitoid magmatism in southern Tibet.…”

Section: Observations That Do Not Support Slab-breakoffmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Slab breakoff: a causal mechanism or pure convenience?

Niu

2017

Science Bulletin

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Section: Observations That Do Not Support Slab-breakoffmentioning

confidence: 84%

Section: Observations That Do Not Support Slab-breakoffmentioning

confidence: 99%

Slab breakoff: a causal mechanism or pure convenience?

Niu

2017

Science Bulletin

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“…To identify spatial differences in geochemistry, adakitic rocks of the Lhasa terrane are divided into eastern and western groups, either side of the longitude of approximately 87°E (Fig. 1) (Guo et al, 2007;Hou et al, 2006;Xiao et al, 2007;Zhao et al, 2006Zhao et al, , 2009Zhou and Murphy, 2005).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Geochemical variations in Miocene adakitic rocks from the western and eastern Lhasa terrane: Implications for lower crustal flow beneath the Southern Tibetan Plateau

Chen

Zhao

et al. 2011

Lithos

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“…GPS and seismic anisotropy (6) indicate extrusion also of the deep Tibetan lithosphere to the east and southeast. Most surface wave studies revealed a thick lithosphere beneath much of the plateau (7-12), whereas body wave tomography observed the subducted Indian mantle lithosphere characterized by high wavespeed, in contrast to the Asian mantle lithosphere (13)(14)(15). Recently a high resolution P travel time tomographic study (15) imaged the high velocity Indian lithosphere in western Tibet below the entire plateau down to 300-400 km depth.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

The boundary between the Indian and Asian tectonic plates below Tibet

Zhao

Yuan

Liu

et al. 2010

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

370

355

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The fate of the colliding Indian and Asian tectonic plates below the Tibetan high plateau may be visualized by, in addition to seismic tomography, mapping the deep seismic discontinuities, like the crust-mantle boundary (Moho), the lithosphere-asthenosphere boundary (LAB), or the discontinuities at 410 and 660 km depth. We herein present observations of seismic discontinuities with the P and S receiver function techniques beneath central and western Tibet along two new profiles and discuss the results in connection with results from earlier profiles, which did observe the LAB. The LAB of the Indian and Asian plates is well-imaged by several profiles and suggests a changing mode of India-Asia collision in the east-west direction. From eastern Himalayan syntaxis to the western edge of the Tarim Basin, the Indian lithosphere is underthrusting Tibet at an increasingly shallower angle and reaching progressively further to the north. A particular lithospheric region was formed in northern and eastern Tibet as a crush zone between the two colliding plates, the existence of which is marked by high temperature, low mantle seismic wavespeed (correlating with late arriving signals from the 410 discontinuity), poor Sn propagation, east and southeast oriented global positioning system displacements, and strikingly larger seismic (SKS) anisotropy.Tibetan lithosphere | receiver functions | anisotropy I t has long been recognised that the Tibetan plateau was created by the collision of the northward moving Indian plate and the relatively stationary Asian plate, which began about 50 million yr ago (1). However, the mode of deformation of the mantle lithospheres (2) remained largely unknown. A fundamental question is whether the postcollision convergence of India and Asia, estimated at >2;000 km (3, 4), was accommodated by homogeneous thickening or plate subduction (2). Global positioning systems (GPS) measurements have shown that at present an eastward motion dominates the surface deformation of northern and eastern Tibet (5). GPS and seismic anisotropy (6) indicate extrusion also of the deep Tibetan lithosphere to the east and southeast. Most surface wave studies revealed a thick lithosphere beneath much of the plateau (7-12), whereas body wave tomography observed the subducted Indian mantle lithosphere characterized by high wavespeed, in contrast to the Asian mantle lithosphere (13-15). Recently a high resolution P travel time tomographic study (15) imaged the high velocity Indian lithosphere in western Tibet below the entire plateau down to 300-400 km depth. In eastern Tibet, however, the front of the Indian plate is located south of the Yarlong-Zangbo Suture (YZS) (15). Relatively slow wave speeds are found in the upper mantle below the central and northeastern parts of the plateau. Modeling indicates that the Tibetan part of the lithosphere originated from the progressive accretion of a number of continental or island-arc type blocks before India came into direct contact with Asia (16) or stepwise subduction of the Asian pl...

show abstract

Tomographic evidence for wholesale underthrusting of India beneath the entire Tibetan plateau

Cited by 156 publications

References 56 publications

Slab breakoff: a causal mechanism or pure convenience?

Slab breakoff: a causal mechanism or pure convenience?

Geochemical variations in Miocene adakitic rocks from the western and eastern Lhasa terrane: Implications for lower crustal flow beneath the Southern Tibetan Plateau

The boundary between the Indian and Asian tectonic plates below Tibet

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