TY - JOUR
T1 - Magnetostratigraphy and depositional history of the Miocene Wushan basin on the NE Tibetan plateau, China
T2 - Implications for middle Miocene tectonics of the West Qinling fault zone
AU - Wang, Zhicai
AU - Zhang, Peizhen
AU - Garzione, Carmala N.
AU - Lease, Richard O.
AU - Zhang, Guangliang
AU - Zheng, Dewen
AU - Hough, Brian
AU - Yuan, Daoyang
AU - Li, Chuanyou
AU - Liu, Jianhui
AU - Wu, Qinglong
N1 - Funding Information:
This work was supported by National Science Foundation ( 40772127 and 40234040 ) and by State key Laboratory of Earthquake Dynamics ( LED2008A01 ) of China, and the US NSF Grants 0506575 and 0908778 to C.N. Garzione. R.O. Lease acknowledges support from a NSF Graduate Research Fellowship. The authors thank Joe Kirschvink, Theresa Raub and Scott Bogue for their support during the paleomagnetic laboratory work in Caltech and Occidental College. We also thank Peter Molnar, Douglas Burbank, and Eric Kirby for their help and suggestions during field work, paleomagnetic measurement, and on the manuscript. Zhang Zhaoqun helped identify the fossils. Sun Dongjiang helped with the sampling. In the end, We would like to give thanks to Guillaume Dupont-Nivet and anonymous reviewers for their insightful suggestions and general improvements of the manuscript.
PY - 2012/1/30
Y1 - 2012/1/30
N2 - Based on field mapping, section measurement and magnetostratigraphy, ∼1700. m of sedimentary rocks have accumulated in the Wushan basin between ∼16. Ma and ∼6. Ma. Basin geometry, sedimentation characteristics and the early syn-depositional deformation along the northern margin of the basin indicate that formation of the Wushan basin was related to tectonic deformation along the West Qinling fault zone during the middle Miocene. A series of basins of similar age to the Wushan basin were generated along and to the south of the West Qinling fault zone while basalts also erupted in this region at this time. We suggest that the middle Miocene (∼16. Ma) may represent a change in kinematics and deformation style in the region along and to the south of the West Qinling fault zone. At this time, there was a transition from NNE-SSW compressional deformation, that dominated the region since the late Paleogene, to the development of WNW-ESE and/or E-W trending strike-slip movement and associated transpressional and transtensional activity that continues today. The Miocene Wushan basin may have developed in association with transpression along the West Qinling fault zone. Whether this transition was related to the onset of strike-slip along the east Kunlun fault and related deformation transfer, lower crustal flow, or removal of mantle lithosphere, the middle Miocene provides direct evidence for a change in the kinematic style along the plateau margin.
AB - Based on field mapping, section measurement and magnetostratigraphy, ∼1700. m of sedimentary rocks have accumulated in the Wushan basin between ∼16. Ma and ∼6. Ma. Basin geometry, sedimentation characteristics and the early syn-depositional deformation along the northern margin of the basin indicate that formation of the Wushan basin was related to tectonic deformation along the West Qinling fault zone during the middle Miocene. A series of basins of similar age to the Wushan basin were generated along and to the south of the West Qinling fault zone while basalts also erupted in this region at this time. We suggest that the middle Miocene (∼16. Ma) may represent a change in kinematics and deformation style in the region along and to the south of the West Qinling fault zone. At this time, there was a transition from NNE-SSW compressional deformation, that dominated the region since the late Paleogene, to the development of WNW-ESE and/or E-W trending strike-slip movement and associated transpressional and transtensional activity that continues today. The Miocene Wushan basin may have developed in association with transpression along the West Qinling fault zone. Whether this transition was related to the onset of strike-slip along the east Kunlun fault and related deformation transfer, lower crustal flow, or removal of mantle lithosphere, the middle Miocene provides direct evidence for a change in the kinematic style along the plateau margin.
KW - Magnetostratigraphy
KW - Middle Miocene
KW - Tibetan plateau
KW - West Qinling fault zone
KW - Wushan basin
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U2 - 10.1016/j.jseaes.2011.06.009
DO - 10.1016/j.jseaes.2011.06.009
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:84855343269
VL - 44
SP - 189
EP - 202
JO - Journal of Asian Earth Sciences
JF - Journal of Asian Earth Sciences
SN - 1367-9120
ER -