Initial rupture and displacement on the Altyn Tagh fault, northern Tibetan Plateau: Constraints based on residual Mesozoic to Cenozoic strata in the western Qaidam Basin

被引:110
作者
Cheng, Feng [1 ,2 ]
Guo, Zhaojie [1 ]
Jenkins, Hillary S. [3 ]
Fu, Suotang [4 ]
Cheng, Xiang [1 ]
机构
[1] Peking Univ, Sch Earth & Space Sci, Minist Educ, Key Lab Orogen Belts & Crustal Evolut, Beijing 100871, Peoples R China
[2] Univ Rennes 1, Lab Geosci Rennes, CNRS UMR6118, F-35042 Rennes, France
[3] Univ Redlands, Dept Environm Studies, Redlands, CA 92373 USA
[4] PetroChina, Qinghai Oilfield Co, Dunhuang 736202, Gansu, Peoples R China
关键词
U-PB GEOCHRONOLOGY; DETRITAL-ZIRCON GEOCHRONOLOGY; EASTERN KUNLUN RANGE; STRIKE-SLIP-FAULT; TECTONIC EVOLUTION; NORTHWEST CHINA; TIAN-SHAN; NW CHINA; MAGNETIC-SUSCEPTIBILITY; ASIA COLLISION;
D O I
10.1130/GES01070.1
中图分类号
P [天文学、地球科学];
学科分类号
07 ;
摘要
The Altyn Tagh fault, located in the northern Tibetan Plateau, is a large left-lateral strike-slip fault heavily responsible for the growth and formation of the plateau during Cenozoic time. Despite its significance, the initial timing and kinematic patterns of movement along the Altyn Tagh fault remain highly debated. Here, we present a detailed analysis of the stratigraphy and geochronology of three key lithologic sections (Tula, Anxi, and Caishiling) along the Altyn Tagh fault to better understand this kinematic history. By correlating stratigraphic contacts and lithology with the U-Pb age spectra of Mesozoic samples within the western Qaidam Basin, we find the Altyn Tagh fault has experienced a total of similar to 360 km of displacement during the Cenozoic. By combining seismic profile data with geologic observations, we divide the activity along this fault into two distinct stages of motion: (1) an initial stage, which occurred between early Eocene (ca. 49 Ma) and mid-Miocene time (ca. 15 Ma) and resulted in similar to 170 km of offset, and (2) an early stage, which began in the late Miocene Epoch and continues into the present, resulting in similar to 190 km of offset along the fault. We identify the Tula and Anxi sections as piercing points along the western segment of the Altyn Tagh fault and define these regions as residual parts of the original Qaidam Basin. These estimates suggest that motion along the Altyn Tagh fault has accelerated from an average left-lateral strike-slip rate of similar to 5.0 mm/yr during initial stage faulting to a rate of similar to 12.6 mm/yr between the late Miocene Epoch and present day.
引用
收藏
页码:921 / 942
页数:22
相关论文
共 135 条
[1]  
Allen P.A., 1990, BASIN ANAL PRINCIPLE
[2]  
[Anonymous], 1993, REG GEOL XINJ UYG AU
[3]   Evidence for Mesozoic shear along the western Kunlun and Altyn-Tagh fault, northern Tibet (China) [J].
Arnaud, N ;
Tapponnier, P ;
Roger, F ;
Brunel, M ;
Scharer, U ;
Wen, C ;
Xu, ZQ .
JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH-SOLID EARTH, 2003, 108 (B1)
[4]   Geodetic evidence for a low slip rate in the Altyn Tagh fault system [J].
Bendick, R ;
Bilham, R ;
Freymueller, J ;
Larson, K ;
Yin, GH .
NATURE, 2000, 404 (6773) :69-72
[5]  
Boggs Jr S., 2006, SEDIMENTOLOGY STRATI, P326
[6]  
BURCHFIEL BC, 1991, ECLOGAE GEOL HELV, V84, P599
[7]  
BURCHFIEL BC, 1989, GEOLOGY, V17, P748, DOI 10.1130/0091-7613(1989)017<0448:IDWZOC>2.3.CO
[8]  
2
[9]   REVISED CALIBRATION OF THE GEOMAGNETIC POLARITY TIMESCALE FOR THE LATE CRETACEOUS AND CENOZOIC [J].
CANDE, SC ;
KENT, DV .
JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH-SOLID EARTH, 1995, 100 (B4) :6093-6095
[10]  
Chen XH, 2004, ACTA GEOL SIN-ENGL, V78, P515