台湾西部前陆盆地和帝汶海前陆盆地的比较学研究

A COMPARATIVE STUDY INVOLVING THE WESTERN TAIWAN FORELAND AND TIMOR SEA FORELAND

台湾西部前陆盆地和帝汶海前陆盆地均是新生代环太平洋巨型沟-弧-盆体系的一部分。Huang et al.(2000)认为,帝汶海前陆盆地目前相当于台湾南部陆海域所处的弧-陆碰撞的初始阶段。我们认为,该研究中存在着一种潜在的逻辑上的矛盾。在研究单个前陆盆地时,造山过程和板块的挠曲特性均会成为关注的焦点;而一旦进行盆地之间的对比研究,则往往会倾向于关注造山过程、机制以及构造现象的异同等,并由此得出相应结论,却忽视了在现象异同的背后所隐藏着的板块挠曲特性所起的控制性作用。事实上,帝汶海前陆盆地和台湾西部前陆盆地的根本差异并不在其造山作用和过程,而在于其板块挠曲特性的巨大差异。正是这种差异决定了二者具有完全不同的演化特性,构造、层序上的异同只是这种差异的外在体现。忽视这种差异,仅根据构造上的异同以推断前陆的演化过程会导致认识的偏差。

Both western Taiwan foreland and Timor Sea foreland are part of the trench-arc-basin system around the Pacific. Huang et al. （2000） drew a conclusion that the Timor foreland corresponds to the initial arc-continent collision occurring in southern Taiwan and its neighboring sea after enumerating their common characteristics. We think a conflict actually exists in this study. The flexural characteristics as well as the process of orogeny may be one of the foci of attention for some individual study. However, many researchers usually are inclined to pay more attention to foreland response to orogeny and to comparable study of similarities and differences in structure and stratigraphy, and draw their conclusions while ignoring the huge influence played by the differences in plate flexural characteristics. Timor Sea foreland and western Taiwan foreland share very similar history of evolution and form generally distinctly tectonic status. We think the huge difference in plate flexural characteristics is responsible for it.