Thrusting of the North Lhasa Block in the Tibetan Plateau

A huge thrust system, the North Lhasa Thrust (NLT), was discovered in the northern Lhasa block of the Tibetan Plateau based on geological mapping of the Damxung region and its vicinity, the Deqen-Lunpola traverse and the Amdo-Bam Co profile. The NLT consists of the Dongqiao-Lunpola thrust (DLT), the west Namco thrust (WNT) and the south Damxung thrust (SDT) and ductile shear zones, ophiolite slices and folds extending in a WNW direction. Major thrust faults of the NLT seem to merge into a single deep-seated detachment of the upper-crust and totally displaced southward as far as 100-120 km. Chronological analyses with 39Ar-40Ar of plagioclase and hornblende, Rb-Sr isochron of minerals and fission-tracks of apatite from mylonite within the WNT yield ages of 174-173 Ma, 109 Ma and 44 Ma, showing 3 periods of thrusting in the north Lhasa block caused by subduction of the Tethys oceanic plate and the India-Eurasia continental collision respectively.

Quaternary Geology and Faulting in the Damxung-Yangbajain Basin

The detailed geological mapping, conducted in the Damxung-Yangbajain basin, shows that there are many types of deposits formed since the Pliocene. The oldest sediments are formed during the Pliocene. The most prominent sediments are three sets of moraines and fluvioglacial deposits. The ESR, U-series and OSL dates indicate they are formed about 700-500 ka B.P., 250-125 ka B.P. and 75-12 ka B.P. respectively and indicate that there are three glacial periods since the mid-Pleistocene in the Nyainqentanglha Range. Along the southeast side of the Nyainqentanglha Range, the main southeast dipping fault zone which bounds the Damxung-Yangbajain Graben on its western edge was mapped. The fault zone consists of three secondary fault zones and their initiation ages that the fault zones became active gradually decrease southeastward. Prominent faulting occurred in about 700-500 ka B.P., 350-220 ka B.P., -140 ka B.P. and 70-50 ka B.P. since the mid-Pleistocene. The height of fault scarps which offset the sediments formed since the mid-Pleistocene suggest that the vertical slip rates change between 0.4 -2 mm/a and the cumulative average vertical movement at rates of 1.1±0.3 mm/a during the Quaternary period and the Holocene vertical throw rate is 1.4±0.6 mm/a along the fault zones on the western side of the Damxung-Yangbajain Graben.

SHRIMP U-Pb zircon dating on Nyainqentanglha granite in central Lhasa block

The Nyainqentanglha granite, a batholith with an area of 1500 km^2 in the central Lhasa block, comprises mainly medium-fine-grained biotite monzonitic granite and medium-coarse-grained biotite monzonitic granite. Their contact relationship suggests that the medlum-fine-grained biotite monzonitic granite was crystallized earlier than the medium-coarse-grained monzonitic granite. A SHRIMP U-Pb dating on zircons from representative samples of the batholith shows that the crystallization age of the medium-fine-grained biotite monzonitic granite is 18.3 Ma and that of the medium-coarse-grained monzonitic granite is 11.01 Ma. The emplacement and crystallization of the Nyainqentanglha granite, the youngest granite batholith ever known inside the Lhasa block, have a close relationship with the collisional orogeny, crustal thickening, plateau uplifting,E-W crustal extension and have a dynamic genetic relationship with the crustal partial melting.