The South Tianshan Orogen and adjacent regions of Central Asia are located in the southwestern part of the Central Asian Orogenic Belt. The formation of South Tianshan Orogen was a diachronous, scissors-like process, ...The South Tianshan Orogen and adjacent regions of Central Asia are located in the southwestern part of the Central Asian Orogenic Belt. The formation of South Tianshan Orogen was a diachronous, scissors-like process, which took place during the Palaeozoic, and its western segment was accepted as a site of the final collision between the Tarim Craton and the North Asian continent, which occurred in the late Palaeozoic. However, the post-collisional tectonic evolution of the South Tianshan Orogen and adjacent regions remains debatable. Based on previous studies and recent geochronogical data, we suggest that the final collision between the Tarim Craton and the North Asian continent occurred during the late Carboniferous. Therefore, the Permian was a period of intracontinental environment in the southern Tianshan and adjacent regions. We propose that an earlier, small-scale intraplate orogenic stage occurred in late Permian to Triassic time, which was the first intraplate process in the South Tianshan Orogen and adjacent regions. The later large- scale and well-known Neogene to Quaternary intraplate orogeny was induced by the collision between the India subcontinent and the Eurasian plate. The paper presents a new evolutionary model for the South Tianshan Orogen and adjacent regions, which includes seven stages： （I） late Ordovician-early Silurian opening of the South Tianshan Ocean; （11） middle Silurian-middle Devonian subduction of the South Tianshan Ocean beneath an active margin of the North Asian continent; （111） late Devonian-late Carboniferous closure of the South Tianshan Ocean and collision between the Kazakhstan-Yili and Tarirn continental blocks; （IV） early Permian post-collisional magmatism and rifting; （V） late Permian-Triassic the first intraplate orogeny; （Vt） Jurassic-Palaeogene tectonic stagnation and （VII） Neocene-Quaternary intraplate orogeny.展开更多
The geological characteristics of ultrahigh-pressure (UHP) metamorphic belts formed by deep subduction of oceanic crust are summarized in this paper. Oceanic-type UHP metamorphic belt is characterized by its protolith...The geological characteristics of ultrahigh-pressure (UHP) metamorphic belts formed by deep subduction of oceanic crust are summarized in this paper. Oceanic-type UHP metamorphic belt is characterized by its protolithic assemblage of typical oceanic crust, the peak metamorphic temperature <600℃, P-T path undergoing blueschist facies during prograde and retrograde metamorphic evolution, respectively, with low geothermal gradient of cold subduction. The further study of oceanic-type UHP metamorphic belt is very significant for constructing metamorphic reaction series of cold subduction zone, for understanding how aqueous fluids were transported into deep mantle and for classifying the types of UHP metamorphism in cold subduction zone. The uplift and exhumation mechanism of oceanic UHP metamorphic rocks is one of the most challenging problems in the study of UHP metamorphism, which is very important for understanding the geodynamic mechanism of solid Earth. As a traveler subducted into the mantle depth and then uplifted to the surface, oceanic-type UHP metamorphic belts witness the bulk process from the subduction to exhumation and is an ideal target to study the geochemical behavior and cycling of elements in subduction zones. The tectonic evolution of one convergent orogenic belt can be usually divided into two stages of oceanic subduction and followed continental subduction and collision, and the two best-established examples of orogenic belts are Alps and Himalaya. Therefore, the study of oceanic-type UHP metamorphic belt is the frontier of the current plate tectonic theory. As two case studies, the current status and existing problems of oceanic-type UHP metamorphic belts in Southwest Tianshan and North Qaidam, NW China, are reviewed in this paper.展开更多
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 40772121, 40314141 and 40172066)China National Project No. 973 (2009CB219302)IGCP Project #592 "Continental construction in Central Asia" supported by UNESCO-IUGS
文摘The South Tianshan Orogen and adjacent regions of Central Asia are located in the southwestern part of the Central Asian Orogenic Belt. The formation of South Tianshan Orogen was a diachronous, scissors-like process, which took place during the Palaeozoic, and its western segment was accepted as a site of the final collision between the Tarim Craton and the North Asian continent, which occurred in the late Palaeozoic. However, the post-collisional tectonic evolution of the South Tianshan Orogen and adjacent regions remains debatable. Based on previous studies and recent geochronogical data, we suggest that the final collision between the Tarim Craton and the North Asian continent occurred during the late Carboniferous. Therefore, the Permian was a period of intracontinental environment in the southern Tianshan and adjacent regions. We propose that an earlier, small-scale intraplate orogenic stage occurred in late Permian to Triassic time, which was the first intraplate process in the South Tianshan Orogen and adjacent regions. The later large- scale and well-known Neogene to Quaternary intraplate orogeny was induced by the collision between the India subcontinent and the Eurasian plate. The paper presents a new evolutionary model for the South Tianshan Orogen and adjacent regions, which includes seven stages： （I） late Ordovician-early Silurian opening of the South Tianshan Ocean; （11） middle Silurian-middle Devonian subduction of the South Tianshan Ocean beneath an active margin of the North Asian continent; （111） late Devonian-late Carboniferous closure of the South Tianshan Ocean and collision between the Kazakhstan-Yili and Tarirn continental blocks; （IV） early Permian post-collisional magmatism and rifting; （V） late Permian-Triassic the first intraplate orogeny; （Vt） Jurassic-Palaeogene tectonic stagnation and （VII） Neocene-Quaternary intraplate orogeny.
基金National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 40730314)
文摘The geological characteristics of ultrahigh-pressure (UHP) metamorphic belts formed by deep subduction of oceanic crust are summarized in this paper. Oceanic-type UHP metamorphic belt is characterized by its protolithic assemblage of typical oceanic crust, the peak metamorphic temperature <600℃, P-T path undergoing blueschist facies during prograde and retrograde metamorphic evolution, respectively, with low geothermal gradient of cold subduction. The further study of oceanic-type UHP metamorphic belt is very significant for constructing metamorphic reaction series of cold subduction zone, for understanding how aqueous fluids were transported into deep mantle and for classifying the types of UHP metamorphism in cold subduction zone. The uplift and exhumation mechanism of oceanic UHP metamorphic rocks is one of the most challenging problems in the study of UHP metamorphism, which is very important for understanding the geodynamic mechanism of solid Earth. As a traveler subducted into the mantle depth and then uplifted to the surface, oceanic-type UHP metamorphic belts witness the bulk process from the subduction to exhumation and is an ideal target to study the geochemical behavior and cycling of elements in subduction zones. The tectonic evolution of one convergent orogenic belt can be usually divided into two stages of oceanic subduction and followed continental subduction and collision, and the two best-established examples of orogenic belts are Alps and Himalaya. Therefore, the study of oceanic-type UHP metamorphic belt is the frontier of the current plate tectonic theory. As two case studies, the current status and existing problems of oceanic-type UHP metamorphic belts in Southwest Tianshan and North Qaidam, NW China, are reviewed in this paper.
