Early Eocene leucocratic sill/dike swarms in the Gangdese belt, southern Tibet: Tectonic implications for Indo-Asian collision

The timing of the initial Indo-Asian collision is a subject of debate for a long time.Besides,the magmatic trace of the collisional process is also unclear.In the present study,the authors report Early Eocene leucocratic sill/dike swarms in the northern edge of the Nymo intrusive complex of the Gangdese belt,southern Tibet.The Nymo intrusive complex was emplaced at ca.50–47 Ma and surrounded by the metamorphosed Jurassic-aged Bima Formation volcano-sedimentary sequence along its northern side.At outcrops,the leucocratic sills/dikes intruded along or truncated the deformed foliations of the host Bima Formation,which has been subject to high-temperature amphibolite-facies metamorphism at ca.50–47 Ma.Detailed cathodoluminescence image analyses reveal that the zircon grains of the leucocratic sills/dikes have core-mantle textures.The cores yield the Jurassic ages comparable to the protolith ages of the Bima Formation.In contrast,the mantles of zircon grains yield weighted mean ages of ca.49–47 Ma,representing the crystallization timing of these leucocratic sills/dikes.The coeval ages for the Nymo intrusive complex,the high-temperature metamorphism,and the leucocratic sills/dikes indicate that a close relationship exists among them.The authors tentatively suggest that these leucocratic sills/dikes were generated from partial melting of the Jurassic-aged Bima Formation volcanic rocks,triggered by the high heat from the magma chamber of the Nymo intrusive complex.This Early Eocene tectono-thermal event of coeval magmatism,metamorphism and partial melting was most likely formed during the Indo-Asian collisional setting.

Carbon cycle variability in tropical Atlantic across two Early Eocene hyperthermals

Early Eocene hyperthermals are geologically short-lived global warming events and represent fundamental perturbations to the global carbon cycle and the Earth’s ecosystem due to massive additions of isotopically light carbon to the ocean-atmosphere system.They serve as ancient analogs for understanding how the oceanic carbonate system and surface-ocean ecosystem would respond to ongoing and future climate change.Here,we present a continuous carbonate record across the Eocene Thermal Maximum 2(ETM2 or H1,ca.54.1 Ma)and H2(ca.54 Ma)events from an expanded section at Ocean Drilling Program Site 1258 in tropical Atlantic.The abundant calcareous nannofossils and moderate carbonate content throughout the studied interval suggest this record was deposited above the calcite compensation depth(CCD),but below the lysocline and under the influence of terrestrial dilution.An Earth system model cGENIE is used to simulate the carbon cycle dynamics across the ETM2 and H2 to offer insights on the mechanism of the rapid warming and subsequent recovery in climate and ecosystem.The model suggests moderate changes in ocean pH(0.1–0.2 unit)for the two scenarios,biogenic methane from a rechargeable methane capacitor and organic matter oxidation from thawing of the permafrost.These pH changes are consistent with a recent independent pH estimate across the ETM2 using boron isotopes.The carbon emission flux during the ETM2 is at least an order of magnitude smaller than that during the Paleocene–Eocene Thermal Maximum(PETM)(0.015–0.05 Pg C yr^(-1)vs.0.3–1.7 Pg C yr^(-1)).The comparable pre-and post-event carbonate contents suggest the lysocline did not over deepen following the ETM2 at this tropical Atlantic site,indicating spatial heterogeneity in the carbonate system due to strong dilution influence from terrestrial weathering and riverine discharge at Site 1258.

Integrated borehole and outcrop study for documentation of sea level cycles within the Early Eocene Naredi Formation,western Kutch,India

A combined micropalaeontological and sedimentological investigation of the Early Eocene Naredi Formation (thickness varying between 20 m and 60 m) reveals a complete third-order cycle and six fourth-order sea level cycles. Within the third-order cycle the foraminiferal abundance and diversity gradually increase upwards and reach their maximum values at about 41 m thickness above the base of the formation and subsequently decrease upward and finally give way upward to an unfossiliferous zone at the topmost part. Within a fourth-order cycle foraminiferal abundance and diversity exhibit a similar increasing and decreasing pattern. Bounded between two unconformities the Naredi Formation represents a sequence. A highly fossiliferous Assilinabearing limestone interval represents the maximum flooding zone which separates the transgressive systems tract at the base from the highstand systems tract at the top.

Petrogenesis of the Late Eocene to Early Oligocene Yao'an Shoshonitic Complex,Southeastern Tibet:Partial Melting of an Ancient Continental Lithospheric Mantle beneath the Yangtze Block

Cenozoic potassic-ultrapotassic igneous rocks are widespread in the southeastern Tibetan Plateau.Their petrogenesis and magmatic processes remain subject to debate in spite of numerous publications.Almost all of the Cenozoic extrusive and intrusive rocks in the Yao’an area,western Yunnan Province,SW China,are geochemically shoshonitic,collectively termed here the Yao’an Shoshonitic Complex(YSC).The YSC is located in the(south)easternmost part of the ENE-WSW-trending,~550 km-long and~250 km-wide Cenozoic magmatic zone;the latter separates the orthogonal and oblique collision belts of the India-Eurasia collision orogen.Previously published geochronological and thermochronological data revealed that the rocks of the YSC were emplaced over a short timespan of 34-32 Ma.This and our new data suggest that the primary magma of the YSC likely was formed by partial melting of ancient continental lithospheric mantle beneath the Yangtze Block.This part of the continental lithospheric mantle had likely not been modified by any oceanic subduction.Fractionation crystallization of an Mg-and Ca-bearing mineral and TiFe oxides during the magmatic evolution probably account for the variable lithologies of the YSC.

Integration of zircon and apatite U–Pb geochronology and geochemical mapping of the Wude basalts(Emeishan large igneous province):A tool for a better understanding of the tectonothermal and geodynamic evolution of the Emeishan LIP

Radiogenic isotopic dating and Lu–Hf isotopic composition using laser ablation-inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry(LA-ICP-MS)of the Wude basalt in Yunnan province from the Emeishan large igneous province(ELIP)yielded timing of formation and post-eruption tectonothermal event.Holistic lithogeochemistry and elements mapping of basaltic rocks were further reevaluated to provide insights into crustal contamination and formation of the ELIP.A zircon U–Pb age of 251.3±2.0 Ma of the Wude basalt recorded the youngest volcanic eruption event and was consistent with the age span of 251-263 Ma for the emplacement of the ELIP.Such zircons hadε_(Hf)(t)values ranging from7.3 to+2.2,identical to those of magmatic zircons from the intrusive rocks of the ELIP,suggesting that crust-mantle interaction occurred during magmatic emplacement,or crust-mantle mixing existed in the deep source region prior to deep melting.The apatite U–Pb age at 53.6±3.4 Ma recorded an early Eocene magmatic superimposition of a regional tectonothermal event,corresponding to the Indian–Eurasian plate collision.Negative Nb,Ta,Ti and P anomalies of the Emeishan basalt may reflect crustal contamination.The uneven Nb/La and Th/Ta values distribution throughout the ELIP supported a mantle plume model origin.Therefore,the ELIP was formed as a result of a mantle plume which was later superimposed by a regional tectonothermal event attributed to the Indian–Eurasian plate collision during early Eocene.

Asplenium sanshuiense sp. nov.:the Lowest Latitude Fossil Record of the Genus

Extant Asplenium is one of the most widespread fern groups and occurs in the temperate and tropical regions. However, the fossil records of this genus are poorly documented, especially in the low latitudes. Here, a new species, Asplenium sanshuiense sp. nov. is described from the early Eocene of Sanshui Basin, Guangdong Province, South China. This is the lowest modern latitude fossil record of Asplenium and the first fossil assignment of A. section Darea （Jussieu） Bak., as well as the first fossil record of Asplenium reported from South China. This new species shows that Asplenium had already spread into South China by the early Eocene and the section Darea （Jussieu） Bak. was identifiable within the genus Asplenium during that time. This new species, combined with previous fossil spore-pollen records indicates a warm and humid climate in the Sanshui Basin of the early Eocene.

Micropaleontology and Biostratigraphy of Zgaimat Al-Hasah Anticline, SE-Jordan

This study presents the first attempt to recognize the planktonic foraminiferal biozones and to determine the time of deposition of the carbonate deposits exposed in the Zgaimat Al-Hasah anticline, Southeastern Jordan. Five equivalent planktonic foraminiferal biozones;Zones E3 (P6a), E4 (P6b), E5 (P7), E6 (P8), and E7 or E7a were identified by analyzing twenty-eight samples from a 20 m thick section. Ten planktonic foraminiferal species belonging to seven genera and thirteen benthic foraminiferal species representing eleven genera were recorded. An Early Eocene age was assigned to the carbonate deposits exposed in Zgaimat Al-Hasah anticline based on some typical index species of calcareous planktonic foraminifera.