Digital simulation on convergence tendency between Southwest Tienshan and Pamirs-West Kunlun systems and its significance

Abstract

The collision between India plate and Eurasia continent 55 Ma ago caused the convergence between Southwest Tienshan and Pamirs tectonic systems, and conclusions by other researchers also suggest that the convergence will continue. Studies on the collision between these systems are helpful to the knowledge of the history and the tendency of the in-land tectonics since Cenozoic and are important in science and the real world as for environment changes, resources and energy reform, and forecast of earthquakes. For this reason, by means of digital modeling, on the basis of crustal shortening rate, crustal motion rate and data of physical properties of rocks, with the help of the FE (finite element) theory-based marc software, the United States, we address on the tendency of the convergence in this area in almost 10 Ma and draw a conclusion that the converged borders move northward and stretch southeast. The Southwest Tienshan will move more slowly and suffer less deformation than the Pamirs-West Kunlun (昆仑) system. The Pamirs-West Kunlun system will rotate counterclockwise while moving northward and extending westward.

Keywords

Pamirs-West Kunlun / Southwest Tienshan / convergence / FE (finite element) method / shortening rate

References

[1] Arnaud N. O., Vidal P., Tapponnier P., . The High K₂O Volcanism of Northwestern Tibet: Geochemistry and Tectonic Implications. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 1992, 111(2–4): 351-367.

[2] Bazhenov M. L., Burtman V. S.. Tectonics and Paleomagnetism of Structural Arcs of the Pamir-Punjab Syntaxis. Journal of Geodynamics, 1986, 5(3–4): 383-396.

[3] Burtman V. S.. Cenozoic Crustal Shortening between the Pamir and Tien Shan and a Reconstruction of the Pamir-Tien Shan Transition Zone for the Cretaceous and Palaeogene. Tectonophysics, 2000, 319(2): 69-92.

[4] Burtman V. S., Molnar P.. Geological and Geophysical Evidence for Deep Subduction of Continental Crust beneath the Pamir. Spec. Pap. Geol. Soc. Am., 1993, 281: 76

[5] Buslov M. M., de Grave J., Bataleva E. A. V., . Cenozoic Tectonic and Geodynamic Evolution of the Kyrgyz Tien Shan Mountains: A Review of Geological, Thermochronological and Geophysical Data. Journal of Asian Earth Sciences, 2007, 29(2–3): 205-214.

[6] Chatelain J. L., Roecker S. W., Hatzfeld D., . Microearthquake Seismicity and Fault Plane Solutions in the Hindu Kush Region and Their Tectonic Implications. J. Geophys. Res., 1980, 85(B3): 1365-1387.

[7] Chen J., Ding G. Y., Burbank D. W., . Late Cenozoic Tectonics and Seismicity in the Southwestern Tianshan, China. Earthquake Research in China, 2001, 17(2): 134-155.

[8] Chen L. W., Yang S. X., Xie F. R., . Numerical Simulation on Annual Change Patterns of Present-Day Tectonic Stress-Strain Field on the Chinese Mainland. Earthquake Research in China, 2005, 21(3): 341-349.

[9] Christensen N. I.. Poisson’s Ratio and Crustal Seismology. J. Geophys. Res., 1996, 101(B2): 3139-3156.

[10] Cobbold P. R., Davy P.. Indentation Tectonics in Nature and Experiment: II. Central Asia. Bulletin of the Geological Institutions of Uppsala, 1988, 14: 143-162.

[11] de Grave J., Buslov M. M., van den Haute P.. Distant Effects of India-Eurasia Convergence and Mesozoic Intracontinental Deformation in Central Asia: Constraints from Apatite Fission-Track Thermochronology. Journal of Asian Earth Sciences, 2007, 29(2–3): 188-204.

[12] Deng, W. M., 1997. Cenozoic Volcanism and Lithosphere Tectonic Evolution in the Northern Tibetan Plateau, China. In: Li, Z. N., Qi, J. Z., Zhang, Z. C., eds., Igneous petrology. Proceedings of the 30th International Geological Congress, 30(15): 3–12

[13] Ding G. Y., Chen J., Tian Q. J., . Active Faults and Magnitudes of Left-Lateral Displacement along the Northern Margin of the Tibetan Plateau. Tectonophysics, 2004, 380(3–4): 243-260.

[14] Ding Y. Y., Di X. L., Yuan Z. X., . Three-Dimensional Shear Wave Velocity Structure and Distribution Image of V _P/V _S beneath the Weihe Fault Depression. Chinese Journal of Geophysics, 2000, 43(2): 194-202.

[15] Dobretsov N. L., Buslov M. M., Delvaux D., . Meso- and Cenozoic Tectonics of the Central Asian Mountain Belt: Effects of Lithospheric Plate Interaction and Mantle Plumes. International Geology Review, 1996, 38(5): 430-466.

[16] Fan G., Ni J. F., Wallace T. C.. Active Tectonics of the Pamirs and Karakorum. J. Geophys. Res., 1994, 99(B4): 7131-7160.

[17] Fu B. H., Lin A. M., Kano K., . Active Faulting in the Northeastern Pamir, NW China. Xinjiang Geology, 2003, 21(1): 1-8.

[18] Jiang M., Li H. O., Wang Y. J., . The Effect of Qinghai Tibet Plateau Uplift on the Structure of Crust and Upper Mantle beneath the Tianshan Mountains in Xinjiang. Earth Science Frontiers, 2006, 13(5): 401-407.

[19] Kern H., Richter A.. Temperature Derivates of Compressional and Shear Wave Velocities in Crustal and Mantle Rocks at 6 kb Confining Pressure. J. Geophys. Res., 1981, 49: 47-56.

[20] Le Pichon X., Fournier M., Jolivet L.. Kinematics, Topography, Shortening and Extrusion in the India-Eurasia Collision. Tectonics, 1992, 11(6): 1085-1098.

[21] Li J. H., Cai Z. Z., Luo C. S., . The Structural Transfer at the Southern End of Talas-Ferghana Fault and Its Regional Tectonic Response in the Cenozoic. Acta Geologica Sinica, 2007, 81(1): 23-31.

[22] Li Q. S., Gao R., Lu D. Y., . Tarim Underthrust beneath Western Kunlun—Evidence from Wide-Angle Seismic Sounding. Journal of Asian Earth Sciences, 2002, 20(3): 247-253.

[23] Li X. D., Wang K. Z.. On Orogenic to Basinal Tectonic Transfer along the Southern Margin of West Tianshan Mountains, China. Xinjiang Geology, 2000, 18(3): 211-219.

[24] Li X. D., Wang K. Z.. An Important Mechanism of Crustal Shortening during Uplift of Pamir—Taking Qimugen Tectonic Transformation Domain as an Example. Xinjiang Geology, 2003, 21(1): 9-15.

[25] Liu Z., Zhang X. K., Zhou X. S., . Study of Crustal Structure in Terms of Physical Property and Discussion on Seismogenic Environment in the Northeastern Pamirs. Acta Seismologica Sinica, 2003, 25(3): 242-249.

[26] Lyon-Caen H., Molnar P.. Gravity Anomalies and the Structure of Western Tibet and the Southern Tarim Basin. Geophysical Research Letters, 1984, 11(12): 1251-1254.

[27] Mattauer M., Matte P., Malavieille J., . Tectonics of the Qinling Belt: Build up and Evolution of Eastern Asia. Nature, 1985, 317(6037): 496-500.

[28] Matte P., Tapponnier P., Arnaud N., . Tectonics of Western Tibet, between the Tarim and the Indus. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 1996, 142(3–4): 311-330.

[29] Mercier J. L., Armijo R., Tapponnier P., . Change from Late Tertiary Compression to Quaternary Extension in Southern Tibet during the India-Asia Collision. Tectonics, 1987, 6(3): 275-304.

[30] Molnar P., Tapponnier P.. Cenozoic Tectonics of Asia: Effects of a Continental Collision. Science, 1975, 189(4201): 419-426.

[31] Negredo A. M., Replumaz A., Villaseñor A., . Modeling the Evolution of Continental Subduction Processes in the Pamir-Hindu Kush Region. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 2007, 259(1–2): 212-225.

[32] Ni J.. Contemporary Tectonics in the Tien Shan Region. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 1978, 41(3): 347-354.

[33] Pearce J. A., Mei H. J.. Volcanic Rocks of the 1985 Tibet Geotraverse Lhasa to Golmud: The Geological Evolution of Tibet. Philos. Trans. R. Soc. Lond., 1988, 327(1594): 169-201.

[34] Reigber C., Michel G. W., Galas R., . New Space Geodetic Constraints on the Distribution of Deformation in Central Asia. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 2001, 191: 157-165.

[35] Scharer K. M., Burbank D. W., Chen J., . Detachment Folding in the Southwestern Tian Shan-Tarim Foreland, China: Shortening Estimates and Rates. Journal of Structural Geology, 2004, 26(11): 2119-2137.

[36] Shao H. L., Yi R. L., Lin Z. M.. Preliminary Approach on Thrust Tectonics in South Margin of Tianshan Mountains. Oil & Gas Geology, 1990, 11(4): 393-401.

[37] Shen J., Wang Y. P., Zhao R. B., . Propagation of Cenozoic Arcuate Structures in Northeastern Pamir and Northwestern Tarim Basin, China. Seismology and Geology, 2001, 23(3): 381-389.

[38] Sun B. S., Liu Z. R., Wang Z. M.. New Knowledege on Geology of Kashi Depression in Southwest Tarim. Xinjiang Geology, 2003, 21(1): 78-84.

[39] Tao W., Shen Z. K., Wan Y. G., . Crustal Elasticity Contrast across the East Kunlun Fault in Northern Tibet Inferred from InSAR Measurements of the 2001 Mw 7.8 Kokoxili Earthquake. Chinese Journal of Geophysics, 2007, 50(3): 658-665.

[40] Tapponnier P., Meyer B., Avouac J. P., . Active Thrusting and Folding in the Qilian Shan and Decoupling between Upper Crust and Mantle in Northeastern Tibet. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 1990, 97(3–4): 382-403.

[41] Thomas J. C., Cobbold P. R., Wright A., . Yin A., Harrison T. M., . Cenozoic Tectonics of the Tadzhik Depression, Central Asia. Tectonics Evolution of Asia, 1996, New York: Cambridge University Press 191-207.

[42] Thomas J. C., Lanza R., Kazansky A., . Paleomagnetic Study of Cenozoic Sediments from the Zaisan Basin (SE Kazakhstan) and the Chuya Depression (Siberian Altai): Tectonic Implications for Central Asia. Tectonophysics, 2002, 351(1–2): 119-137.

[43] Verma P. K., Sekhar C. C.. Seismotectonics and Focal Mechanisms of Earthquakes from Pamir-Hindukush Regions. Tectonophysics, 1985, 112(1–4): 297-324.

[44] Verma R. K., Reddy Y. S. K.. Seismicity, Focal Mechanisms and Their Correlation with the Geological/Tectonic History of the Tibetan Plateau. Tectonophysics, 1988, 156(1–2): 107-131.

[45] Waldhör M., Appel E., Frisch W., . Palaeomagnetic Investigation in the Pamirs and Its Tectonic Implications. Journal of Asia Earth Sciences, 2001, 19(4): 429-451.

[46] Wang Q., Zhang P. Z., Jeffrey T., . Present-Day Crustal Deformation in China Constrained by Global Positioning System Measurements. Science, 2001, 294(5542): 574-577.

[47] Wang Q., Zhang P. Z., Ma Z. J.. GPS Database and Velocity Field of Contemporary Tectonic Deformation in Continental China. Earth Science Frontiers, 2002, 9(2): 415-429.

[48] Wang X. Q., Li J., Wang Q., . Analysis of Present Day Crustal Deformation of Tianshan. Journal of Geodesy and Geodynamic, 2005, 25(3): 63-68.

[49] Wang X. Q., Wang Q., Cheng R. Z., . GPS Monitoring and Study on Recent Crustal Deformation in Jiashi and Its Adjacent Region in Xinjiang, China. Northwestern Seismological Journal, 2002, 24(3): 199-207.

[50] Wang X. Y., Zhu W. Y., Fu Y., . Present-Day Crustal Deformation in China and the Surrounding Regions Based on GPS Data. Chinese Journal of Geophysics, 2002, 45(2): 198-209.

[51] Wang X., Hubert-Ferrari A., Suppe J.. Shortening Rate Since Late Pleistocene in Aksu Area, Southern Flank of Tianshan, China. Chinese Journal of Geology, 2001, 36(2): 195-202.

[52] Wang Z. Q., Jiang C. F., Yan Q. R., . Accretion and Collision Orogeneses in the West Kunlun Mountains, China. Gondwana Research, 2001, 4(4): 843-844.

[53] Willett S. D., Beaumont C.. Subduction of Asian Lithospheric Mantle beneath Tibet Inferred from Models of Continental Collision. Nature, 1994, 369(6482): 642-645.

[54] Wittlinger G., Vergne J., Tapponnier P., . Teleseismic Imaging of Subducting Lithosphere and Moho Offsets beneath Western Tibet. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 2004, 221(1–4): 117-130.

[55] Xiao A. C., Jia C. Z., Yang S. F., . The Kinematics Characteristics of the Thrust-Fold Belts Western Front Regions in Southern Tianshan, China. Acta Sedimentologica Sinica, 2000, 18(3): 439-444.

[56] Yang X. P., Ran Y. K., Song F. M., . The Analysis for Crust Shortening of Kalpin Thrust Tectonic Zone, South-Western Tianshan, Xinjiang, China. Seismology and Geology, 2006, 28(2): 194-204.

[57] Zhang X. K., Zhao J. R., Zhang C. K., . Crustal Structure at the Northeast Side of the Pamirs. Chinese Journal of Geophysics, 2002, 45(5): 665-671.