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Zhu DC, Wang Q, Zhao ZD, Chung SL, Cawood PA, Niu Y, Liu SA, Wu FY, Mo XX. Magmatic record of India-Asia collision. Sci Rep 2015; 5:14289. [PMID: 26395973 PMCID: PMC4585790 DOI: 10.1038/srep14289] [Citation(s) in RCA: 241] [Impact Index Per Article: 26.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/21/2014] [Accepted: 08/24/2015] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
New geochronological and geochemical data on magmatic activity from the India-Asia collision zone enables recognition of a distinct magmatic flare-up event that we ascribe to slab breakoff. This tie-point in the collisional record can be used to back-date to the time of initial impingement of the Indian continent with the Asian margin. Continental arc magmatism in southern Tibet during 80–40 Ma migrated from south to north and then back to south with significant mantle input at 70–43 Ma. A pronounced flare up in magmatic intensity (including ignimbrite and mafic rock) at ca. 52–51 Ma corresponds to a sudden decrease in the India-Asia convergence rate. Geological and geochemical data are consistent with mantle input controlled by slab rollback from ca. 70 Ma and slab breakoff at ca. 53 Ma. We propose that the slowdown of the Indian plate at ca. 51 Ma is largely the consequence of slab breakoff of the subducting Neo-Tethyan oceanic lithosphere, rather than the onset of the India-Asia collision as traditionally interpreted, implying that the initial India-Asia collision commenced earlier, likely at ca. 55 Ma.
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Affiliation(s)
- Di-Cheng Zhu
- State Key Laboratory of Geological Processes and Mineral Resources, and School of Earth Science and Resources, China University of Geosciences, Beijing 100083, China
| | - Qing Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Geological Processes and Mineral Resources, and School of Earth Science and Resources, China University of Geosciences, Beijing 100083, China
| | - Zhi-Dan Zhao
- State Key Laboratory of Geological Processes and Mineral Resources, and School of Earth Science and Resources, China University of Geosciences, Beijing 100083, China
| | - Sun-Lin Chung
- Institute of Earth Sciences, Academia Sinica, Taipei 11529, Taiwan.,Department of Geosciences, National Taiwan University, Taipei 10617, Taiwan
| | - Peter A Cawood
- Department of Earth Sciences, University of St Andrews, North Street, St Andrews KY16 9AL, UK.,Centre for Exploration Targeting, School of Earth and Environment, University of Western Australia, 35 Stirling Hwy., Crawley WA, 6009, Australia
| | - Yaoling Niu
- State Key Laboratory of Geological Processes and Mineral Resources, and School of Earth Science and Resources, China University of Geosciences, Beijing 100083, China.,Department of Earth Sciences, Durham University, Durham DH1 3LE, UK
| | - Sheng-Ao Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Geological Processes and Mineral Resources, and School of Earth Science and Resources, China University of Geosciences, Beijing 100083, China
| | - Fu-Yuan Wu
- Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100029, China
| | - Xuan-Xue Mo
- State Key Laboratory of Geological Processes and Mineral Resources, and School of Earth Science and Resources, China University of Geosciences, Beijing 100083, China
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