Convergence Between Indian‐Asian Plates, Insights From Detrital Thermochronology of Cretaceous to Early Cenozoic Basins Within the India‐Asia Collision Zone

Abstract The syn‐collisional basins within the India‐Asia collision zone preserve significant records of the India‐Asia convergence. Our study reports a new set of zircon double‐dated (fission track and U‐Pb) and apatite fission track (AFT) data from the Mubala and Cuojiangding sections, located on the south and north sides of the Indus‐Yarlung Suture Zone. To the south, in the Mubala section, the zircon U‐Pb and fission track (zircon fission track (ZFT)) age data show a significant transition from Indian to Asian provenance, confirming the initial India‐Asia collision at ∼60 Ma. The Pan‐African orogeny and several tectono‐thermal events in the Gondwana‐affinity terranes are indicated by ZFT dominant age ranges from the Indian provenance strata. Four tectono‐thermal episodes of the Gangdese arc during India‐Asia convergence are suggested by the ZFT prominent age ranges in the Gangdese provenance strata: the Early Cretaceous age range correlates with the subduction of the Neo‐Tethys Ocean; the prominent age range at ∼90 ± 3 Ma relates to the subduction of the Neo‐Tethys mid‐ocean ridge, while the mean age range at ∼73 ± 4 Ma is probably attributed to the flat subduction of the Neo‐Tethys slab; and the following dominant age range at ∼60 ± 2 Ma records the India‐Asia collision. Furthermore, thermal history modeling indicates that the syn‐collisional basins were probably deposited continuously until the latest Eocene, terminated by the activity of the Tethyan Himalayan fold‐thrust belt. To the north, in the Cuojiangding section, our reset AFT ages (∼17–20 Ma) and partially reset ZFT ages (∼21–119 Ma) imply the activity of the Great Counter Thrust. Generally, the tectono‐thermal events of the collision zone can be well correlated with tectonic processes of the India‐Asia convergence.