Geodynamics of the southeastern Tibetan Plateau from seismic anisotropy and geodesy

Research Article| June 01, 2007 Geodynamics of the southeastern Tibetan Plateau from seismic anisotropy and geodesy S. Sol; S. Sol 1Earth and Environmental Sciences, Lehigh University, 31 Williams Drive, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania 18055, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar A. Meltzer; A. Meltzer 1Earth and Environmental Sciences, Lehigh University, 31 Williams Drive, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania 18055, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar R. Bürgmann; R. Bürgmann 2Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar R.D. van der Hilst; R.D. van der Hilst 3Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar R. King; R. King 3Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Z. Chen; Z. Chen 4Institute of Geology and Mineral Resources, Chengdu, Sichuan 610082, China Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar P.O. Koons; P.O. Koons 5Department of Geological Sciences, University of Maine, Orono, Maine 04469, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar E. Lev; E. Lev 6Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Y.P. Liu; Y.P. Liu 7Institute of Geology and Mineral Resources, Chengdu, Sichuan 610082, China Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar P.K. Zeitler; P.K. Zeitler 8Earth and Environmental Sciences, Lehigh University, 31 Williams Drive, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania 18055, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar X. Zhang; X. Zhang 9Institute of Geology and Mineral Resources, Chengdu, Sichuan 610082, China Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar J. Zhang; J. Zhang 9Institute of Geology and Mineral Resources, Chengdu, Sichuan 610082, China Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar B. Zurek B. Zurek 10Earth and Environmental Sciences, Lehigh University, 31 Williams Drive, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania 18055, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Author and Article Information S. Sol 1Earth and Environmental Sciences, Lehigh University, 31 Williams Drive, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania 18055, USA A. Meltzer 1Earth and Environmental Sciences, Lehigh University, 31 Williams Drive, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania 18055, USA R. Bürgmann 2Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720, USA R.D. van der Hilst 3Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, USA R. King 3Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, USA Z. Chen 4Institute of Geology and Mineral Resources, Chengdu, Sichuan 610082, China P.O. Koons 5Department of Geological Sciences, University of Maine, Orono, Maine 04469, USA E. Lev 6Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, USA Y.P. Liu 7Institute of Geology and Mineral Resources, Chengdu, Sichuan 610082, China P.K. Zeitler 8Earth and Environmental Sciences, Lehigh University, 31 Williams Drive, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania 18055, USA X. Zhang 9Institute of Geology and Mineral Resources, Chengdu, Sichuan 610082, China J. Zhang 9Institute of Geology and Mineral Resources, Chengdu, Sichuan 610082, China B. Zurek 10Earth and Environmental Sciences, Lehigh University, 31 Williams Drive, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania 18055, USA Publisher: Geological Society of America Received: 01 Oct 2006 Revision Received: 05 Feb 2007 Accepted: 07 Feb 2007 First Online: 09 Mar 2017 Online ISSN: 1943-2682 Print ISSN: 0091-7613 Geological Society of America Geology (2007) 35 (6): 563–566. https://doi.org/10.1130/G23408A.1 Article history Received: 01 Oct 2006 Revision Received: 05 Feb 2007 Accepted: 07 Feb 2007 First Online: 09 Mar 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Permissions Search Site Citation S. Sol, A. Meltzer, R. Bürgmann, R.D. van der Hilst, R. King, Z. Chen, P.O. Koons, E. Lev, Y.P. Liu, P.K. Zeitler, X. Zhang, J. Zhang, B. Zurek; Geodynamics of the southeastern Tibetan Plateau from seismic anisotropy and geodesy. Geology 2007;; 35 (6): 563–566. doi: https://doi.org/10.1130/G23408A.1 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Refmanager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentBy SocietyGeology Search Advanced Search Abstract Ongoing plate convergence between India and Eurasia provides a natural laboratory for studying the dynamics of continental collision, a first-order process in the evolution of continents, regional climate, and natural hazards. In southeastern Tibet, the fast directions of seismic anisotropy determined using shear-wave splitting analysis correlate with the surficial geology including major sutures and shear zones and with the surface strain derived from the global positioning system velocity field. These observations are consistent with a clockwise rotation of material around the eastern Himalayan syntaxis and suggest coherent distributed lithospheric deformation beneath much of southeastern Tibet. At the southeastern edge of the Tibetan Plateau we observe a sharp transition in mantle anisotropy with a change in fast directions to a consistent E-W direction and a clockwise rotation of the surface velocity, surface strain field, and fault network toward Burma. Around the eastern Himalayan syntaxis, the coincidence between structural crustal features, surface strain, and mantle anisotropy suggests that the deformation in the lithosphere is mechanically coupled across the crust-mantle interface and that the lower crust is sufficiently strong to transmit stress. At the southeastern margin of the plateau in Yunnan province, a change in orientation between mantle anisotropy and surface strain suggests a change in the relationship between crustal and mantle deformation. Lateral variations in boundary conditions and rheological properties of the lithosphere play an important role in the geodynamic evolution of the Himalayan orogen and Tibetan Plateau and require the development of three-dimensional models that incorporate lateral heterogeneity. You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.