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Bulletin of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Chinese Version)

Keywords

North Qiangtang block; Lhasa block; Gondwanaland; Laurasia; drifting history

Document Type

Article

Abstract

Paleomagnetic and geochronological studies conducted in the North Qiangtang and Lhasa blocks indicate firstly, the North Qiangtang block was situated in the latitudinal band of 21.9°±4.7°S in southern hemisphere 297 Ma ago, ruling out the long-lasting working hypothesis on the North Qiangtang block of its Laurasian origin, and secondly, attest North Qiangtang's Gondwana origin much earlier and subsequently started its northward drifting journey after rifted from northern margin of the Gondwanaland. The North Qiangtang block reached its present latitude some 210 Ma ago. Thus, the North Qiangtang block can be vividly viewed as "an early bird of the Gondwana" in this context. While northward drifting history of the Lhasa block is quite different from the North Qiangtang block's. Conversely, "wandering back and forth" featured the Lhasa block since its rift from Gondwanaland during Late Paleozoic-Early Mesozoic. Subsequently, the Lhasa block drifted northward slowly since its rift instead of "fast moving" trend as it did for the North Qiangtang block. The Lhasa block reached 3.7°S in the southern hemisphere at~180 Ma (Early Jurassic), indicating its low-latitude presence around the equator then, and firstly collided with the Qiangtang block to the north in both eastern ends of two blocks during Late Jurassic. The suturing process was finished yet by Early Cretaceous. Clearly as we all know, the Indian subcontinent started its fast moving track since Early Jurassic and collided with the Eurasia at~65 Ma (Early Paleocene), this still ongoing convergence between the India and Eurasia has re-shaped the topography and landscape occurred not only in Asia, but also in Europe.

First page

945

Last Page

950

Language

Chinese

Publisher

Bulletin of Chinese Academy of Sciences

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