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17 - Crustal Structure and Moho Depth in the Tibetan Plateau from Inverse Modelling of Gravity Data

from Part III - ‘Solid’ Earth Applications: From the Surface to the Core

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 June 2023

By
Shuanggen Jin  and
Songbai Xuan
Edited by
Alik Ismail-Zadeh ,
Fabio Castelli ,
Dylan Jones  and
Sabrina Sanchez
Alik Ismail-Zadeh
Affiliation:
Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Germany
Fabio Castelli
Affiliation:
Università degli Studi, Florence
Dylan Jones
Affiliation:
University of Toronto
Sabrina Sanchez
Affiliation:
Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research, Germany
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Summary

Abstract: Although many geophysical observations and models are available for the Tibetan Plateau (TP) and its surroundings regions, our knowledge and understanding of the uplift and deformation in the TP caused by the India–Asia collision is still incomplete. Due to the environmental complexity, the gravity method is indispensable to investigate the evolution of the TP. This study concentrates on the Moho depth and crustal density structure in the TP from gravity inversion of Bouguer anomalies. The results show Moho deeper than 60 km in the regions of the TP, suggesting thickening of the crust. Two sinking Moho belts in the southern and northern plateau regions and the linearly increasing Moho depth from the Indian Plate (IP) to the Indus-Yalu suture can be used to infer the crustal fold that has resulted from the India–Asia collision. On the other hand, the density structures show the lower density is commonly found in the crust and the underlying lithospheric mantle beneath the TP, contrasting with the high density in the surrounding blocks. Notably, the high density of the IP is observed underneath the Himalayas, suggesting that the Indian lithosphere extends northward, at least reaching the Indus-Yalu suture. Corresponding to the sinking Moho belts, the crustal densities in these regions present relatively low, which may be evidence for the absence of the eclogites in the lower crust beneath the Himalayas and the Lhasa terrane. In contrast, the relatively high densities underneath the Bangong-Nujiang suture are potentially contributions to the interpretation of the eclogitised lower crust.

Keywords

Bouguer anomalycrustal densitygravity inversionHimalayasIndia-Asia collisionlithospheric mantleMoho depthTibetan plateau
Type
Chapter
Information
Applications of Data Assimilation and Inverse Problems in the Earth Sciences , pp. 265 - 277
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2023

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