scholarly journals The Splitting 660 km Discontinuity Associated with Lithospheric Delamination in the Northern Part of the North-South Seismic Zone, China

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chuansong S. He
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Receiver Functions ◽  
The Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Seismic Zone ◽  
The North ◽  
Conversion Point ◽  
Teleseismic Data ◽  
Earthquakes In China ◽  
North Part ◽  
Stress Accumulation

Abstract The north-south seismic zone (NSSZ) is a destructive zone of large-scale earthquakes in China, and the earthquake mechanism associated with deep structures remains unclear. Previous studies have indicated that lithospheric delamination or absence of lithospheres in the western part of the NSSZ may facilitate the eastern extrusion of the Tibetan Plateau and lead to stress accumulation and release. However, the deep process of lithospheric delamination needs to be further clarified. In this study, I collect abundant high-quality teleseismic data recorded by permanent seismic stations and perform common conversion point (CCP) stacking of receiver functions in the north part of the NSSZ. The results show that lithospheric delamination might result in the splitting 660 km discontinuity and a thickening region of the mantle transition zone (MTZ).

Formation of the North–South Seismic Zone and Emeishan Large Igneous Province in Central China: Insights from P-Wave Teleseismic Tomography

2020 ◽  
Vol 110 (6) ◽  
pp. 3064-3076
Author(s):  
Chuansong He ◽  
M. Santosh
Keyword(s):  
High Velocity ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
P Wave ◽  
Large Igneous Province ◽  
Seismic Zone ◽  
Teleseismic Tomography ◽  
Emeishan Large Igneous Province ◽  
The North ◽  
Igneous Province ◽  
Stress Accumulation

ABSTRACT The geodynamic features of the north–south seismic zone (NSSZ) and the formation of the Emeishan large igneous province (ELIP) in China remain controversial. In this study, we conducted detailed P-wave teleseismic tomography studies in the NSSZ and adjacent regions. The results revealed large high-velocity anomalies beneath the Songpan–Ganzi Block and the South China Block, possibly representing large-scale lithospheric delamination. We further identified low-velocity structures at 50–200 km depths in the western and southern parts of the NSSZ, suggesting an upwelling asthenosphere induced by delamination and the absence of a rigid lithosphere. Two high-velocity structures beneath the Sichuan basin and the Alashan block were also revealed, which may represent the lithospheric roots of these structures. These rigid lithospheric roots may have obstructed the eastward extrusion of the Tibetan plateau and led to stress accumulation and release (triggering earthquakes) in the Longmenshan Orogenic Belt and the northern part of the NSSZ. Because of this obstruction, the eastward extrusion was redirected southeastward to Yunnan in the southern part of the NSSZ, which led to stress accumulation and release causing earthquakes along the Honghe and Xiaojiang faults. The results from this study reveal a high-velocity structure with a subducted slab-like appearance that may represent vestiges of the Paleo-Tethys oceanic lithosphere, which subducted beneath the ELIP and initiating large-scale mantle return flow or mantle upwelling, contributing to the formation of the ELIP.

Deep deformation process of the NE Tibetan Plateau: evidence from receiver function imaging

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
yifang chen ◽  
jiuhui chen
Keyword(s):  
Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Seismic Velocity ◽  
Receiver Function ◽  
Decisive Role ◽  
Deformation Mode ◽  
Receiver Functions ◽  
Tibet Plateau ◽  
The Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Waveform Data ◽  
The North

<p>The deformation of Qilian Orogenic Belt, which is the uplifting front of the northeastern Tibet Plateau, plays a decisive role in understanding the dynamic process of the area uplift. Many of the tectonic processes models of the Tibetan Plateau growth, which are based on geophysical and geological studies, have been conducted in recent years. However, the deformation mode of northeastern Tibetan Plateau (NETP) remains controversial for lack of sufficient proofs. We used teleseismic waveform data collected from the China Array seismic experiment during 2013-2015 and QL temporary stations during 2016-2017. In this study, we used the 3-D Common Conversion Point (CCP) technique (with the P/S receiver functions) to obtain detailed seismic velocity discontinuities structure of lithosphere beneath the NETP and Alxa block. Our preliminary results can be summarized as follows: 1) The Lithosphere asthenosphere boundary (LAB) lies at a depth pf 110-140 km in Alxa platform, deepens below the North Qilian mountain (160-170 km ) which has been inserted by lithosphere of Central Qilian, between the South Qilian suture zone (SQL) and the north of the Songpan-Ganzi Terranes (160-170 km). 2) The main features in the crust include offset of Moho beneath NQLF, shallower crust thickness below between the NQLF and LSSF and a continuous positive interface over the Moho in the north of the LSSF. 3) According to our observation and previous studies, we suppose that lithosphere had been passive underthrust and localized crust had been shortened and thickened in the NETP.</p>

scholarly journals Weak upstream westerly wind attracts western north pacific typhoon tracks to west

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jun-Hyeok Son ◽  
Jae-Il Kwon ◽  
Ki-Young Heo
Keyword(s):  
Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Rossby Wave ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Rossby Waves ◽  
Circulation Pattern ◽  
The Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Circulation Anomaly ◽  
North East ◽  
The North ◽  
Typhoon Tracks

Abstract The steering flow of the large-scale circulation patterns over the Western North Pacific and North East Asia, constrains typhoon tracks. Westerly winds impinging on the Tibetan Plateau, and the resulting flow uplift along the slope of the mountain, induce atmospheric vortex flow and generate stationary barotropic Rossby waves downstream. The downstream Rossby wave zonal phase is determined by the upstream zonal wind speed impinging on the Tibetan Plateau. Positive anomaly of westerly wind forcing tends to induce an eastward shift of the large-scale Rossby wave circulation pattern, forming a cyclonic circulation anomaly over North East Asia. In this study, we show that the Tibetan Plateau dynamically impacts the tracks of western Pacific typhoons via modulation of downstream Rossby waves. Using the topographically forced stationary Rossby wave theory, the dynamical mechanisms for the formation of the North East Asian cyclonic anomaly and its impact on the typhoon tracks are analyzed. The eastward shift of typhoon tracks, caused by the southwesterly wind anomaly located to the southeast of the North East Asian cyclonic circulation anomaly, is robust in June and September, but it is not statistically significant in July–August. The physical understanding of the large-scale circulation pattern affecting typhoon trajectories has large implications not only at the seasonal prediction of the high impact weather phenomena, but also at the right understanding of the long-term climate change.

Opening of the north-eastern Atlantic and onshore mountain rise controlled by Fennoscandian deep structure

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Makushkina ◽  
Benoit Tauzin ◽  
Meghan Miller ◽  
Hrvoje Tkalcic ◽  
Hans Thybo
Keyword(s):  
Continental Margin ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Deep Structure ◽  
Tectonic Setting ◽  
Structural Heterogeneity ◽  
Receiver Functions ◽  
Mountain Range ◽  
North East ◽  
The North ◽  
Active Tectonic

<p>Large-scale topography is thought to be mainly controlled by active tectonic processes. Fennoscandia is located far from any active tectonic setting and yet includes a mountain range along its passive North Atlantic margin. Models proposed to explain the origin of these enigmatic mountains are based on glacial isostatic adjustments, delamination, long-term isostatic equilibration, and dynamic support from the mantle, yet no consensus has been reached. We show that topography along the continental margin of Fennoscandia may be influenced by its deep structure. Fennoscandia formed by amalgamation of Proterozoic and Archean continental blocks; using both S- and P-receiver functions, we discovered that the Fennoscandian lithosphere still retains the original structural heterogeneity and its western margin is composed of three distinct blocks. The southern and northern blocks have relatively thin crust (~40-45 km), while the central block has thick crust (~60 km) that most likely was formed by crustal stacking during the Proterozoic amalgamation. The boundaries of the blocks continue into the oceanic crust as two major structural zones of the North-East Atlantic, suggesting that the Fennoscandian amalgamation structures determined the geometry of the ocean opening.  We found no evidence for mountain root support or delamination in the areas of high topography that could be related with mountain formation. Instead, our results suggest that both crustal and lithospheric heterogeneity of Fennoscandia along the continental margin might have a control on geodynamic forces that support the rise of Scandinavian mountains. </p>

scholarly journals The formation of North-South Seismic Zone and Emeishan large igneous province in Western China: Insight from teleseismic tomography

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chuansong He
Keyword(s):  
High Velocity ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Western China ◽  
Large Igneous Province ◽  
The Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Seismic Zone ◽  
Study Region ◽  
Teleseismic Tomography ◽  
Emeishan Large Igneous Province ◽  
Igneous Province

Abstract. Several models have been suggested to explain the earthquake mechanism of the North-South Seismic Zone (NSSZ) and the formation of the Emeishan Large Igneous Province (ELIP). In this study, I extended the study region and carried out detailed teleseismic tomography in the NSSZ and near-by regions. Results identified by this study reveal large plate-like high-velocity anomalies beneath the Songpan-Ganzi Block and the South China Block, which may be associated with large-scale lithospheric delamination, and low-velocity structures at 50–200 km depths in the western and southern parts of this study region, which imply upwelling asthenosphere induced by delamination and the absence of the rigid lithosphere there. Two high-velocity structures beneath the Sichuan Basin and the Alashan Block are revealed, which might be the lithospheric roots of these structures. These rigid lithospheric roots obstructed the eastward extrusion of the Tibetan Plateau and led to stress accumulations and releases (earthquakes) in the Longmenshan Orogenic Belt and the northern part of the NSSZ. Due to obstruction by the Sichuan Basin’s lithosphere, eastward extrusion was redirected southeastward to Yunnan in the southern part of the NSSZ, which led to stress accumulations and releases (earthquakes) along the Honghe and Xiaojiang Faults. This study provide velocity images reveal a slab-like high-velocity structure, which might be associated with the lithospheric vestige of the Paleo-Tethys Ocean that subducted beneath the ELIP, which resulted in large-scale return mantle flow or mantle upwelling and contribute to the LIP formation in early Mesozoic.

scholarly journals Thickness of the lithosphere beneath Turkey and surroundings from S-receiver functions

Solid Earth ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 971-984 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Kind ◽  
T. Eken ◽  
F. Tilmann ◽  
F. Sodoudi ◽  
T. Taymaz ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Subduction Zones ◽  
Receiver Function ◽  
Receiver Functions ◽  
Public Access ◽  
Entire Region ◽  
African Plate ◽  
Lithospheric Thickness ◽  
The North ◽  
Conversion Point ◽  
Surrounding Areas

Abstract. We analyze S-receiver functions to investigate variations of lithospheric thickness below the entire region of Turkey and surrounding areas. The teleseismic data used here have been compiled combining all permanent seismic stations which are open to public access. We obtained almost 12 000 S-receiver function traces characterizing the seismic discontinuities between the Moho and the discontinuity at 410 km depth. Common-conversion-point stacks yield well-constrained images of the Moho and of the lithosphere–asthenosphere boundary (LAB). Results from previous studies suggesting shallow LAB depths between 80 and 100 km are confirmed in the entire region outside the subduction zones. We did not observe changes in LAB depths across the North and East Anatolian faults. To the east of Cyprus, we see indications of the Arabian LAB. The African plate is observed down to about 150 km depth subducting to the north and east between the Aegean and Cyprus with a tear at Cyprus. We also observed the discontinuity at 410 km depth and a negative discontinuity above the 410, which might indicate a zone of partial melt above this discontinuity.

scholarly journals Difference between the North Atlantic and Pacific meridional overturning circulation in response to the uplift of the Tibetan Plateau

2018 ◽  
Vol 14 (6) ◽  
pp. 751-762 ◽  
Author(s):  
Baohuang Su ◽  
Dabang Jiang ◽  
Ran Zhang ◽  
Pierre Sepulchre ◽  
Gilles Ramstein
Keyword(s):  
North Atlantic ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Meridional Overturning Circulation ◽  
Freshwater Flux ◽  
The Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Overturning Circulation ◽  
The North ◽  
The Pacific ◽  
Water Formation ◽  
Meridional Overturning

Abstract. The role of the Tibetan Plateau (TP) in maintaining the large-scale overturning circulation in the Atlantic and Pacific is investigated using a coupled atmosphere–ocean model. For the present day with a realistic topography, model simulation shows a strong Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (AMOC) but a near absence of the Pacific meridional overturning circulation (PMOC), which are in good agreement with the present observations. In contrast, the simulation without the TP depicts a collapsed AMOC and a strong PMOC that dominates deep-water formation. The switch in deep-water formation between the two basins results from changes in the large-scale atmospheric circulation and atmosphere–ocean feedback over the Atlantic and Pacific. The intensified westerly winds and increased freshwater flux over the North Atlantic cause an initial slowdown of the AMOC, while the weakened East Asian monsoon circulation and associated decreased freshwater flux over the North Pacific give rise to the initial intensification of the PMOC. The further decreased heat flux and the associated increase in sea-ice fraction promote the final AMOC collapse over the Atlantic, while the further increased heat flux leads to the final PMOC establishment over the Pacific. Although the simulations were performed in a cold world, it still importantly implicates that the uplift of the TP alone could have been a potential driver for the reorganization of PMOC–AMOC between the late Eocene and early Oligocene.

scholarly journals Impacts of the Westerlies on Planetary Boundary Layer Growth Over a Valley on the North Side of the Central Himalayas

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xuelong Chen
Keyword(s):  
Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Wind Direction ◽  
Land Surface ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Vertical Structure ◽  
Surface Wind ◽  
The Tibetan Plateau ◽  
The North ◽  
Synoptic Wind ◽  
Synoptic Circulation

<p>The spatial-temporal structure of the Planetary Boundary Layer (PBL) over mountainous areas can be strongly modified by topography. The PBL over the mountainous terrain of the Tibetan Plateau (TP) is more complex than that observed over its flat areas. To date, there have been no detailed analyses which have taken into account the topography effects exerted on PBL growth over the Tibetan Plateau (TP). A clear understanding of the processes involved in the PBL growth and depth over the TP’s mountainous areas is therefore long overdue.The PBL in the Himalayan region of the Tibetan Plateau (TP) is important to the study of interaction between the area’s topography and synoptic circulation.</p><p>This study used radiosonde, <em>in-situ</em> measurements, ERA5 reanalysis dataset and numerical model to investigate the vertical structure of the PBL and the land surface energy balance in the Rongbuk Valley on the north of the central Himalaya, and their association with the Westerlies, which control the climate of the Himalaya in winters. Two sunny November days in 2014 with different synoptic conditions in terms of large-scale wind direction and speed were selected to investigate the ways in which large-scale synoptic forcing affected the vertical structure of the PBL, atmospheric stability, surface wind field, and land surface energy fluxes. The results revealed that the valley winds and PBL growth were strongly influenced by the variations of the westerlies. When the synoptic wind direction at the height of the mountain ridges was parallel to the axis of the valley, the downward transmission of the westerlies to the valley floor (DTWTV) was strong and cause high near-surface wind speeds and sensible heat flux value, then produced an extremely deep PBL (9 km above sea level) in the early afternoon of November 23. When the synoptic wind direction at the ridge height intersected the axis of the valley and was weak, the DTWTV was weak, and the PBL became relatively low on November 28. These results demonstrate that the interaction between the topography and synoptic circulation plays a critical role in PBL growth.</p>

scholarly journals Thickness of the lithosphere beneath Turkey and surroundings from S-receiver functions

2015 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 1315-1346 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Kind ◽  
T. Eken ◽  
F. Tilmann ◽  
F. Sodoudi ◽  
T. Taymaz ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Subduction Zones ◽  
Receiver Function ◽  
Receiver Functions ◽  
Public Access ◽  
Entire Region ◽  
African Plate ◽  
Lithospheric Thickness ◽  
The North ◽  
Teleseismic Data ◽  
S Receiver Function

Abstract. We analyze S-receiver functions to investigate the variations of lithospheric thickness below the entire region of Turkey and surroundings. The teleseismic data used here have been compiled combining all permanent seismic stations which are open to public access. We obtained almost 12 000 S-receiver function traces characterizing the seismic discontinuities between the Moho and the discontinuity at 410 km depth. Common-conversion-points stacks yield well-constrained images of the Moho and of the lithosphere–asthenosphere boundary (LAB). Results from previous studies suggesting shallow LAB depths between 80 and 100 km are confirmed in the entire region outside the subduction zones. We did not observe changes of LAB depths across the North and East Anatolian Faults. To the east of Cyprus, we see indications of the Arabian LAB. The African plate is observed down to about 150 km depth subducting to the north and east between the Aegean and Cyprus with a tear at Cyprus. We also observed the discontinuity at 410 km depth and a negative discontinuity above the 410, which might indicate a zone of partial melt above this discontinuity.

scholarly journals Weak and vanishing upper mantle discontinuities generated by large-scale lithospheric delamination in the Longmenshan area, China

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chuansong He
Keyword(s):  
Transition Zone ◽  
Upper Mantle ◽  
High Velocity ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Receiver Functions ◽  
Mantle Transition Zone ◽  
Velocity Anomaly ◽  
Conversion Point ◽  
Mantle Discontinuities ◽  
Upper Mantle Discontinuities

Abstract A large amount of high-quality teleseismic data is used for common conversion point (CCP) stacking of receiver functions in the Longmenshan area. The results show that a large-scale high-velocity anomaly or lithospheric delamination can completely destroy upper mantle discontinuities or erase the phase boundary of olivine, which is a very important finding and can be used to assess stagnant slabs in the mantle transition zone globally. The deepening region of the 660 km discontinuity beneath the Songpan-Ganzi terrane might indicate that the large-scale high-velocity anomaly in the mantle transition zone is a cold domain and can affect the topography of upper mantle discontinuities.

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