scholarly journals Sr-Nd isotope evidence for modern aeolian dust sources in mountain glaciers of western China

2012 ◽  
Vol 58 (211) ◽  
pp. 859-865 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jianzhong Xu ◽  
Guangming Yu ◽  
Shichang Kang ◽  
Shugui Hou ◽  
Qianggong Zhang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Tien Shan ◽  
Western China ◽  
Dust Transport ◽  
Northern Margin ◽  
Isotopic Signatures ◽  
Mountain Glaciers ◽  
The North ◽  
Northern Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Dust Sources

AbstractIn order to apportion the dust sources of mountain glaciers in western China, the Sr-Nd isotopic compositions of insoluble particles were determined in snow samples collected from 13 sites. The combined plot of 87Sr/86Sr and εNd(0) demonstrates a distinctive geographic pattern over western China, which can be classified into three regions from north to south. Samples from the Altai mountains show the lowest 87Sr/86Sr ratio and the highest εNd(0) value, similar to the data of deserts in the north of China such as the Gurbantunggut desert. Samples from the southern Tibetan Plateau (TP) and Himalaya show the highest 87Sr/86Sr and lowest εNd(0) values, resembling the local and regional dust sources found in the southern TP and Himalaya-India region. Samples from the Tien Shan and northern Tibetan Plateau exhibit intermediate 87Sr/86Sr and εNd(0) values, similar to the data reported for the northern margin of the TP (NM_TP). However, three sampling sites, JMYZ (Jiemayangzong) located in the Himalaya and ZD (Zadang) and YL (Yulong) located in the southeast TP, presented distinctive Sr-Nd isotopic signatures typical of the NM_TP, suggesting potential long-range and high-altitude dust transport across the TP.

Roof of the World: Tibet, Pamirs

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mike Searle
Keyword(s):  
Tibetan Plateau ◽  
High Elevation ◽  
Tien Shan ◽  
Palm Tree ◽  
The Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Wet Season ◽  
North West ◽  
Mountain Ranges ◽  
The North ◽  
The World

The Tibetan Plateau is by far the largest region of high elevation, averaging just above 5,000 metres above sea level, and the thickest crust, between 70 and 90 kilometres thick, anywhere in the world. This huge plateau region is very flat—lying in the internally drained parts of the Chang Tang in north and central Tibet, but in parts of the externally drained eastern Tibet, three or four mountain ranges larger and higher than the Alps rise above the frozen plateau. Some of the world’s largest and longest mountain ranges border the plateau, the ‘flaming mountains’ of the Tien Shan along the north-west, the Kun Lun along the north, the Longmen Shan in the east, and of course the mighty Himalaya forming the southern border of the plateau. The great trans-Himalayan mountain ranges of the Pamir and Karakoram are geologically part of the Asian plate and western Tibet but, as we have noted before, unlike Tibet, these ranges have incredibly high relief with 7- and 8-kilometre-high mountains and deeply eroded rivers and glacial valleys. The western part of the Tibetan Plateau is the highest, driest, and wildest area of Tibet. Here there is almost no rainfall and rivers that carry run-off from the bordering mountain ranges simply evaporate into saltpans or disappear underground. Rivers draining the Kun Lun flow north into the Takla Makan Desert, forming seasonal marshlands in the wet season and a dusty desert when the rivers run dry. The discovery of fossil tropical leaves, palm tree trunks, and even bones from miniature Miocene horses suggest that the climate may have been wetter in the past, but this is also dependent on the rise of the plateau. Exactly when Tibet rose to its present elevation is a matter of great debate. Nowadays the Indian Ocean monsoon winds sweep moisture-laden air over the Indian sub-continent during the summer months (late June–September). All the moisture is dumped as the summer monsoon, the torrential rains that sweep across India from south-east to north-west.

scholarly journals Glacier changes in the west Kunlun Shan from 1970 to 2001 derived from Landsat TM/ETM+ and Chinese glacier inventory data

2007 ◽  
Vol 46 ◽  
pp. 204-208 ◽  
Author(s):  
Donghui Shangguan ◽  
Shiyin Liu ◽  
Yongjian Ding ◽  
Jing Li ◽  
Yong Zhang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Ice Core ◽  
Research Area ◽  
Western China ◽  
Glacier Area ◽  
The South ◽  
Mountainous Regions ◽  
The North ◽  
Northern Tibetan Plateau ◽  
West Kunlun ◽  
Landsat Satellite

AbstractRecent studies have indicated that widespread wastage of glaciers in western China has occurred since the late 1970s. By using digitized glacier outlines derived from the 1970 inventory and Landsat satellite data from 1990/91 to 2001, we obtained area changes of about 278 glaciers with a total area of 2711.57 km2 in the heavily glaciated west Kunlun Shan (WKS) in the northern Tibetan Plateau (TP). Results indicate that the prevailing characteristic of glacier variation is ice wastage, and glacier area decreased by 10 km2 (0.4% of the total 1970 area) between 1970 and 2001. Both the south and north slopes of the WKS presented shrinkage during 1970–2001, but whereas on the north slope a slight enlargement of ice extent during 1970–90 was followed by a reduction of 0.2% during 1990–2001, on the south slope the glacier area decreased by 1.2% during 1970–91, with a small increment of 0.6% during 1991–2001. Comparisons with other glaciated mountainous regions in western China show that glaciers in the research area have experienced less retreat. Based on records from the Guliya ice core, we believe that an increase in air temperature was the main forcing factor for glacier shrinkage during 1970–2001.

scholarly journals Precipitation record since AD 1600 from ice cores on the central Tibetan Plateau

2008 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 175-180 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. Yao ◽  
K. Duan ◽  
B. Xu ◽  
N. Wang ◽  
X. Guo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Ice Core ◽  
Ice Cores ◽  
The North ◽  
Northern Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Central Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Precipitation Record ◽  
Ice Field ◽  
The 19Th Century

Abstract. Lack of reliable long-term precipitation record from the northern Tibetan Plateau has constrained our understanding of precipitation variations in this region. We drilled an ice core on the Puruogangri Ice Field in the central Tibetan Plateau in 2000 to reveal the precipitation variations. The well dated part of the core extends back to AD 1600, allowing us to construct a 400-year annual accumulation record. This record shows that the central Tibetan plateau experienced a drier period with an average annual precipitation of ~300 mm in the 19th century, compared to ~450 mm in the wetter periods during 1700–1780 and the 20th century. This pattern agrees with precipitation reconstructions from the Dunde and Guliya ice cores on the northern Plateau but differs from that found in the Dasuopu ice cores from the southern Plateau The north-south contrasts in precipitation reconstruction reveals difference in moisture origin between the south Tibetan Plateau dominated by the Asian monsoon and the north Tibetan Plateau dominated by the continental recycling and the westerlies.

scholarly journals Characteristics and sources of dissolved organic matter in a glacier in the northern Tibetan Plateau: differences between different snow categories

2018 ◽  
Vol 59 (77) ◽  
pp. 31-40 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lin Feng ◽  
Yanqing An ◽  
Jianzhong Xu ◽  
Shichang Kang
Keyword(s):  
Organic Matter ◽  
Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Dissolved Organic Matter ◽  
Melting Rate ◽  
Ion Cyclotron Resonance ◽  
The Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Mountain Glaciers ◽  
Northern Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Fresh Snow ◽  
Northern Edge

AbstractDissolved organic matter (DOM) in mountain glaciers is an important source of carbon for downstream aquatic systems, and its impact is expected to increase due to the increased melting rate of glaciers. We present a comprehensive study of Laohugou glacier no. 12 (LHG) at the northern edge of the Tibetan Plateau to characterize the DOM composition and sources by analyzing surface fresh snow, granular ice samples, and snow pit samples which covered a whole year cycle of 2014/15. Excitation–emission matrix fluorescence spectroscopy analysis of the DOM with parallel factor analysis (EEM-PARAFAC) identified four components, including a microbially humic-like component (C1), two protein-like components (C2 and C3) and a terrestrial humic-like component (C4). The use of Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry (FT-ICR MS) showed that DOM from all these samples was dominated by CHO and CHON molecular formulas, mainly corresponding to lipids and aliphatic/proteins compounds, reflecting the presence of significant amounts of microbially derived and/or deposited biogenic DOM. The molecular compositions of DOM showed more CHON compounds in granular ice than in fresh snow, likely suggesting newly formed DOM from microbes during snowmelting.

Qaidam Basin and northern Tibetan Plateau as dust sources for the Chinese Loess Plateau and paleoclimatic implications

Geology ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 39 (11) ◽  
pp. 1031-1034 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Pullen ◽  
P. Kapp ◽  
A. T. McCallister ◽  
H. Chang ◽  
G. E. Gehrels ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Loess Plateau ◽  
Qaidam Basin ◽  
Chinese Loess Plateau ◽  
Chinese Loess ◽  
Northern Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Dust Sources ◽  
The Chinese Loess Plateau

scholarly journals Chapter 4. Paleozoic granitoid magmatism of South and Middle Tien Shan in Uzbekistan

2020 ◽  
pp. 102-163
Author(s):  
Dmitry L. Konopelko ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Early Carboniferous ◽  
Tien Shan ◽  
Passive Margin ◽  
Granitoid Magmatism ◽  
Northern Margin ◽  
The North ◽  
History Of ◽  
Different Depths ◽  
Andean Type ◽  
Tectonic Settings

The Paleozoic evolution of the Southern and Middle Tien Shan terranes is generally associated with the history of two ocean basins - the Turkestan and Paleotethys. Ages of ophiolites indicate the opening of the oceans in Cambrian – Ordovician, and partial closure with formation of an island arc in the northern part of the basin in Ordovician - Silurian. At the northern margin of the Turkestan ocean, the northward subduction under the Middle Tien Shan continued until Devonian, which led to formation of an active margin with granitoids emplaced between 429 and 416 Ma. In the late Devonian, subduction-related magmatism terminated and the whole region developed as passive margin. Northward subduction resumed in the early Carboniferous and formed magmatic Andean-type belt exposed in the Chatkal-Kurama terrane. Late Carboniferous collision resulted in crust thickening and emplacement of postcollisional granitoids. Formation of postcollisional intrusions in different terranes took place in various tectonic settings. Shoshonitic granitoids of the Chatkal-Kurama terrane formed as a result of slab break off at postcollisional stage. Voluminous postcollisional magmatism of Kyzylkum can be explained by delamination of lower crust and its replacement by the material of astenospheric mantle. Coeval emplacement of geochemically contrasting granitoids in the North Nuratau fault zone could result from contemporaneous melting of different protoliths at different depths in a translithospheric shear zone.

scholarly journals Cryoconite on a glacier on the north-eastern Tibetan plateau: light-absorbing impurities, albedo and enhanced melting

2019 ◽  
Vol 65 (252) ◽  
pp. 633-644 ◽  
Author(s):  
YANG LI ◽  
SHICHANG KANG ◽  
FANGPING YAN ◽  
JIZU CHEN ◽  
KUN WANG ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Mass Balance ◽  
Glacier Mass Balance ◽  
Eastern Tibetan Plateau ◽  
The North ◽  
Ice Surface ◽  
Northern Tibetan Plateau ◽  
North Eastern ◽  
The Mean

ABSTRACTCryoconite is a dark-coloured granular sediment that contains biological and mineralogical components, and it plays a pivotal role in geochemistry, carbon cycling and glacier mass balance. In this work, we collected cryoconite samples from Laohugou Glacier No. 12 (LHG) on the north-eastern Tibetan Plateau during the summer of 2015 and measured the spectral albedo. To explore the impacts of this sediment on surface ablation, the ice melting differences between the cryoconite-free (removed) ice and the intact layers were compared. The results showed that the mean concentrations of black carbon (BC), organic carbon (OC) and total iron (Fe) in the LHG cryoconite were 1.28, 11.18 and 39.94 mg g−1, respectively. BC was found to play a stronger role in solar light adsorption than OC and free Fe. In addition, ice covered by cryoconite exhibited the lowest mean reflectance (i.e., <0.1). Compared with the cryoconite-free ice surface, cryoconite effectively absorbed solar energy and enhanced glacial melting at a rate of 2.27–3.28 cm d−1, and free Fe, BC and OC were estimated to contribute 1.01, 0.99 and 0.76 cm d−1, respectively. This study provides important insights for understanding the role of cryoconite in the glacier mass balance of the northern Tibetan Plateau.

Superposition of Cretaceous and Cenozoic deformation in northern Tibet: A far-field response to the tectonic evolution of the Tethyan orogenic system

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ye Wang ◽  
Xuanhua Chen ◽  
Yaoyao Zhang ◽  
Zheng Yin ◽  
Andrew V. Zuza ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Early Cretaceous ◽  
Detrital Zircons ◽  
The Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Far Field ◽  
The South ◽  
Field Mapping ◽  
The North ◽  
Northern Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Field Response

Although the Cenozoic Indo-Asian collision is largely responsible for the formation of the Tibetan plateau, the role of pre-Cenozoic structures in controlling the timing and development of Cenozoic deformation remains poorly understood. In this study we address this problem by conducting an integrated investigation in the northern foreland of the Tibetan plateau, north of the Qilian Shan-Nan Shan thrust belt, NW China. The work involves field mapping, U-Pb detrital-zircon dating of Cretaceous strata in the northern foreland of the Tibetan plateau, examination of growth-strata relationships, and construction and restoration of balanced cross sections. Our field mapping reveals multiple phases of deformation in the area since the Early Cretaceous, which was expressed by northwest-trending folding and northwest-striking thrusting that occurred in the early stages of the Early Cretaceous. The compressional event was followed immediately by extension and kinematically linked right-slip faulting in the later stage of the Early Cretaceous. The area underwent gentle northwest-trending folding since the late Miocene. We estimate the magnitude of the Early Cretaceous crustal shortening to be ∼35%, which we interpret to have resulted from a far-field response to the collision between the Lhasa and the Qiangtang terranes in the south. We suggest that the subsequent extension in the Early Cretaceous was induced by orogenic collapse. U-Pb dating of detrital zircons, sourced from Lower Cretaceous sedimentary clasts from the north and the south, implies that the current foreland region of the Tibetan plateau was a topographic depression between two highland regions in the Early Cretaceous. Our work also shows that the Miocene strata in the foreland region of the northern Tibetan plateau was dominantly sourced from the north, which implies that the rise of the Qilian Shan did not impact the sediment dispersal in the current foreland region of the Tibetan plateau where this study was conducted.

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