Active tectonics and erosional unloading at the eastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau

Introduction The eastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau, adjacent to the Sichuan Basin (Figure 1), has become a testing ground for a variety of models that contrast mechanisms of extrusion and crustal thickening associated with the India-Asia collision (Avouac and Tapponnier 1993, England and Houseman 1986),but that also address the extent to which the upper crust and upper mantle are coupled (Royden et al. 1997, Holt 2000). The margin is characterized by topographic relief of over 5 km an…     

青藏高原高寒草地小流域水体碳氮输出特征及其影响因素

以青藏高原长江源区典型高寒草地小流域为研究对象,基于2012年小流域气象监测数据和小流域径流水样分析,探讨了小流域水体碳氮输出特征,分析了气象因子和土壤水热对小流域水体碳氮输出的影响。结果表明,径流水体碳氮质量浓度均较低,其中可溶性有机碳(DOC)、可溶性有机氮(DON)、铵态氮(NH4+-N)和硝态氮(NO3--N)含量分别在2.95~6.96mg.L-1、0.45~1.15mg.L-1、0.02~0.88mg.L-1和0.16~0.36mg.L-1之间;DOC、DON、NO3--N在8~10月份之间随时间逐渐升高,9月中旬达到峰值后波动下降,NH4+-N无显著的季节变化特征,溶解氮中DONNO3--NNH4+-N;DOC和DON的输出量与降水、不同土层(20、40、60、90、120cm)地温和不同深度(10、20、40、60cm)土壤水分、水温呈极显著正相关(P0.001),与90、120cm土壤水分呈极显著负相关(P0.001);NH4+-N的输出量与降水、气温、水温呈显著正相关(P0.05);NO3--N与降水呈极显著正相关(P0.001)。     

青海省东北部地区中晚全新世人类对动物资源的获取与利用——以青海湖盆地尖嘴遗址为例

青海省东北部地区复杂多样的地貌类型,为研究史前人类适应不同自然环境下的动物资源利用提供了条件.然而,已开展的动物考古研究主要聚焦在青海省东北部的河谷农业区,对于草原地带的研究相对薄弱,其先民对草原环境中的适应策略仍未得到充分讨论.本文选择农牧过渡带的青海湖盆地尖嘴遗址出土动物骨骼为研究对象,运用AMS 14C测年方法、动物种属鉴定和可鉴定标本数(NISP)统计,确认尖嘴遗址(3.2 ka B.P.左右)是一处卡约文化早期的人类活动遗迹,其先民以狩猎活动为主要生业策略,渔猎作为辅助生计,属"初级开发型"模式.在此基础上,结合青海省东北部地区已有动物研究资料,探讨了中晚全新世(8.0~2.0 ka B.P.)以来的动物资源获取利用及家畜饲养状态.结果显示:8.0~6.0 ka B.P.,本区先民以纯粹的狩猎经济为主,其猎取对象则为中小型哺乳动物,属"依赖型"生业模式;6.0~4.0 ka B.P.,本区先民获取动物资源方式仍以狩猎为主,并开始出现一定规模的家畜饲养(猪和狗),其生业属低水平的食物生产阶段,获取肉食资源的模式处于"初级开发型"阶段;4.0~2.0 ka B.P.,史前东西方文化交流的不断增强,驯化于西亚的家畜牲畜牛羊传入至青海省东北部地区,使得该区先民利用动物资源方式呈现多元化,构成了"初级开发型"和"开发型"两种生业模式,牛羊成为家畜饲养的主流.总体来讲,中晚全新世以来青海省东北部地区先民获取肉食资源的方式大致经历了由以狩猎-采集方式到家畜饲养方式的历时性转变,不同区域的自然环境差异及史前欧亚大陆东西方文化间的交流是起决定性作用的因素.     

青海共和盆地早全新世古风向重建及其对黄土物源的指示

青藏高原东北部地处黄土与沙漠的过渡地区,在冰期-间冰期旋回中受中纬西风与东亚季风环流的交替控制,曾发生大范围的沙漠进退,是黄土高原重要的潜在物源区。恢复该区地质历史时期的大气环流格局可为重建东亚地区的环境面貌、探讨黄土高原的物源区、检验东亚地区古气候模拟结果的有效性等方面提供重要依据。但目前对高原东北部的古大气环流特征却鲜有研究。青藏高原东北部保存有一系列的古沙丘,可为古大气环流的重建提供直接依据。本文选取青海共和盆地一处代表性新月形古沙丘开展光释光测年研究,并通过其平面形态和前积层产状恢复了当时的古风向。结果表明:共和盆地的风沙活动自早全新世以来开始显著减弱,此时近地面盛行与现今风向一致的西北风。前人的研究揭示出青藏高原东北部在冰期时很可能盛行西风,并存在广泛的荒漠化,因而很可能是黄土高原冰期时重要的物源区之一。而本研究指示,该区的盛行风向在早全新世以来转变为西北风,且荒漠范围显著退缩,导致其全新世不再是黄土高原的物源区。青藏高原东北部的盛行风向和荒漠范围在冰期-间冰期旋回中的这种变化,为理解黄土高原的粉尘物源在空间和冰期-间冰期旋回上的变化提供了依据。     

青藏高原东北缘瑞利面波成像：射线理论与程函方程结果的比较

青藏高原东北缘是青藏高原隆升的前缘地带,其构造变形特征一直是研究的热点。前人在该区域进行过面波成像研究,但不同结果存在较明显的差异,可能与不同成像方法的分辨率有关,此次研究分别使用基于射线的方法和基于程函方程的方法进行了瑞利波相速度成像。笔者对比了20 s、30 s和60 s的成像结果,两种方法的结果表现出相似的速度特征。总体的速度特征与研究区域的主要构造单元分布相吻合,青藏高原东北缘表现出低速异常,鄂尔多斯块体表现出高速异常。在银川河套地堑,基于程函方程的成像在20 s和30 s得到更明显的低速异常,低速异常体的分布与地堑的轮廓吻合更好,说明基于程函方程的方法对数据利用更充分。     

Surficial fractures in the Navajo sandstone,south-western USA: the roles of thermal cycles,rainstorms, granular disintegration,and iterative cracking

Deep (> 5 m) sheeting fractures in the Navajo sandstone are evident at numerous sites in southern Utah and derive from tectonic stresses. Strong diurnal thermal cycles are, however, the likely triggers for shallow (< 0.3 m) sheeting fractures. Data from subsurface thermal sensors reveal that large temperature differences between sensors at 2 and 15 cm depth on clear summer afternoons are as great as those that trigger sheeting fractures in exposed California granite. Extensive polygonal patterns in the Navajo sandstone are composed of surface-perpendicular fractures and were produced by contractile stresses. Numerous studies have shown that porewater diminishes the tensile strength of sandstone. Based on our thermal records, we propose that cooling during monsoonal rainstorms triggers polygonal fracturing of temporarily weakened rock. On steep outcrops, polygonal patterns are rectilinear and orthogonal, with T-vertices. Lower-angle slopes host hexagonal patterns (defined by the dominance of Y-vertices). Intermediate patterns with rectangles and hexagons of similar scale are common. We posit that outcropping fractures are advancing downward by iterative steps, and that hexagons on sandstone surfaces (like prismatic columns of basalt) have evolved from ancestral orthogonal polygons of similar scale. In lava flows, fractures elongate intermittently as they follow a steep thermal gradient (the source of stress) as it rapidly moves through the rock mass. In our model, a steep, surficial thermal gradient descends through unfractured sandstone, but at the slow pace of granular disintegration. Through time, as the friable rock on stable slopes erodes, iterative cracking advances into new space. Hexagonal patterns form as new fractures, imperfectly guided by the older ones, propagate in new directions, and vertices drift into a configuration that minimizes the ratio of fracture length to polygon area. © 2020 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Rapid shoreline flooding enhances water turbidity by sediment resuspension: An example in a large Tibetan lake

Rapid water level rise due to climate change has the potential to remobilize loose sediments along shorelines and increase the turbidity of nearshore waters, thereby impacting water quality and aquatic ecosystem health. Siling Lake is one of the largest and most rapidly expanding lakes on the Tibetan Plateau. Between 2000 and 2017, this lake experienced an increase in water level of about 8 m and a doubling in water turbidity. Here, using this lake as a study site, we used a wave model and high-resolution remote sensing of turbidity (Landsat-8) to assess the potential connection between water-level rise, enhanced wind-driven sediment resuspension and water turbidity. Our analysis revealed that strong bottom shear stresses triggered by wind-generated waves over newly flooded areas were related to an increase in water turbidity. The spatial variability of Siling Lake turbidity showed a strong dependence on local wind characteristics and fetch. Two factors combined to drive the increase in turbidity: (1) high wave energy leading to high bottom shear stresses, and (2) flooding of unvegetated shallow areas. Using a new relationship between wave energy and turbidity developed here, we expect the increase in turbidity of Siling Lake to taper off in the near future due to the steep landscape surrounding the lake that will prevent further flooding. Our results imply that rising water levels along the coast are not only expected to influence terrestrial ecosystems but could also change water quality. The methodology presented herein could be applied to other shorelines affected by a rapid increase in water level. © 2020 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

利用剪切波分裂研究青藏高原东北缘及东南缘上地幔各向异性

利用从IRIS上下载的青藏高原东北缘238个台站以及中国地震科学探测台阵喜马拉雅一期350个台站记录到的远震波形数据,通过采用剪切波分裂方法,获取各个台站下方各向异性分裂参数——快波偏振方向（φ）和分裂时差（δt）,从而得到青藏高原东北缘、东南缘上地幔的各向异性特征。研究结果表明,祁连块体、阿拉善块体和鄂尔多斯块体北部,快波方向为NNW-SSE,明显不同于GPS测量得到的近NE-SW的地表位移场方向,延迟时间平均~0.85 s;羌塘块体以及松潘-甘孜褶皱带的西部,快波方向呈现沿顺时针方向旋转的趋势,并且与GPS测量得到的地表位移场方向一致,延迟时间平均为~1.24 s;松潘-甘孜褶皱带东部、秦岭造山带与鄂尔多斯块体南部的交界处,快波方向呈现无序分布,与GPS方向表现出不一致的分布,延迟时间平均~1.08 s;川滇块体北部,快波方向近似N-S方向,与GPS测量得到的地表位移场方向相同,平均延迟时间为~0.925 s;位于北纬26°以南的川滇块体南部,快波方向近E-W方向分布,明显不同于GPS地表位移场方向,平均延迟时间~1.065 s。综合分析推测,羌塘块体、松潘-甘孜褶皱带的西部以及川滇块体北部,地表形变和深部之间的变形是相互耦合的;祁连块体、阿拉善块体和鄂尔多斯块体北部,松潘-甘孜褶皱带东部、秦岭造山带与鄂尔多斯块体南部的交界处以及川滇块体南部,壳幔之间可能存在解耦现象。     

青藏高原热融湖塘的水热过程及其对下伏多年冻土的热影响

以青藏高原查拉坪地区一处热融湖塘(40 m×50 m,最大深度为1 m)为研究对象,由实测数据对比分析了热融湖塘与天然地表相同深度的温度变化特征.结果表明:与天然地表相比,热融湖塘融化时间长,冻结时间短,且存在接近4℃的水温变化;受太阳辐射及热对流的影响,垂向水温梯度仅在水表从4℃降温及冻结阶段较大,其余时段接近0;湖底年均温度比相同深度的天然地表高约6.4℃,湖底下部存在约14 m深随时间发展的融区,土体吸热增大,放热减小;热融湖塘2.5~3.0 m土体的年内热交换为19592.0 k J/m2,约是天然地表的230倍,其中吸热量及放热量分别为后者的1.4倍及8.7%.湖塘下部的融化夹层是深层冻土的主要热源,湖塘对下部土体放热的抑制作用是湖塘对土体产生热影响的主要原因.     

青藏高原东南缘高山湖泊藻类响应气候变化和大气沉降的长期特征

高山湖泊远离人类活动直接影响,通常具有面积小、寡营养、食物网单一等特点,对气候变化和营养输入具有较高的敏感性。我国青藏高原东南缘地区氮沉降通量较高、增温幅度显著,已有研究显示该地区可能受湖泊类型、流域特征等影响存在差异性的湖泊响应模式。本研究选择该区域位于树线以下、具有不同水深的3个小型湖泊(盖公错纳、沃迪错、碧沽天池)开展沉积物调查和对比研究,通过钻孔样品测年、理化特征和藻类(硅藻群落、藻类色素)等多指标分析,结合区域气候定量重建和氮沉降等数据收集,评价了过去300年来藻类演替模式的异同特征及湖泊水深的调节作用。结果显示,3个湖泊中硅藻的优势物种与群落组成差异明显。深水型湖泊盖公错纳(最大水深39.4 m)的硅藻群落以浮游种为主(占比达82%),优势种为眼斑小环藻(Pantocsekiolla ocellata)、科曼小环藻(Pantocsekiella comensis);深水型湖泊沃迪错(最大水深20.7 m)的硅藻群落中浮游种和底栖种约各占50%,优势种为眼斑小环藻(Pantocsekiella ocellata)、连结脆杆藻(Saurosira construens);浅水湖...