A 20‐ka climate record from Central Himalayan loess deposits

The southwest monsoon that dominated Central Himalaya has preserved loessic silt deposits preserved in patches that are proximal to periglacial areas. The occurrence of such silts suggests contemporary prevalence of cold and dry northwesterly winds. Field stratigraphy, geochemistry, mineral magnetism, infrared stimulated luminescence (IRSL) and radiocarbon dating has enabled reconstruction of an event chronology during the past 20 ka. Three events of loess accretion could be identified. The first two events of loess deposition occurred betweem 20 and 9 ka and were separated by a phase of moderate weathering. Pedogenesis at the end of this event gave rise to a well‐developed soil that was bracketed around 9 to > 4 ka. This was followed by the third phase of loess accretion that occurred around 4 to > 1 ka. Episodes of loess deposition and soil formation are interpreted in terms of changes in the strength of the Indian southwest monsoon. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Where did rotational shortening occur in the Himalayas? - Inferences from palaeomagnetic remagnetisations

In metacarbonates of the Lesser (LH) and Tethyan (TH) Himalayas of Kumaon/Garhwal (N-India) characteristic remanent magnetisations carried by pyrrhotite (unblocking temperatures: 250-330°C) and magnetite (demagnetising spectra: 15-50 mT) have been identified. Negative fold tests indicate remanence acquisition after the main folding phase, which is of short-wavelength character and occurs during the early orogenese of the Himalayas. A thermal or thermochemical origin of magnetisation is likely and the age of remanence acquisition is indicated to be about 40 Ma by ⁴⁰K/³⁹Ar cooling and ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar crystallisation ages. In the Kumaon LH a long-wavelength tilting is indicated by a distribution of the remanence directions along a small-circle in N-S direction. Steepening of the remanence directions in the TH related to ramping on the Main Central Thrust (MCT) was not observed, in contrast to other related studies. In the Alaknanda valley of LH a 38±8 Ma age of remanence acquisition is supported by comparison of observed inclinations to the apparent polar wander path of India. Clockwise rotation of 20.3±11.7° (LH/Alaknanda valley) and 11.3±8.5° (TH) with respect to the Indian plate is observed, indicating that there is no significant evidence for rotational shortening along the MCT since about 40 Ma. Our results suggest that most of rotational underthrusting and oroclinal bending has not been accommodated by the MCT, but by the main thrusts south of it. The latest Miocene/Pliocene age of the Main Boundary Thrust indicates that oroclinal bending is a late-orogenic process.     

Is there any detachment in the Lower Dolpo (western Nepal)?Y a-t-il un détachement dans le bas Dolpo (Népal occidental) ?

A structural transect in the Lower Dolpo highlights that the deformation and metamorphism of the Tibetan Zone (TZ) increase toward the bottom of the sequence. The contact with the underlying HHC is marked by a metamorphic jump from amphibolite facies in the carbonatic rocks of the upper part of the HHC to greenschist facies marbles in the TZ. Moreover, the HHC and the TZ show different metamorphic histories. The contact zone shows a strain increase accompanied by asymmetric folds with a top-to-the-northeast vergence, connected to a down-to-the-northeast tectonic transport. The contact is interpreted as an extensional shear zone, connected to the South Tibetan Detachment System. To cite this article: R. Carosi et al., C. R. Geoscience 334 (2002) 933–940.     

Late Miocene movement within the Himalayan Main Central Thrust shear zone, Sikkim, north-east India

In the Sikkim region of north‐east India, the Main Central Thrust (MCT) juxtaposes high‐grade gneisses of the Greater Himalayan Crystallines over lower‐grade slates, phyllites and schists of the Lesser Himalaya Formation. Inverted metamorphism characterizes rocks that immediately underlie the thrust, and the large‐scale South Tibet Detachment System (STDS) bounds the northern side of the Greater Himalayan Crystallines. In situ Th–Pb monazite ages indicate that the MCT shear zone in the Sikkim region was active at c. 22, 14–15 and 12–10 Ma, whereas zircon and monazite ages from a slightly deformed horizon of a High Himalayan leucogranite within the STDS suggest normal slip activity at c. 17 and 14–15 Ma. Although average monazite ages decrease towards structurally lower levels of the MCT shear zone, individual results do not follow a progressive younging pattern. Lesser Himalaya sample KBP1062A records monazite crystallization from 11.5 ± 0.2 to 12.2 ± 0.1 Ma and peak conditions of 610 ± 25 °C and 7.5 ± 0.5 kbar, whereas, in the MCT shear zone rock CHG14103, monazite crystallized from 13.8 ± 0.5 to 11.9 ± 0.3 Ma at lower grade conditions of 525 ± 25 °C and 6 ± 1 kbar. The P–T–t results indicate that the shear zone experienced a complicated slip history, and have implications for the understanding of mid‐crustal extrusion and the role of out‐of‐sequence thrusts in convergent plate tectonic settings.     

Rainfall thresholds for landsliding in the Himalayas of Nepal

Landsliding of the hillslope regolith is an important source of sediment to the fluvial network in the unglaciated portions of the Himalayas of Nepal. These landslides can produce abrupt increases of up to three orders of magnitude in the fluvial sediment load in less than a day. An analysis of 3 years of daily sediment load and daily rainfall data defines a relationship between monsoonal rainfall and the triggering of landslides in the Annapurna region of Nepal. Two distinct rainfall thresholds, a seasonal accumulation and a daily total, must be overcome before landslides are initiated. To explore the geomorphological controls on these thresholds, we develop a slope stability model, driven by daily rainfall data, which accounts for changes in regolith moisture. The pattern of rainfall thresholds predicted by the model is similar to the field data, including the decrease in the daily rainfall threshold as the seasonal rainfall accumulation increases. Results from the model suggest that, for a given hillslope, regolith thickness determines the seasonal rainfall necessary for failure, whereas slope angle controls the daily rainfall required for failure.     

The quaternary glacial history of the Lahul Himalaya,northern India

This paper presents the first glacial chronology for the Lahul Himalaya, Northern India. The oldest glaciation, the Chandra Glacial Stage, is represented by glacially eroded benches at altitudes greater than 4300 m above sea-level. This glaciation was probably of a broad valley type. The second glaciation, the Batal Glacial Stage, is represented by highly weathered and dissected lateral moraines, which are present along the Chandra valley and some of its tributaries. This was an extensive valley glaciation. The third major glaciation, the Kulti Glacial Stage, is represented by well-preserved moraines in the main tributary valleys of the Chandra valley. This represents a less extensive valley glaciation. Two minor glacial advances, the Sonapani I and II, are represented by small sharp-crested moraines, which are within a few hundred metres or few kilometres of the present-day glaciers. The change in style and extent of glaciation is attributed to an increase in aridity throughout the Quaternary, due either to global climatic change or uplift of the Pir Panjal mountains to the south of Lahul, which restricted the northward penetration of the south Asian summer monsoon. © 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

地表剥蚀、下地壳流变与造山作用研究进展

岩石圈的流变特性研究已经成为固体地球科学研究中的重要领域,是地球科学新理论、新观点的重要渊源。最近的研究表明,下地壳普遍存在的韧性流是造山作用的重要制约因素。在下地壳物质层流变作用机制的调节下,地表剥蚀作用并不仅仅是传统意义上地表夷平的因素,它还能打破地壳动力学和热力学平衡,引起地壳内物质和结构的重置,进而促成山脉的加剧隆升;地表剥蚀作用的强度既受控于造山带的抬升,也受制于地球外圈层(大气圈、水圈、生物圈)。以天山山脉和喜马拉雅山山脉的隆起、喜马拉雅山山脉的变质作用以及相关的构造活动为例,说明在造山过程中,尽管传统意义上的造山作用与地球内部动力过程,即构造作用有密切联系,但是与构造运动的时空尺度不同,地表剥蚀作用也能够在相对较小的时空尺度内,通过影响和控制造山带下地壳的韧性流动,成为地壳抬升和造山带构造演化的重要动力因素。对地壳的流变特性和变质变形研究是当前地球系统科学研究的一个重要切入点。     

喜马拉雅山脉中段土地覆被的垂直分异特征

喜马拉雅山脉中段的珠穆朗玛峰等地,海拔高差巨大、生境复杂多变、土地覆被类型多样且植被垂直带谱完整,是全球范围内研究土地覆被垂直变化的理想场所。本文基于30 m空间分辨率的土地覆被数据（2010年）和DEM数据,在ArcGIS和Matlab平台的支持下,提出并运用脊线法、样带法和扇区法3种山地南北坡划分方法,研究了喜马拉雅山土地覆被垂直分布与结构差异。结果表明：① 山地土地覆被分布具有明确的垂直地带性结构特征,喜马拉雅中部土地覆被垂直带谱为南六北四式,土地覆被垂直带谱中具有人类活动的特点。② 南北坡之间的土地覆被垂直带谱差异明显,南坡土地覆被类型完整多样,北坡相对简单;对同类型土地覆被而言,南坡较北坡分布高程低、幅度宽。③ 依据各类型分布面积比随海拔变化情况,土地覆被类型在南北坡上的垂直分布可分为4种模式：冰川雪被、稀疏植被和草地为单峰分布型,裸地为南单峰北双峰分布型。④ 3种划分方法中,南坡的土地覆被垂直带结构具有相似性,而北坡的土地覆被垂直带结构存在差异,扇区法较好地反映了土地覆被自然分布格局。     

Spatial and seasonal variation of major ions in Himalayan snow and ice: A source consideration

The spatial and temporal variation of major ions (Ca²⁺, Mg²⁺, Na⁺, K⁺, , , and Cl⁻) in Himalayan snow and ice is investigated by using two snow pits from the East Rongbuk glacier (28°01′N, 86°58′E, 6500 m a.s.l.), one snow pit from the Nangpai Gosum glacier (28°03′N, 86°39′E, 5700 m a.s.l.), one snow pit from the Gyabrag glacier (28°11′N, 86°38′E, 6303 m a.s.l.), and three ice cores from the Sentik (35°59′N, 75°58′E, 4908 m a.s.l.), Dasuopu (28°33′N, 85°44′E, 7000 m a.s.l.), and East Rongbuk (27°59′N, 86°55′E, 6450 m a.s.l.) glaciers, respectively. In general, the major ions show a significant seasonal variation, with high concentrations during the non-monsoon (pre-monsoon and post-monsoon) season and relatively low concentrations during the monsoon season. Monsoon precipitation with high local/regional dust loading related to summer circulation is possibly responsible for the high concentrations occurring sporadically during the monsoon season. The crest of the Himalayas is an effective barrier to the spatial distribution of Na⁺, Cl⁻ and concentrations, but not to the major ions associated with dust influx (e.g. Ca²⁺ and Mg²⁺). Atmospheric backward trajectories from the HYSPLIT_4 model used in identifying chemical species sourcing suggest that the major ions in the Himalayan snow and ice come mainly from the Thar Desert located in the North India, as well as West Asia, or even the distant Sahara Desert in the North Africa during the winter and spring seasons. This is different from the conventionally assumed arid and semi-arid regions of the central Asia. Factors, such as different vapor sources due to atmospheric circulation patterns and geographical features (e.g. altitude, topography), may contribute to the differences in major ionic concentrations between the western and eastern Himalayas.