The metamorphism and exhumation of the Himalayan metamorphic core, eastern Garhwal region, India

[1] Geothermobarometric together with micro- and macro-structural data indicate ductile flow in the metamorphic core of the Himalaya in the Garhwal region of India. Peak metamorphic pressure and temperature increase dramatically across the Main Central Thrust (MCT) from ~5 kbar and ~550°C in the Les...

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Main Authors: Spencer, Christopher, Harris, R., Dorais, M.J.
Format: Journal Article
Published: American Geophysical Union 2012
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/3480
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author Spencer, Christopher
Harris, R.
Dorais, M.J.
author_facet Spencer, Christopher
Harris, R.
Dorais, M.J.
author_sort Spencer, Christopher
building Curtin Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description [1] Geothermobarometric together with micro- and macro-structural data indicate ductile flow in the metamorphic core of the Himalaya in the Garhwal region of India. Peak metamorphic pressure and temperature increase dramatically across the Main Central Thrust (MCT) from ~5 kbar and ~550°C in the Lesser Himalayan Crystalline Sequence (LHCS) to ~14 kbar and ~850°C at ~3 km above the MCT in the Greater Himalayan Sequence (GHS). Pressures within the GHS then decrease upsection to ~8 kbar while temperatures remain nearly constant at ~850°C up to the structurally overlying South Tibetan Detachment (STD). The GHS exhibits sheath fold geometries are indicative of high degrees of ductile flow. Overprinting ductile structures are two populations of extensional conjugate fractures and normal faults oriented both parallel and perpendicular to the orogen. These fractures crosscut major tectonic boundaries in the region such as the MCT and STD, and are found throughout the LHCS, GHS, and Tethyan Sedimentary Sequence (TSS). The thermobarometric and metamorphic observations are consistent with a form of channel flow. However, channel flow does not account for exhumational structures that formed above the brittle-ductile transition. To explain all of the features seen in the metamorphic core of the Garhwal region of the Himalaya, both the theories of channel flow and critical taper must be taken into account. Channel flow can explain the exhumation of the GHS from the middle crust to the brittle-ductile transition. The most recent extensional deformation is consistent with a supercritical wedge.
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spelling curtin-20.500.11937-34802017-09-13T14:45:49Z The metamorphism and exhumation of the Himalayan metamorphic core, eastern Garhwal region, India Spencer, Christopher Harris, R. Dorais, M.J. [1] Geothermobarometric together with micro- and macro-structural data indicate ductile flow in the metamorphic core of the Himalaya in the Garhwal region of India. Peak metamorphic pressure and temperature increase dramatically across the Main Central Thrust (MCT) from ~5 kbar and ~550°C in the Lesser Himalayan Crystalline Sequence (LHCS) to ~14 kbar and ~850°C at ~3 km above the MCT in the Greater Himalayan Sequence (GHS). Pressures within the GHS then decrease upsection to ~8 kbar while temperatures remain nearly constant at ~850°C up to the structurally overlying South Tibetan Detachment (STD). The GHS exhibits sheath fold geometries are indicative of high degrees of ductile flow. Overprinting ductile structures are two populations of extensional conjugate fractures and normal faults oriented both parallel and perpendicular to the orogen. These fractures crosscut major tectonic boundaries in the region such as the MCT and STD, and are found throughout the LHCS, GHS, and Tethyan Sedimentary Sequence (TSS). The thermobarometric and metamorphic observations are consistent with a form of channel flow. However, channel flow does not account for exhumational structures that formed above the brittle-ductile transition. To explain all of the features seen in the metamorphic core of the Garhwal region of the Himalaya, both the theories of channel flow and critical taper must be taken into account. Channel flow can explain the exhumation of the GHS from the middle crust to the brittle-ductile transition. The most recent extensional deformation is consistent with a supercritical wedge. 2012 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/3480 10.1029/2010TC002853 American Geophysical Union fulltext
spellingShingle Spencer, Christopher
Harris, R.
Dorais, M.J.
The metamorphism and exhumation of the Himalayan metamorphic core, eastern Garhwal region, India
title The metamorphism and exhumation of the Himalayan metamorphic core, eastern Garhwal region, India
title_full The metamorphism and exhumation of the Himalayan metamorphic core, eastern Garhwal region, India
title_fullStr The metamorphism and exhumation of the Himalayan metamorphic core, eastern Garhwal region, India
title_full_unstemmed The metamorphism and exhumation of the Himalayan metamorphic core, eastern Garhwal region, India
title_short The metamorphism and exhumation of the Himalayan metamorphic core, eastern Garhwal region, India
title_sort metamorphism and exhumation of the himalayan metamorphic core, eastern garhwal region, india
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/3480