Neogene continental climate dynamics prior to the late Miocene uplift of the Northern Tien Shan (Kazakhstan)

由于印度与亚洲的碰撞，中亚大陆的环境在新生代期间见证了沙漠化的增加和季风气候的建立。这些大陆尺度的气候变化与山脉的隆起有关，如西藏-喜马拉雅复杂的山脉和Paratethys的最终撤退。然而，它们与全球气候演变的相互作用及其时间还没有得到很好的限制，部分原因是缺乏可用的数据。伊犁盆地（哈萨克斯坦天山北部）阿克套山暴露的渐新世-中新世序列，由于其厚度高、暴露程度好，具有作为中亚大陆古气候动力学档案的巨大潜力。我们在此提议到阿克套山进行实地考察和后续的实验室工作。我们的目标是以高分辨率记录演替，以便进行以下工作：(1)基于现代沉积学概念对沉积相进行现场评估；（ii）记录可能的不连续性；（三）评估古生物形态的保存状况。如果我们的侦察工作证明是成功的，我们计划在未来的提案中应用后续研究。

Continental settings of Central Asia witnessed increased desertification and the establishment of a monsoonal climate during the Cenozoic as a result of India’s collision with Asia. These continental-scale climate shifts are connected to the uplift of mountain ranges such as the Tibetan-Himalaya complex and the final retreat of the Paratethys. However, their interplay with the global climate evolution and their timing is yet poorly constrained, partially because of the paucity of available data. An Oligocene-Miocene succession exposed in the Aktau Hills, Ili Basin (northern Tien Shan, Kazakhstan), has a great potential as an archive for continental paleoclimate dynamics in Central Asia because of its high thickness and excellent exposure. We here propose to carry out a reconnaissance field trip to the Aktau Hills and follow-up laboratory work. Our objective is to document the succession in high resolution in order to perform (i) an on-site evaluation of the sedimentary facies based on modern sedimentological concepts; (ii) to document possible discontinuities; and (iii) to evaluate the state of preservation of palynomorphs. If our reconnaissance work proves successful, follow-up studies are planned to be applied in future proposals.