Collaborative Research: Hypothesis Testing of a Mediterranean-style Closure of the Paleo-Tethys Ocean

在与地球板块构造系统相关的地质时间尺度上，海洋盆地的生成和破坏是一个基本过程，它强烈影响气候模式和海洋环流、造山活动的位置和时间以及生物的进化和分布。该项目正在检验一种假设，即古特提斯洋-欧亚大陆和冈瓦纳之间的一个古老洋盆-以类似于现代西地中海正在关闭的构造方式关闭。这一假说的动机是在亚洲的古代大陆-大陆碰撞带的地质遗迹的古特提斯洋和现代西地中海地区的构造组合惊人的相似性的地理接近。我们正在测试的地中海式模型与其他构造模型相反，这些模型认为大陆之间的碰撞和大陆地壳的高压变质标志着海洋盆地的消亡和海洋俯冲的结束。相比之下，地中海式的模型涉及到与碰撞大陆相邻的海洋盆地的诞生和快速扩张。除了明确测试地中海式的古特提斯洋关闭，替代假设将隐含在这个项目中进行测试。假设检验将涉及对青藏高原及其周边地区的岩石进行结构和地层分析，以及确定个别矿物和岩石样品的年龄和地球化学成分。该项目是罗切斯特大学和西弗吉尼亚大学的教师、研究人员和学生与中国科学院青藏高原研究所的科学家沿着开展的一项多学科合作研究。

The generation and destruction of ocean basins on geologic timescales associated with Earth's plate tectonic system is a fundamental process that strongly influences climate patterns and ocean circulation, the location and timing of mountain building events, and the evolution and distribution of organisms. This project is testing the hypothesis that the Paleo-Tethys Ocean--an ancient ocean basin between Eurasia and Gondwana--closed in a tectonic style analogous to the modern ongoing closure of the western Mediterranean Sea. This hypothesis is motivated by the geographical proximity of ancient continent-continent collision zones within Asia to the geologic remnants of the Paleo-Tethys Ocean and the striking similarity of this tectonic assemblage to the modern western Mediterranean region. The Mediterranean-style model we are testing is counter to other tectonic models that suggest collisions between continents and high-pressure metamorphism of continental crust marks the demise of an ocean basin and the end of oceanic subduction. In contrast, the Mediterranean-style model involves the birth and rapid expansion of an ocean basin adjacent to the colliding continents. In addition to explicitly testing a Mediterranean-style closure of the Paleo-Tethys Ocean, alternative hypotheses will be implicitly tested in this project. Hypothesis testing will involve the structural and stratigraphic analysis of rocks in and around the Tibetan Plateau, and the determination of ages and geochemical compositions of individual minerals and rock samples. This project is a multi-disciplinary and collaborative research effort between faculty, researchers, and students at the University of Rochester and the West Virginia University along with scientists from the Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research in the Chinese Academy of Sciences.