Geological, Geophysical and Geodetic Study of the Longmen Shan/Sichuan Basis Area, China: A Test of Cenozoic Tectonic Models for Eurasia

该项目涉及青藏高原东缘龙门山和四川盆地新近纪、第四纪和活动变形的多学科研究。这项研究将由麻省理工学院和位于中国的成都地质矿产研究所的科学家联合进行，内容包括：1)老构造的野外填图，以确定龙门山及其邻区的新生代构造演化：2)这部分高原边缘年轻活动断裂的新构造研究；3)11个站点的GPS网，以建立该地区内的地壳活动应变图；以及4)四川盆地的地质和地球物理(挠曲和重力)研究。首席调查员计划用各种各样的技术来解决这一问题，这将相互补充和加强，从而尽可能提供关于区域变形的最完整的图景。该项目的近期目标是记录青藏高原东缘的新生代变形历史，但该项目最广泛的目标是更好地了解西藏、中国和东南亚大陆内变形的性质。

This project involves a five-year multidisciplinary study of the Neogene, Quaternary and active deformation of the Longmen Shan and Sichuan Basin, located along the eastern margin of the Tibetan plateau. This study, to be conducted jointly by scientists at MIT and at the Chengdu Institute of Geology and Mineral Resources in China, will consist of: 1) Field mapping of older structures to determine the Cenozoic tectonic evolution along the Longmen Shan and adjacent areas; 2) A neotectonic study of young and active faults in this portion of the plateau margin; 3) An 11-site GPS network to establish a map of active crustal strain within the area; and 4) A geological and geophysical (flexural and gravity) study of the Sichuan basin. The wide variety of techniques with which the Principal Investigators plan to address this problem will complement and enhance one another, and thereby provide the most complete picture of regional deformation possible. The immediate goal of this project is to document the Cenozoic deformation history of the eastern margin of the Tibetan plateau, but the broadest aim of the project is to develop a better understanding of the nature of intracontinental deformation in Tibet, China and southeast Asia.