Late Miocene Uplift and Exhumation of the Lesser Himalaya Recorded by Clumped Isotope Compositions of Detrital Carbonate

U. Ryb*, C. Ponton, C. France-Lanord, K. Yoshida, J. M. Eiler

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

The Himalaya orogen evolved since the Eocene as the Tethyan-, Greater-, Lesser- and Sub-Himalaya thrust sheets were uplifted and exhumed in sequence. Reconstructing the provenance of sediment in Himalayan River systems can inform on stages in the tectonic history of the orogen. Here, we analyze the oxygen, carbon and “clumped” isotope compositions of carbonate minerals from Himalayan bedrock, Ganga River sediments and Bengal Fan turbidite deposits. We demonstrate that river sediments consist of a mixture of Himalayan-derived and authigenic calcite precipitated in the river system. The relative abundance and clumped isotope apparent temperatures of detrital calcite in turbidite deposits decreased between the Late Miocene and Pliocene, while chemical weathering intensity did not increase during this interval. Considered together, these results reflect the establishment of the Lesser Himalaya as an important carbonate sediment source for Himalayan rivers, driven by the uplift and exhumation of this thrust sheet.

Original languageEnglish
Article numbere2024GL109643
JournalGeophysical Research Letters
Volume51
Issue number21
DOIs
StatePublished - 16 Nov 2024

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2024. The Author(s).

Keywords

  • Bay of Bengal
  • clumped isotope thermometry
  • detrital record
  • Himalaya
  • provenance

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