Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Rui Zhang, Xiaohao Wei, Vadim A. Kravchinsky, Leping Yue, Yan Zheng, Jie Qin, Lijun Yang, Minghao Ma, Feng Xian, Hujun Gong, Yunxiang Zhang, Xiaofan Liu
Summary: In the late Miocene record of geomagnetic reversals in the Linxia Basin in China, two tiny wiggles (TWs) were identified through magnetostratigraphy dating and spectral analysis. The presence of these TWs was confirmed by orbital calibration of the age model using eccentricity, obliquity, and precession in magnetic susceptibility and sedimentary grain size records.
GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH LETTERS
(2021)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Shi-Qi Wang, Jimin Sun, Chunxiao Li, Shi-Jie Li, Jiao Fu, Qigao Jiangzuo, Luda Xing, Rong Yang
Summary: This study reports the discovery of a fossil dwarf antelope, Linxiatragus dengi, from the early Late Miocene in the Linxia Basin, NE Tibetan Plateau. This is the first fossil dwarf antelope found outside of Africa. The study suggests that L. dengi might have been a grazer, in contrast to the browsing behavior of extant dwarf antelopes.
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
Xiaoming Shen, Jean Braun, Xiaoping Yuan
Summary: This research demonstrates that the shape of the southeastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau has remained unchanged in the past 10 million years, despite extensive exhumation. The finding has important implications for our understanding of the evolution of Earth's climate and biodiversity in the recent geological past.
EARTH AND PLANETARY SCIENCE LETTERS
(2022)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Yihui Zhang, Huiping Zhang, Zifa Ma, Yizhou Wang, Xudong Zhao
Summary: The uplift history of the North Eastern Tibetan Plateau (NETP) can be reconstructed by inverting the channel profiles of the Yellow River and its tributaries. The relative uplift history shows two pulses of change in the uplift rates at around 5 Ma and 2 Ma, consistent with recent findings on the deformation records in the NE Tibetan Plateau. It is suggested that Late Miocene-Pliocene landscape evolution was driven by both tectonics and climate change, and the inversion of transient longitudinal channel profiles can provide broader insights into the growth patterns of the NE Tibetan Plateau.
JOURNAL OF THE GEOLOGICAL SOCIETY
(2023)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Zhengchuang Hui, Jia Liu, Manuel Chevalier, Xiao Wei, Peng Chen, Jun Zhang, Tingjiang Peng, Xuewen Zhou
Summary: Understanding the evolution of the East Asian Summer Monsoon (EASM) at different time scales is important for revealing the interactions between the hydrosphere, land, oceans, and atmosphere. By studying the late Miocene period, researchers have reconstructed the EASM precipitation and found that it is influenced by global climate and the uplift of the Tibetan Plateau. Additionally, on orbital time scales, the eccentricity periodicity plays a dominant role in the EASM precipitation cycles.
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Rui Zhang, Xiaojuan Li, Yong Xu, Jianxing Li, Lu Sun, Leping Yue, Feng Pan, Feng Xian, Xiaohao Wei, Yuge Cao
Summary: This study conducted magnetostratigraphy and cyclostratigraphy on an eolian red clay sequence in the eastern Chinese Loess Plateau, and found that the unconventional 173-kyr obliquity modulated cycle is significant for reconstructing terrestrial air circulation and shows distinct characteristics in the cyclic sedimentary patterns of East Asia monsoon deposits.
GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH LETTERS
(2022)
Article
Geography, Physical
Jimin Sun, Morteza Sheykh, Nahid Ahmadi, Mengmeng Cao, Zhiliang Zhang, Shengchen Tian, Jingeng Sha, Zhimin Jian, Brian F. Windley, Morteza Talebian
Summary: The closure of the Tethyan Seaway in the Miocene influenced global climatic changes, and the Northwest segment closed permanently around 12.8 million years ago. Global climatic change controlled marine transgressions and regressions in the region through its impact on ice sheets and sea level changes. Analyses of the sedimentary sequences suggest that Earth's eccentricity cycles controlled the marine fluctuations between 15.0 and 12.8 million years ago.
PALAEOGEOGRAPHY PALAEOCLIMATOLOGY PALAEOECOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Wenxia Han, Chengcheng Ye, Shuang Lue, Tao Zhang, Xiaomin Fang, Weilin Zhang, Yibo Yang, Maodu Yan
Summary: The discovery of hominoids in the southeastern Tibetan Plateau has shed light on the importance of the region as a refuge for hominoids. A recently investigated sedimentary sequence has provided insights into the living environment that attracted hominoids to the area, suggesting a hot and humid climate influenced by the South Asian monsoon.
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Tao Zhang, Wenxia Han, Yahui Fang, Weilin Zhang, Siyuan Han, Qian Tian, Zhantao Feng, Chunhui Song, Xiaomin Fang
Summary: The hydrological cycles of lakes on the Tibetan Plateau have had significant impacts on the climatic and environmental evolution of the Asian interior. A study conducted in the Xining Basin in the Northeastern Tibetan Plateau revealed a fundamental reorganization of the lake hydrological system, which was synchronous with tectonic deformation and topographic growth. This suggests that tectonic activity was the principal factor responsible for the hydrological reorganization.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Weitao Wang, Peizhen Zhang, Carmala N. Garzione, Caicai Liu, Zhuqi Zhang, Jianzhang Pang, Yizhou Wang, Dewen Zheng, Wenjun Zheng, Huiping Zhang
Summary: The onset of mountain building along the margins of the Tibetan Plateau provides important constraints on the formation of the high topography in Eurasia. New evidence suggests that the Qaidam basin in the northern plateau formed later than previously thought, based on the age and provenance of Cenozoic sediments. The development of the Qilian Shan in the northeastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau occurred in two stages, starting at around 30 Ma and 10 Ma, respectively. Widespread synchronous deformation throughout the Tibetan Plateau and its margins, around 30 Ma and 10-15 Ma, suggests that mantle lithosphere removal may have contributed to these stages of outward growth.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2022)
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
Xiaomiao Li, Tingjiang Peng, Zhenhua Ma, Meng Li, Chunhui Song, Yuzhen Zheng, Zongjie Song
Summary: In this study, the late Miocene temperature and hydroclimate changes in the northeastern Tibetan Plateau were reconstructed. The results show a sustained decrease in temperature during this period, primarily due to global cooling. In contrast, humidity exhibits an increasing trend. This opposite evolution is likely caused by the weakening of the East Asian summer monsoon due to global cooling, leading to westward monsoonal moisture transport and increased precipitation.
Article
Geography, Physical
Bowen Song, Fei Hu, Yu Liang, Kexin Zhang, Junliang Ji, Thomas J. Algeo, James C. Hower, Tinglu Yang, Xu Zhang
Summary: The mechanisms and controls of the Middle-Late Miocene paleoenvironmental evolution of the northeastern Tibetan Plateau are investigated through an integrated multiproxy study of the Xigou section of the Xunhua Basin. The findings reveal changes in organic carbon isotopes and various proxy records, suggesting that the paleoenvironmental evolution of the Xunhua Basin is attributed to regional rainfall patterns related to orogenic uplift. The uplift of the Jishi Shan mountain range at 12.7 Ma acted as a barrier to Westerlies-transported moisture, while further uplift at -8 Ma caused the orogen to become a barrier to the East Asian monsoon, resulting in aridification of the Xunhua Basin.
PALAEOGEOGRAPHY PALAEOCLIMATOLOGY PALAEOECOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Zixian Zhao, Wei Shi, Yong Yang, Maotang Cai, Changfeng Liu, Xiaobo Liu, Tianyu Wang, Yuanfang Zhao, Qian Yang
Summary: The basin deposits of the northeastern Tibetan Plateau provide a valuable record for studying the plateau uplift and aridification in NW China. This study on drill core WW-01 in the Wuwei Basin reveals a long depositional-paleoenvironmental history from approximately 11.15 Ma to present, with significant changes in sedimentary environment and accumulation rate at around 8.25 and 2.58 Ma.
JOURNAL OF ASIAN EARTH SCIENCES
(2022)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Qian Tian, Xiaomin Fang, Yan Bai, Chihao Chen, Juzhi Hou, Tao Zhang
Summary: Recent analyses suggest that the ancient elevation of the Qaidam Basin was around 1488 meters above sea level, with a later uplift of about 1500 meters, in line with the massive tectonic changes and drying of inland Asia since the late Miocene.
FRONTIERS IN EARTH SCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
Quan Ou, Qiang Wang, Derek A. Wyman, Xiu-Zheng Zhang, Lu-Lu Hao, Ji-Peng Zeng, Jin-Hui Yang, Hai-Xiang Zhang, Ming-Cai Hou, Yue Qi, Zhao Liu
Summary: This study investigates the mechanism of partial melting of granulites through the investigation of late Miocene (ca. 6.0 Ma) silicic volcanic rocks in the Chibuzhangcuo area of Tibet. The results suggest that the residual granulite phase and peritectic minerals are likely to be preferentially entrained into the melt due to the erosion effect caused by the continued melt flow at the sites of melting.
Article
Microbiology
Peiyu Liu, Alima Tamaxia, Yan Liu, Hao Qiu, Juntong Pan, Zhongke Jin, Xiang Zhao, Andrew P. Roberts, Yongxin Pan, Jinhua Li
Summary: In this study, two magnetotactic Gammaproteobacteria strains were identified from a salt evaporation pool in Bohai Bay, eastern China. One strain, FZSR-2, was found to be the same species as previously discovered strains SHHR-1 and SS-5, while the other strain, FZSR-1, represents a novel species. The research highlights a relationship between magnetite morphology within the strains and the salinity of their environment.
ENVIRONMENTAL MICROBIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Peiyu Liu, Yue Zheng, Rongrong Zhang, Jinling Bai, Kelei Zhu, Karim Benzerara, Nicolas Menguy, Xiang Zhao, Andrew P. Roberts, Yongxin Pan, Jinhua Li
Summary: A general model for gene networks controlling magnetosome biogenesis and chain assembly in magnetotactic bacteria is proposed through comparative genomic and phenomic analysis. Magnetotactic bacteria (MTB) are a group of phylogenetically and morphologically diverse prokaryotes that can sense Earth's magnetic field via nanocrystals of magnetic iron minerals. The study of magnetosome biogenesis and organization in MTB has been limited to a few cultured strains, but this research presents an integrative genomic and phenomic analysis to investigate the genetic basis of magnetosome biomineralization in both cultured and uncultured strains from diverse MTB groups. The magnetosome gene contents/networks are correlated with magnetic particle morphology and chain configuration, and a general model for gene networks controlling magnetosome biogenesis and chain assembly in MTB systems is proposed.
NATIONAL SCIENCE REVIEW
(2023)
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
Victor A. Piedrahita, Xiang Zhao, Andrew P. Roberts, Eelco J. Rohling, David Heslop, Simone Galeotti, Laura Rodriguez-Sanz, Fabio Florindo, Katharine M. Grant
Summary: Carbon releases into the climate system result in global warming and ocean acidification, which can be reversed by carbon sequestration. However, the controls on carbon removal timescales and their dependence on initial perturbation amplitude are poorly understood. This study assesses late Paleocene-early Eocene (LPEE) carbon cycle perturbations to constrain carbon removal timescales and reveals accelerated carbon sequestration during LPEE carbon injection recovery. The short carbon removal timescales are likely related to accelerated oceanic biological pump and enhanced chemical weathering.
EARTH AND PLANETARY SCIENCE LETTERS
(2023)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Liao Chang, Zhaowen Pei, Pengfei Xue, Shishun Wang, Zhaoping Wang, Wout Krijgsman, Mark J. J. Dekkers
Summary: This study investigates the origin of multipolarity in Miocene greigite-bearing sediments using electron microscopic and magnetic analyses. It is found that there is a magnetic softening and partial transformation of iron sulfides to magnetite and pyrrhotite in the sediments, leading to the change from single polarity to multipolarity. A new greigite self-reversal model is proposed to explain the commonly observed antiparallel polarities, which has significant implications in geochronology, tectonics, and paleoenvironment.
GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH LETTERS
(2023)
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
Wentao Huang, Shanshan Niu, Mark J. Dekkers, Peter C. Lippert, Dario Bilardello, Peat Solheid, Bo Zhang, Guillaume Dupont-Nivet, Douwe J. J. van Hinsbergen, Lin Ding
Summary: Paleomagnetic investigations of Paleocene lavas from Dianzhong Formation in Linzhou basin of southern Lhasa terrane are essential for determining the timing and paleolatitude of the initial India-Asia collision. However, controversy exists regarding the preservation of primary remanent magnetization in these rocks. This study finds that hydrothermal alteration has significantly impacted the original magnetic carrier, resulting in the contamination or replacement of the primary remanence by thermoviscous and chemical remanent magnetizations.
JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH-SOLID EARTH
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Dunfan Wang, Andrew P. Roberts, Eelco J. Rohling, Weiqi Yao, Yi Zhong, Zhengquan Yao, Yang Lu, Qingsong Liu
Summary: Stimulation of the biological pump by iron-bearing dust in the eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean plays an important role in long-term carbon sequestration, but the impact of past dust fertilization on CO2 perturbations over major climate transitions is still debated.
COMMUNICATIONS EARTH & ENVIRONMENT
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Hong Ao, Eelco J. Rohling, Xinzhou Li, Yougui Song, Andrew P. Roberts, Yongming Han, Christopher J. Poulsen, Tara N. Jonell, Diederik Liebrand, Qiang Sun, Xinxia Li, Xiaoke Qiang, Peng Zhang, Mark J. Dekkers
Summary: Grain size and magnetic susceptibility records from the Chinese Loess Plateau and model simulations suggest that the dry and windy Asian glacials during the mid-Pleistocene transition were likely caused by the expansion of the Northern Hemisphere ice sheet. The extreme glacial loess coarsening events at the onset and middle of the mid-Pleistocene transition reflect intensified Asian aridification and winter monsoon activity, coinciding with Northern Hemisphere glacial ice sheet expansion. These findings indicate that the dry and windy Asian glacials were driven by an amplified terrestrial climate response to the coincident Northern Hemisphere ice sheet expansion.
COMMUNICATIONS EARTH & ENVIRONMENT
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Zhiyong Lin, Harald Strauss, Joern Peckmann, Andrew P. Roberts, Yang Lu, Xiaoming Sun, Tingting Chen, Mathias Harzhauser
Summary: Sulphate deficiency in lake environments leads to increased atmospheric methane, while sulphate-driven anaerobic oxidation of methane (SD-AOM) is hindered. The study identifies abundant iron sulphide minerals in Lake Pannon sediments, indicating substantial methane consumption in the lake. These findings highlight the importance of sulphate in reducing methane release from lake sediments to the atmosphere.
COMMUNICATIONS EARTH & ENVIRONMENT
(2023)
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
Mark J. Dekkers, Wout Hanckmann, Simo Spassov, Thilo Behrends
Summary: Siderite is an important sink for iron in the geochemical cycling of iron, but its detection is challenging due to its fine-grained nature and low concentrations. This study explores the potential of low-temperature magnetometry for analyzing siderite. The results show that the presence of siderite can be best diagnosed by evaluating a combination of heating curves and the remanence ratio.
GEOCHEMISTRY GEOPHYSICS GEOSYSTEMS
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Liao Chang, Babette A. A. Hoogakker, David Heslop, Xiang Zhao, Andrew P. P. Roberts, Patrick De Deckker, Pengfei Xue, Zhaowen Pei, Fan Zeng, Rong Huang, Baoqi Huang, Shishun Wang, Thomas A. A. Berndt, Melanie Leng, Jan-Berend W. Stuut, Richard J. J. Harrison
Summary: By studying a long magnetofossil record from the eastern Indian Ocean, we found coexisting phenomena of magnetic hardening, enlargement, and less oxidation of magnetofossils during glacials compared to interglacials over the past 900,000 years. Our multi-proxy records consistently suggest a recurring decrease in O2 levels in the glacial Indian Ocean, similar to observations in the Atlantic and Pacific during the last glaciation. This repeated oxygen decline strongly supports the hypothesis that increased carbon storage in the Indian Ocean during glacial periods played a significant role in atmospheric CO2 cycling and climate change over recent glacial/interglacial timescales.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2023)
Editorial Material
Geochemistry & Geophysics
Isabelle Manighetti, Rachel Abercrombie, Yves Bernabe, Michael Bostock, Mark J. Dekkers, Satoshi Ide, Douglas R. Schmitt, Shin-Chan Han, Paul Tregoning
Summary: The editors of JGR-Solid Earth express their gratitude to the peer reviewers who contributed in reviewing articles for the journal in 2022.
JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH-SOLID EARTH
(2023)
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
David Heslop, Janice L. Scealy, Andrew T. A. Wood, Lisa Tauxe, Andrew P. Roberts
Summary: Paleomagnetic statistical inference is often hindered by distributional assumptions of parametric null hypothesis tests. To address this, the bootstrap method has been proposed as a nonparametric alternative. However, the current bootstrap test for a common mean direction in paleomagnetic analysis lacks consideration of a null hypothesis. In this study, we integrate recent advances to incorporate bootstrap tests into a null hypothesis significance testing framework, improving interpretability and unifying paleomagnetic statistical tests.
JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH-SOLID EARTH
(2023)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Rick Hennekam, Katharine M. M. Grant, Eelco J. J. Rohling, Rik Tjallingii, David Heslop, Andrew P. P. Roberts, Lucas J. J. Lourens, Gert-Jan Reichart
Summary: The Ti/Al ratio in eastern Mediterranean sediments can provide valuable records of North African climate changes. X-ray fluorescence core scanning (XRF-CS) is an effective method for generating continuous Ti/Al records, but accurate calibration is crucial. By analyzing a long sediment record, we observed a direct control of low-latitude insolation on North African aridity and humidity, with a subdued relationship after the mid-Pleistocene transition (MPT).
CLIMATE OF THE PAST
(2022)
Correction
Environmental Sciences
Katharine M. Grant, Udara Amarathunga, Jessica D. Amies, Pengxiang Hu, Yao Qian, Tiah Penny, Laura Rodriguez-Sanz, Xiang Zhao, David Heslop, Diederik Liebrand, Rick Hennekam, Thomas Westerhold, Stewart Gilmore, Lucas J. Lourens, Andrew P. Roberts, Eelco J. Rohling
COMMUNICATIONS EARTH & ENVIRONMENT
(2022)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Katharine M. Grant, Udara Amarathunga, Jessica D. Amies, Pengxiang Hu, Yao Qian, Tiah Penny, Laura Rodriguez-Sanz, Xiang Zhao, David Heslop, Diederik Liebrand, Rick Hennekam, Thomas Westerhold, Stewart Gilmore, Lucas J. Lourens, Andrew P. Roberts, Eelco J. Rohling
Summary: Dark organic-rich layers have accumulated in Mediterranean sediments since the Miocene. Through studying high-resolution geochemical and environmental magnetic records, it is found that organic burial intensified 3.2 million years ago, possibly due to a sudden nonlinear change in the environment of North Africa. This finding is of great significance for understanding environmental evolution.
COMMUNICATIONS EARTH & ENVIRONMENT
(2022)
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
Lingyu Zhang, Kristoffer Szilas
Summary: This study presents new petrological and geochemical data for the Narssaq Ultramafic Body (NUB) in the Itsaq Gneiss Complex of SW Greenland. The results indicate that the ultramafic rocks of NUB are not mantle residues, but instead represent crustal cumulates derived from high-Mg magmas.
EARTH AND PLANETARY SCIENCE LETTERS
(2024)
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
Rong Xu, Sarah Lambart, Oliver Nebel, Ming Li, Zhongjie Bai, Junbo Zhang, Ganglan Zhang, Jianfeng Gao, Hong Zhong, Yongsheng Liu
Summary: This study investigated the iron isotope compositions of Cenozoic basalts in Southeast China, finding significant variations related to different types of basalts and their respective sources.
EARTH AND PLANETARY SCIENCE LETTERS
(2024)
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
C. J. Ebinger, Miriam C. Reiss, Ian Bastow, Mary M. Karanja
Summary: The East African rift system is formed above mantle upwellings and the formation of rifts is related to lithospheric thinning and magmatic activity. The amount of splitting varies spatially and the fast axes are predominantly parallel to the orientation of the rifts. Thick lithospheric modules have less splitting and different orientations, which may indicate mantle plume flow. Splitting rotates and increases in strength as it enters the rift zones, suggesting that the anisotropy is mainly present at shallow depths.
EARTH AND PLANETARY SCIENCE LETTERS
(2024)
Correction
Geochemistry & Geophysics
Ekaterina Rojas-Kolomiets, Owen Jensen, Michael Bizimis, Gene Yogodzinski, Lukas Ackerman
EARTH AND PLANETARY SCIENCE LETTERS
(2024)
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
Robert W. Nicklas, Igor S. Puchtel, Ethan F. Baxter
Summary: Oxygen fugacity is a fundamental parameter for understanding redox processes in igneous systems. This study compares the Fe-XANES oxybarometry method with the V-in-olivine method for evaluating fO(2) in MORB lavas. The results show that the V-in-olivine method is not applicable to samples with low MgO content, and that the majority of Archean komatiite sources have lower fO(2) than modern MORB.
EARTH AND PLANETARY SCIENCE LETTERS
(2024)
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
Chunfei Chen, Stephen F. Foley, Sebastian Tappe, Huange Ren, Lanping Feng, Yongsheng Liu
Summary: The volatile components CO2 and H2O play a major role in mantle melting and heterogeneity. In this study, Ca isotopes were used to trace the lithological heterogeneity in alkaline magmatic rocks. The results revealed the presence of K-richterite and carbonate components as the source of alkaline magmas with low delta 44/40Ca values. These findings highlight the importance of Ca isotopes as a robust tracer of lithological variation caused by volatiles in the Earth's upper mantle.
EARTH AND PLANETARY SCIENCE LETTERS
(2024)
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
Timothee Jautzy, Gilles Rixhon, Regis Braucher, Romain Delunel, Pierre G. Valla, Laurent Schmitt, Aster Team
Summary: Although the current approach to estimate catchment-wide denudation rates using only 10Be concentrations has made significant progress in geomorphology, this study argues for the inclusion of 26Al measurements and testing of steady-state assumptions in slow eroding, formerly glaciated landscapes. The study conducted measurements of both 10Be and 26Al in stream sediments from the Vosges Massif in France and found that elevation, slope, channel steepness, and precipitation were the primary factors controlling denudation rates. The study also revealed a significant relationship between the extent of past glaciation and the cosmogenic (un-)steadiness in the stream sediments.
EARTH AND PLANETARY SCIENCE LETTERS
(2024)
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
Erik van der Wiel, Douwe J. J. van Hinsbergen, Cedric Thieulot, Wim Spakman
Summary: Numerical models of Earth's mantle dynamics can predict the vigour and mixing of mantle flow, and the average slab sinking rates are an unexplored parameter that can provide intrinsic information on these characteristics. Through numerical experiments, it has been found that slab sinking rates are strongly correlated with mantle convection and mixing, and may explain geochemical observations from hotspot volcanoes.
EARTH AND PLANETARY SCIENCE LETTERS
(2024)
