Early Mesozoic deformations of the eastern Yanshan thrust belt, northern China

Abstract

The Yanshan thrust belt (YTB) is located at the northern edge of the North China plate. Because of the intense thicking and subsequent delamination of the lithosphere in north China, geologists have been focused on the Late Mesozoic deformation in the Yanshan belt. The Yanshan belt has been regarded as part of a stable craton from the Proterozoic to the early Mesozoic. In this paper, the authors present that the Yanshan area was deformed during the early Mesozoic. This deformation could be related to ocean basin closure along the northern margin of North China, or related to the collision between the north China and Yangtze Plates along the Qinling-Dabie ultrahigh pressure belt. Three stages of early Mesozoic deformation are identified in the eastern Yanshan at Lingyuan County. The first stage is characterized by westward thrusting (D1), the second stage comprises a top-to-east thrust system (D2), and the third stage comprises extensional gravity-induced collapse and landsliding (D3). The timing of these evens is constrained by both the crosscutting relationships of faults and the isotopic dating of volcanic rocks and gravels. The D1 and D2 events took place in the Late Triassic and Early Jurassic, whereas D3 event occurred at the end of the Middle Jurassic. The Dengzhangzi formation was deposited during the D1–D2 period and recorded a rapid uplift, erosion, and deposition sequence. These early Mesozoic contractional deformations in the YTB were probably related to the closure of ancient Asian ocean and ancient Qinling ocean. The later crustal extension was caused by gravitational collapse of the eastern China plateau during early Mesozoic.